
Building Community: Merchants Foundation’s Employee Volunteer Expo Empowers Local Nonprofits
Merchants Foundation, a private charitable foundation supported by the Merchants family of companies, recently hosted its second annual Volunteer Expo for Merchants Bank and Merchants Capital employees. The Expo brought together three local nonprofit organizations that support the Foundation’s three guiding pillars: Housing, Healthcare and Education. The Expo is more than an event — it’s a platform for social good that showcases the impactful work of these organizations through their stories of triumph and resilience.

“Last year’s Volunteer Expo, held as part of the official launch of Merchants Foundation, was an overwhelming success. It demonstrated the incredible enthusiasm and commitment our employees have for community engagement. Inspired by that positive response, we were thrilled to further strengthen that connection and amplify our collective impact within the community.”
Julia Kaercher
Merchants Foundation Executive Director
This year’s expo featured the participation of three remarkable nonprofit organizations, each representing one of the foundation’s core pillars: housing, healthcare & education

An organization committed to helping vulnerable youth break the cycle of poverty by developing career paths, a professional network, a career path and providing mentorship over six continual years, from junior high through high school. With a heavy focus on career paths, corporate volunteer integration, emotional intelligence training, long-term mentoring, and cost-effectiveness, DREAM Alive differentiates itself from other mentoring organizations.

An organization fighting hunger in Central Indiana from every angle. Working to rescue food that would otherwise be thrown away, prepare it, deliver it to local nonprofits for free and help feed Hoosiers in need. That rescued food is used to create more than 5,000 nutritious meals each day that are distributed to more than 100 social service agencies that feed Hoosiers in need.

A nonprofit dedicated to supporting teens and young adults transitioning out of the foster care system by empowering them on their unique journey to self-sufficiency. Foster Success focuses on ensuring teens and young adults transitioning out of foster care are educated, housed, financially stable, employed, and connected to a reliable support system by their 26th birthday.
The Volunteer Expo not only fostered new connections between these organizations and our employees but also inspired a renewed commitment to community service. Each organization also received a $5,000 gift, a contribution aimed at empowering their efforts and enabling them to expand their impactful initiatives even further. We hope this support provides essential resources but also reinforces our commitment to nurturing the vital work these organizations undertake within our communities, ensuring they have the means to make an even greater difference.
“Through employee nominations and volunteering, this ripple effect of positive change continues to spread, touching countless lives throughout our community,” Julia Kaercher shared. Each employee plays a vital role in this endeavor, whether through direct service, advocacy, or simply sharing our partner organizations’ stories.”
To learn more about Merchants Foundation and its impact, visit www.merchantsfoundation.org or find Merchants Foundation on LinkedIn and Instagram.

Merchants Hosts Fifth Annual MPACT Awards Celebrating 2023 Winners
From the very beginning, co-founders Michael Petrie and Randall Rogers have been strong proponents of looking beyond the office for opportunities to share talents and knowledge within the community. Understanding that Merchants is a community bank at its very core, they recognized the duty the bank has to customers, local businesses, nonprofit organizations, and educational institutions to operate as a point of support and an active resource.
This belief inspired the formation of the MPACT program in 2018. With each passing year, we celebrate the growth and success generated by Merchants employees Positively Advancing Communities Together. As the program has grown, we’ve valued the number of ways in which Merchants employees have been able to be impactful within our communities. This has ranged from individually giving their time and collecting resources to contributing monetary donations from the organization.
While the corporate mission of the MPACT program is focused on providing support for efforts such as financial literacy, affordable housing, and small businesses, Merchants employees are encouraged to champion the organizations that support their interests and passions. Many of our employees were able to locate organizations they aligned with through a volunteer expo event this past October. The volunteer expo, organized by Merchants Foundation, was also the setting for the launch of the private foundation dedicated to expanding access to quality housing, healthcare, and education. In 2023, The Foundation gave a total of $107,000 in support of charitable organizations specifically nominated by Merchants employees.
While the corporate mission of the MPACT program is focused on providing support for efforts such as financial literacy, affordable housing, and small businesses, Merchants employees are encouraged to champion the organizations that support their interests and passions. Many of our employees were able to locate organizations they aligned with through a volunteer expo event this past October. The volunteer expo, organized by Merchants Foundation, was also the setting for the launch of the private foundation dedicated to expanding access to quality housing, healthcare, and education. In 2023, The Foundation gave a total of $107,000 in support of charitable organizations specifically nominated by Merchants employees.

