FORT BENTON — The Lippard-Clawiter Foundation has been giving money to charitable agencies in Chouteau County for decades. In 2024, they invested nearly half a million dollars into the community.
“It’s fun, I mean, it’s a great… You get the warm feeling, you can give out these funds to people that you think deserve it,” said Allin Cheetham, President of the Board of Directors for the Lippard-Clawiter Foundation.
Cheetham joined the organization when they needed a lawyer in 1986 and hasn’t looked back.
Cheetham said, “It’s just something I can do to help benefit the local area.”
Since the foundation’s creation in the early 1980s, they’ve given over $11 million to Chouteau County, and last year was impressive as well.
Cheetham said, “It was just shy of $497,000 and change.”
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One of the organizations that benefitted this year was the Dedman Animal Shelter.
“I just called the board and I'm like, ‘Oh my gosh, we got a check for this.’ And everybody was so happy,” said Dedman Shelter Manager Katie Flynn.
Flynn needed money for the shelter’s septic system. It was so dire that she had to pay for it before it was approved.
Flynn said, “It was just very, you know, serendipitous that everything worked out together.”
Down on Front Street in Fort Benton, the Golden Age Center also benefitted from Lippard-Clawiter.
“Without those funds again, we would be in dire straits,” said Joanne Gould, President of the Golden Age Center.
Gould said they received money from the organization last year, and used it to fix their boilers. This year, the money is going toward their a/c unit and plumbing issues.
Gould said, “We're just very appreciative, for having received this grant. And we look forward to getting our project underway.”
Gould said, “This community really pulls together and supports one another.”
Cheetham said, “It's been a great pleasure and an honor to be involved in this.”
A brief history of the foundation:
The Foundation was incorporated August 19, 1980 as the Charles W. & Gina S. Lippard Foundation. They created and funded the Foundation to benefit the citizens of Chouteau County. Charles Lippard served on the board of directors until he passed away in 1993. The Foundation’s first distribution of funds was in 1982.
At the November 8, 1995 board meeting, it was approved to change the name of the Foundation to the Lippard-Clawiter Foundation to recognize the significant contributions to the Foundation by Max & Grace Clawiter. Max Clawiter served on the board of directors until he passed away in 2007.
The Foundation is tax-exempt organization recognized by the IRS as a private foundation. Current board of directors are Allin Cheetham (President), Stan Klimas (Vice President), Robert Quinn, Erik Engellant, and Bob Pasha. The Foundation has distributed a total of $11,021,764 to organizations located in Chouteau County since inception.
Only organizations located in Chouteau County are eligible to receive rants and must either be a tax-exempt organization designated by the IRS as 501(c)(3) or coordinate with an umbrella organization that is a 501(c)(3) organization to apply for funds.
The grant applications must be postmarked by September 30 each year. For more information, call 406-403-6838.
Among the dozens of agencies that have been helped by the foundation: Big Sandy Historical Society; Big Sandy Medical Center; Carter Volunteer Fire Department; Chouteau County Search & Rescue; Florence Dedman Animal Shelter; Geraldine Senior Citizens; Highwood Commercial Club; Shonkin Community Club; Town of Big Sandy.
