Stewart Family Foundation supports expansion in local nonprofits

Several Longmont-based nonprofits received donations from the Stewart Family Foundation last week along with other Boulder County and Denver metro organizations to continue the family’s legacy of philanthropy.

The Longmont Museum and The Learning Center, or TLC, each received $1 million, which were the most sizable donations provided by the foundation. Other smaller donations in Longmont included the Sunshine Club of Longmont, who was awarded $30,000, and St. Vrain Historical Society and Longmont Meals on Wheels, each awarded $17,500. 

“What the foundation is trying to do is to continue the legacy of the (Stewart) family by letting this money go to some major things they supported and we are continuing to support,” said Jim Newcomb, president of the Stewart Family Foundation. “We wanted to start spring out in the right way.” 

The donations come after the partial liquidation of Lila Jean Stewart’s assets. Stewart was a , longtime Longmont resident, who, at the time of her passing in 2019, left her family assets to charity and the money’s management to the foundation.

“They (the Stewart family) were involved and we just want to keep that going,” Newcomb said. 

When Stewart’s daughter and husband passed away in the late 2000s, she became heavily involved with The Learning Center, according to Matt Eldred, executive director at the TLC. 

“The TLC families and children were her family,” he said. “She would come here to see the kids, would come to all of our events and would help with any project we had.”

The latest donation is one in a long line of gifts the Stewart family has given to TLC. 

In December, the early childhood education nonprofit received $100,000 from the foundation in celebration of what would have been Stewart’s 88th birthday. Past gifts contributed to the development of the center’s ADA accessible playground, the rebuilding of an ADA accessible parking lot, landscaping and sidewalks fixtures and the full expansion of the therapy department. 

“She helped with large and small projects but the thing touched me the most was that Lila would be here doing projects and see families in need and individually help many of them, with gift cards, groceries, school supplies. She helped families personally above and beyond the TLC,” Necomb said. 

The TLC has earmarked $300,000 to offset the losses related to the COVID-19 pandemic, $200,000 will go to start the Stewart Family Scholarship Fund to sponsor low income families or families who would otherwise not be able to afford services at the center. 

The rest, $500,000, is earmarked for a capital expansion plan to grow TLC, said Eldred. “We know that we have a waitlist in all of our classrooms and therapy programs and we would like to expand and grow, and have a second location in Longmont.”

The Stewart Family Foundation donation to the Longmont Museum will also support the expansion of its services, according to Kim Manajek, director of Longmont Museum and Cultural Center.

Since Stewart’s death, the museum has seen several gifts from the foundation, including two donations, one  of $100,000 and another of $80,000 donation to fund its master development plan in 2019. 

“I think that eventually all of this philanthropy will lead to a building expansion, and they (the foundation) are committed to see that through,” Manajek said. 

Last week’s donation came as a surprise to the museum staff, who heard the news in person from Newcomb as he delivered the check. 

“We were all vibrating, we were so excited and the energy in the air was palpable. We all felt like ‘wow, we really can just do something more for the community, more and more and more,’” she said. “Especially during the pandemic and after the terrible thing that happened in Boulder. It's been a sad time and this was a moment when it felt like we could see some joy in the world.”

In 2020, the museum hosted 39 virtual and in-person programs through the Stewart Auditorium, a facility made possible through a Stewart Family Foundation donation in the early 2000s. The museum also served 192 students through its virtual summer camp program and 354 people through its virtual Art and Sip classes, according to Joan Harrold, marketing and development manager at the Longmont Museum.

It also developed 400 Discovery Days to provide free educational enrichment and entertainment to the community serving over 2,000 adults and children.

“They have been such wonderful listeners and beyond generous,” Manajek said. “I feel like they have listened to everything we’ve been talking about and attentive to what we need, and we keep talking about going to the next level.”

The role of the foundation is not to stay in existence forever but rather to step up and support during lean times and create a base upon which other people will be inspired to help out too, according to Newcomb. 

“Both of those two entities have good plans coming up and we’ve had some discussions on things we'd like to support,” he said. “They have some new exciting ideas for people in Longmont, and the foundation will help and assist to make (them) even better destination sites.”