Winker Charitable Trust Gift Boosts Endowment Past $11.3 Million
Through their planned giving, James and Marlene Winker, formerly of Sioux Falls, designated the Center for Western Studies as the recipient of a $250,000 gift, to be managed by the Sioux Falls Area Community Foundation (SFACF). James “Jim” Winker (1928-2017) retired in 1991 as vice president of Raven Industries, Inc., where he had worked since 1956.
In notifying Executive Director Dr. Harry Thompson in late June of the gift, Greg Winker, a son and trustee of the Winker Charitable Trust, wrote that the gift is “a reminder of how important your mission of preserving history was to my parents.”
Jim had met with Thompson (then curator and managing editor) in December 1995, and later that month the Sioux Falls Area Community Foundation awarded a $500 grant at Mr. Winker’s request toward archiving the J.R. Smith collection of Raven records at CWS. Both Jim Winker and J.R. Smith were among the original founders of Raven. In acknowledging the grant, Thompson wrote to Mr. Winker thanking him and asking that he deposit his own Raven papers at CWS.
Subsequent conversations between Mr. Winker and Collections Associate Liz Cisar took place in 2012 regarding his gift of a photograph by noted portrait photographer Yousuf Karsh of aviation pioneer and famed World War II air commander Jimmy Doolittle. In 2016 the Winker collection was eventually deposited at CWS by Jim’s son, Greg.
The extensive Winker collection (22 linear feet) documents the scientific ballooning conducted by General Mills’ Aeronautical Research Laboratories (1949-1954) and Raven Industries (1954-2013), including Aerostar International. Raven Industries is a manufacturer of many products, including hot air balloons that were important during the Cold War, farming equipment, plastic materials, and clothing products. Collection materials include reports, project proposals, historical documents, presentations by James Winker, and over 2,800 photographs.
Dr. Loren Amundson, M.D., was a beloved archives volunteer at CWS and a popular presenter at the Dakota Conference. He and his wife, Mavis, established endowments to support the archives and conference at both the SFACF and Augustana University, contributing significantly to the success of the Center’s $1.7 million endowment campaign, completed in 2013, with support from the National Endowment for the Humanities. With the Winker gift and $1 million in gifts raised through the recently completed Founders Campaign, endowments benefiting CWS now exceed $11.3 million.
Those interested in making an impactful gift to the Center for Western Studies through an endowment gift are encouraged to contact Executive Director Dr. Harry Thompson or Augustana Director of Development and Planned Giving Paul Rasmussen.