Les Garner Named Junior Achievement Business Hall of Fame Laureate
Greater Cedar Rapids Community Foundation | August 27th, 2019
The Greater Cedar Rapids Community Foundation is pleased to announce that our President & CEO Les Garner will be inducted into the Junior Achievement Corridor Business Hall of Fame. This honor recognizes Les' impact on our local nonprofit sector, his integrity as a community leader, and his commitment to advancing the quality of life and opportunities in the Corridor.
Les has led the Community Foundation since 2010. In that time, he has grown assets to from $91 million to $173 million. Les has also been instrumental in bringing multiple organizations and donors together to create the MICRO loan program and expand Kids on Course University. From 1994 to 2010, Les served as president of Cornell College in Mount Vernon, Iowa, where he led a $105 million effort to enhance the college's endowment and upgrade its facilities.
Throughout his life, Les has been committed to community service in a variety of ways. At Cornell, Les instituted a new student orientation volunteer service and led a group each year with his wife, Katrina. He also created a service learning and community service program which led to Cornell's Office of Civic Engagement. Les has served as president of the Cedar Rapids Chamber of Commerce and the Cedar Rapids Symphony, and has served on a variety of boards at the local, regional, national, and even international levels.
Junior Achievement of Eastern Iowa will present Les with this honor at a black-tie event on Thursday, September 19 at the Cedar Rapids Marriott. For more information on Junior Achievement or this event, visit https://www.juniorachievement.org/web/ja-easterniowa/.
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