PCDC Plans Campaign Victory Celebration at Sun Theater

PCDC will celebrate a successful fund-raising campaign at its annual meeting on Thursday, March 31, at the renovated Sun Theater & Event Venue.

The event, which will include hors d’oeuvres and a showing of the movie ‘Field of Dreams’, will celebrate the investors who have pledged to help support the work of the Phelps County Development Corporation in the next five years.

“We are very pleased with how the campaign progressed,” PCDC Executive Director Ron Tillery said. “It shows the community is supportive and values the work we are doing, and they are willing to invest in PCDC and in growing the community.”

The GROW37 Partnership campaign started in early 2021 with the goal of raising funds to support PCDC’s five-year strategic plan to recruit targeted industries, support current businesses, improve the local quality of life and create a strong brand.

The money raised in the campaign pays for PCDC administrative expenses so that LB840 sales tax funds are funneled directly to local economic development programs, such as GO! HOME, GO! DREAM and GO! BUSINESS grants, High Demand Jobs Scholarships and Iron Horse Business & Industry Park expenses.

Tillery said as of January 18, 106 investors had pledged $984,500 to the GROW37 Partnership. A few more investors are expected to commit soon bringing the total projected investors to 110.

“We also signed 16 new investors, and I think that’s really encouraging,” Tillery said.

Instead of contracting with an outside fundraising consultant, PCDC hired an organization that has a local consultant, Kim Hinrichs. Having a local connection drove down campaign expenses to less than a third of the cost of previous PCDC campaigns.

“Kim helped us organize and execute a fundraising plan that turned out to be very successful,” Tillery said.

While the campaign officially draws to a close for the victory celebration, Tillery said existing companies that didn’t choose to invest at this time or new companies that come to the area can still invest in the campaign at a later date.

All investors who have pledged by March 31 will be invited to the annual meeting and victory celebration at the theater. Further details on the event are still being planned and will be announced at a later date.

For more information about investing in PCDC, please contact Tillery at (308) 995-4148 or Ron@PhelpsCountyNE.com.