WINGS Foundation: Making a Difference in the Lives of Women and Children in the Huron Area

Though the WINGS Foundation is just over a year old, its mission has roots nearly a century deep in the Huron, South Dakota community. WINGS–which stands for Women In Network Growing Stronger–was born from the ashes of the Young Women’s Christian Association (YWCA).

“Our name signifies that this foundation is going to take people places, and it’s going to allow some really amazing things to happen. The YWCA is no longer here in name, but is very much here in spirit,” shared Dawn Mutchelknaus, board chair of WINGS.

After a long legacy of assisting women in the Huron community, the board of directors for the YWCA was faced with an unfortunate decision to make. With a history of nearly 100 years in operation, the YWCA was successful at growing and changing with the times. But too many similar groups were providing duplicative services to what the YWCA was providing.

“We had to do some heartfelt searching as to what the future really looked like,” said Dawn, who was one of the board members assisting in shifting the YWCA into the WINGS Foundation.

The YWCA was asset rich, but cash poor. Because of this, they made the decision to sell buildings they owned to invest into the WINGS Foundation and carry the foundation into a new era.

To work through this transition, WINGS turned to the South Dakota Community Foundation to help manage their funds, and they felt confident they could move forward successfully with their assets protected for long-term success.

Dawn said that she is thankful for the choice they made to partner with the South Dakota Community Foundation. Not only is there opportunity for their funds to grow, but they can bring that funding back to the community of Huron–all while honoring the vision of the YWCA.

One of the ways they are making a positive difference is by partnering with the Huron Community Foundation to receive grant applications for review and distribute funds with a focus toward programs that specifically assist women and children. This kind of partnership allows the Huron Community Foundation to focus its efforts in other areas and allows WINGS to continue to make a real impact on the lives of women and children in the community.

“We’ve just begun to touch on what the funding is capable of doing,” said Dawn, sharing her excitement for what the future of WINGS has in store.