McKay takes reigns of Owatonna Foundation
Sara McKay has taken over as director of the Owatonna Foundation. She joined the Foundation last fall as administrative assistant and was promoted to director last week.
The trustees of the Owatonna Foundation didn’t have to look far to locate a new director.
Last week, Sara McKay of Owatonna was named executive director of the Foundation after serving as administrative assistant since last fall. McKay replaces Angela Wagner Gonzales who left earlier this year.
“I love Owatonna. It’s a very welcoming and generous community,” said McKay, who grew up in Owatonna and has raised her children in the community. Her grandchildren are now also being raised in Owatonna. “I just think Owatonna is great. There is so much potential here.”
McKay said her family has deep ties in the community. She recently learned that her grandfather, Jim Gaveske, had requested money from the Foundation in 1973 for portable seating at the Four Seasons Centre. Within days, the Foundation provided a check of $58,000 for the seats.
She rattled off an extensive list of what the Foundation has accomplished since its inception in 1958. The Foundation has provided $13 million to 300 projects over the past 65 years. In addition, 500 scholarships totaling $700,000 have been given out.
“We wouldn’t have a lot of the stuff we do in the community if it weren’t for generous people,” McKay said. “We support amenities that everyone can use. We have a lot of partnerships in the community,” she added.
As director, McKay plans to get out in the community to let folks know about the Foundation. “We want people to know our name,” she said. She noted how she found someone last week while doing a presentation at the American Legion that knew nothing about the Foundation.
Most importantly, McKay said, she wants people to know that every dollar given to the Foundation stays in the community. The Foundation has two grant cycles each year with the first batch for 2023 being awarded on June 20.
“Every dollar counts,” McKay said. “We don’t discriminate on any size of contribution or donation. Any donation is awesome.”
McKay is looking forward to the new Foundation Room at the soon-to-open Owatonna High School. The room will feature state-of-the-art technology and host meetings and banquets.
After graduating from Owatonna in 1987, McKay obtained a bachelor’s degree in physical education (non-teaching) and later a master’s degree in sport management/administration from Minnesota State University-Mankato.
She worked in the recreation department for the City of Waseca for 15 years before leaving in 2020. She took off some time to help her husband, Jeff McKay, with some medical issues. He is the retired Park & Rec director for the City of Owatonna.
McKay said she always knew the Owatonna Foundation made a big impact in the community. And now she will have a hand in guiding what that impact will look like in the future for the organization’s four core values of community, arts, recreation and education.
The Foundation’s office hours are 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Monday-Friday.