For Penny, a life of service

Tim Penny was serving in the U.S. House of Representatives when he first learned about the McKnight Foundation’s plan to establish six regional nonprofits in the wake of the mid-1980s farm crisis.

Massive increases in farm debt, coupled with falling commodity prices, a 1980 grain embargo, and severe droughts had resulted in thousands of family farm foreclosures. The economic pain spread deep into small, rural communities, sparking bank and other business failures.

“It was really hurting rural regions from one end of Minnesota to the other,” Penny said.

He worked with his colleagues on a farm debt restructuring bill that he said, “helped stop the hemorrhaging.” He was also aware of McKnight’s work and “very appreciative they came up with this idea” of regional foundations.

The Southern Minnesota Initiative Foundation (SMIF) made its first three investments in 1987, in the areas of Community Vitality, Early Childhood, and Economic Development.

After Penny retired from Congress in 1995, SMIF asked him to take on a few volunteer roles before he was hired as president and CEO in 2007. He said he was impressed with the nonprofit’s work in small business lending, entrepreneurship and economic development, early childhood, and other programs established over the previous 20 years.

“I was pretty happy with the portfolio of work,” he said.

This year, Penny retired. The nonprofit last month named Waseca County native Benya Kraus as its new leader; she started work this week.

Focus on collaboration

In recalling his own first days with SMIF, Penny said he brought with him a valuable lesson from his political career, “too few dollars over too many things are not going to make a difference… So, we really tried to build out the work we do in economic development, early childhood, and the entrepreneurial space.”

He placed a heavy focus on collaboration, coordinating and cooperating with the many organizations already doing work in those areas, “so our investments can achieve bigger results.”

Penny’s first year took a dramatic turn after a huge flood hit Rushford, a small community in Fillmore County, and surrounding areas.

“All of downtown Rushford was under water,” he said. “We saw the need and ramped up a business recovery program.”

Over a period of just two weeks, SMIF raised $850,000 for flood relief grants that to businesses in Rushford and some communities downstream.

“It was enough to get them started on their recovery. We learned that early money makes all the difference,” Penny said, adding the approach became a model for early recovery after disasters. “I’m very proud of what we created there.”

Today, one of his favorite initiatives centers around local foods–the processed meats, cheeses, sauces, beverages, and other items. It’s “one of the most effective and exciting collaborations we’ve been part of,” he said. “We see the potential for that to be a much bigger part of our local economy in southern Minnesota.”

SMIF reached out to organizations already working in that space and developed its “Grow a Farmer” loan fund, which provides up to $15,000 to help small scale farmers and particularly those who might not have access to traditional funding.

Working with Renewing the Countryside, a Hammond-based nonprofit, SMIF also launched the FEAST! Local Foods Network. There are two big events under that umbrella:

Held in November, the FEAST! Local Foods Marketplace, which Penny described as “a farmers market on steroids,” offers consumers the opportunity to shop with local food businesses at the Rochester Mayo Civic Center. It’s timed, he said, for holiday shopping, whether you’re looking for gifts or items to serve on your holiday table.

The FEAST! trade show, in March, introduces 60 exhibitors and caters more toward helping those businesses secure commercial contracts.

“That’s an example of collaboration at its best,” Penny said of the FEAST! Network.

Across the growing region, Penny said, there’s a movement among small towns to build on their assets. Folks in Henderson–population less than 1,000–created a hummingbird garden and annual festival, hosts car shows, and celebrates its connection to the late musician Prince, who filmed a scene from “Purple Rain” there.

Forty years ago, tiny Lanesboro was a town built almost exclusively on agriculture. Today, with an emphasis on cultural arts and the addition of some trendy shops, it’s a tourist destination.

“They’ve found different ways to build on what they have,” Penny said.

Touring the small towns in southern Minnesota has been Penny’s favorite part of his work at SMIF. Taken with the board of directors, the tours showcase the work the organization has done across the region.

“That’s probably my favorite day of the year,” Penny said, adding he also enjoys the local food events. “I grew up on a small, family farm, so local foods is something I’m very passionate about.”

Penny's lifetime of public service that began with his election to the Minnesota Senate in 1976–just two years after he picked up his degree in political science at Winona State University–will continue.

Though he’s stepping down, he plans to continue promoting the Acres for Good program, which allows people to consider land as a charitable gift.

“We’ll see to it the land is kept in production” by renting it out, he explained. After taxes and expenses, the rent would go to SMIF, community funds, or a fund created in the family’s name, to create a benefit to the region.

Penny will also help out by attending fundraisers for the 33 community funds in the region “and give my successor a weekend night off.”

What keeps him on the move when he could just retire and take it easy?

“My family goes back five generations in this region,” Penny said. “I’m just passionate about southern Minnesota and honored to have had the opportunity to play a small role in the success of this region.”