Kellie Barker – Merchants Bank; Richmond
Alex Toroslar – Merchants Capital; New York City
LaBre’ta Ford – Merchants Capital; Remote
Thomas Delia – Merchants Bank; New Jersey
Jennifer Walde – Merchants Bank; Indianapolis/Carmel



2023 Volunteer of the Year: Mark Harville
The 2023 Volunteer of the Year title was awarded to Mark Harville, SBA Business Development Officer at Merchants Bank, for his devotion and service to several organizations supporting community and economic development. As a volunteer, Mark has stepped into the role as a business mentor, a micro lending resource for those struggling to get approved for traditional bank financing, and an advocate for community growth within various Indiana counties.






Since the MPACT program’s founding, our employees – located in Indiana, based out of regional offices in cities such as New York City, Washington, and Chicago, and those operating remotely – have logged 12,000 hours of community service and support. Here in central Indiana, many of our group volunteer efforts have gone toward supporting organizations such as Brookside Community Development Corporation, Coburn Place, Dove Recovery House, Habitat for Humanity, IHCDA, Junior Achievement, Meals on Wheels, Million Meal Movement, Salvation Army, Teachers’ Treasures, and others.
To learn more about Merchants Foundation and its impact, visit www.merchantsfoundation.org or find Merchants Foundation on LinkedIn and Instagram.

Merchants Foundation Commits to Creating Greater Access to Housing, Healthcare, Education in Communities
Merchants Bank and Merchants Capital today announce the creation of Merchants Foundation, a private charitable foundation supported by the Merchants family of companies with its roster of 600 employees located in nine states across the country. The Foundation, which commits to being a catalyst within the communities it serves, brings forth hope and well-being by expanding access to housing, healthcare and education – three factors that greatly contribute to the overall health of an individual and their community.
Team members spanning across Merchants Bank, Merchants Capital and Merchants Foundation itself nominate local causes and charitable organizations within the regions where they live, work, grow and bank. In tandem with employee-nominated giving, the Foundation strives to uplift those living in the communities where Merchants directly provides deposit and lending products and investment services.

“Access to housing, healthcare and education are three social determinants of health that arguably play the biggest role in shaping a successful future. Our hope for our Foundation is to become a beacon of opportunity, supporting the nonprofits and initiatives important to our employees, stakeholders and larger communities.”
Julia Kaercher
Merchants Foundation Executive Director
Efforts already supported throughout the piloting of Merchants Foundation in 2023 include:
North End Apartments, a mixed-use housing community based in Carmel, Indiana, received the Foundation’s first gift. This housing community features businesses on its grounds, a farm-to-table restaurant and integrated living support from the Village of Merici through an urban farm with a greenhouse that is anticipated to open this year. The construction of this greenhouse will help spark further opportunities for meaningful employment and volunteer opportunities each season for members of the community with disabilities.


Local Indianapolis organizations – NeighborLink Indianapolis, Gennesaret Free Clinics and Brightlane Learning – all received gifts of $5,000 as these three partners each represent one of the Foundation’s guiding pillars. Each organization attended the Foundation’s launch, which was a “volunteer expo” for our employees. The nonprofit organizations each garnered new volunteers from the staff of the Merchants family of companies that attended.
Merchants’ Giving Tuesday initiative brought together the employees at each of Merchants’ branches and offices across the country to collect canned goods and non-perishable food items for each location’s identified local partner. Team members collected more than 2,500 pounds of food in total, and the Foundation gifted a total monetary contribution of $10,000.

“We’ve already begun to see the impact that Merchants Foundation’s gifts have had within each served area, improving lives and strengthening neighborhoods and whole communities,” Kaercher said. “Our efforts will be even greater this year as we strengthen and develop further relationships with gift recipients, building for a brighter, healthier future together.”
To learn more about Merchants Foundation and its impact, visit www.merchantsfoundation.org or find Merchants Foundation on LinkedIn and Instagram.
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