Maxine Rippe Award
The Maxine Rippe Award recognizes an individual whose past and present service to the Allen County community exemplifies Christian compassion. Administered by The Lutheran Foundation, it is one of four monetary awards given annually through the Raymond Rosenberger Award Foundation.
History of the
Maxine Rippe Award
A longtime member of St. Peter’s Catholic Church and a Kunkle Valve employee, Mr. Rosenberger lived frugally and invested nearly all of his income. At his passing, his estate established a foundation that funds four individual service awards, each granted by a different local northeastern Indiana organization. The Rosenberger Award Foundation funds The Lutheran Foundation’s Maxine Rippe Award, along with annual awards given by Parkview Hospital, St. Joseph Community Health Foundation, and the United Way of Allen County. Each of the four awards recognizes an individual who has demonstrated outstanding community service on behalf of a local charitable organization.
This award was named in memory of Maxine Rippe to honor those who are dedicated to serving their community and alleviating human suffering. Maxine was a student at the Lutheran School of Nursing when she died of polio in 1940. She was a graduate of South Side High School and a member of the National Honor Society. A member of Trinity English Lutheran Church, Maxine sang in the choir at the church, was a past queen of Fort Wayne Bethel of Job’s Daughters, and served several local civic organizations. The daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Roy Rippe, she was engaged to Dr. Lad Zeman of Chicago. Maxine was just six months shy of graduating and a few months from becoming a bride when she passed away at the age of 20 at Riley Hospital in Indianapolis.
Selection Criteria
Qualified Maxine Rippe Award nominees have demonstrated exceptional service—either as a volunteer or as an employee—to a local Allen County charitable organization that alleviates human suffering, promotes wellness, or enhances quality of life for those suffering from illness or injury. In keeping with the goals of the Rosenberger Award Foundation, the annual award typically exceeds $10,000 and is meant to encourage lifelong community involvement. The recognized recipient is selected from the submitted nominees to receive the cash award. Qualified nominees:
• Have performed diligent and faithful service on behalf of a tax-exempt, charitable Allen County
organization that works to alleviate human suffering, enhance the quality of life of persons afflicted
with illness or injury, or promote wellness through the prevention of illness, disease or injury.
• Have displayed extraordinary devotion to furthering the organization’s objectives.
• Have encouraged others to serve the organization and further its objectives.
• Have served or currently serves the organization either as an employee or a volunteer.
Making a Nomination
The Maxine Rippe Award is based on past and present achievements and is not meant to reflect future service. Once the award is granted, no restrictions or conditions are placed upon the use of the monetary award. Nominations must not come from a nominee’s immediate family. PNC Bank employees or their spouses are not eligible for the award.
To nominate an individual, please complete the nomination form and describe why he or she deserves a nomination. Your statement should clearly indicate the specific services your nominee has performed, and how those services have furthered the goals of a particular charitable organization.
NOMINATION DEADLINE IS FEBRUARY 28 AT NOON.
For additional information contact Terri Kortokrax at 260-458-2110 or by email.
Jim Goetsch
2024 Maxine Rippe Award Recipient
Jim has worked to help others since graduating from Concordia Senior College in 1971. He immediately took a job organizing walkathons to alleviate hunger and poverty locally and around the world. This experience led him to start Friends of the Third World. He is committed to helping the poor and underserved people both in our community and worldwide. He is most widely known for the Third World Shop. The items sold in the store are made by artisans from around the world. Money from the sales is returned to individual artisans around the world.
Jim saw a need for local job training and started Delta Communications in 1978. Delta prints items mostly for non-profit organizations. They employ people from group homes or those serving court ordered community work. The training and job experience develops job skills and leads to full-time employment in the community. There are thousands of people that have been through programs sponsored by Friends of the Third World.
It is a struggle to encapsulate everything that Jim and his wife Marian have done over the last 50 years to alleviate human suffering in Fort Wayne and around the world. All it takes is a simple Google search and the many, many things they have done become very apparent.
The driving force behind Jim and Marian’s work is to bring attention to poverty, locally and internationally. They have sacrificed and lived a very simple life to further the reach of Friends of the Third World. They don’t consider themselves poor, they always have something to eat and a place to sleep. They draw no salary for their more than full-time work. They receive a place to live and food for their work.
Jim and Marian are always talking about the mission of Friends of the Third World and encouraging others to get involved. They have many examples of how people can help and have found the best way to spread the word is one on one. They tell people they don’t have to follow their example of living a simple, intentional life. They want the person to give what is special about them.
Jim and Marian started and have been the administrators of Friends of the Third World for over 50 years. It would be a stretch to call them employees. Calling them employees implies that they receive a salary for their work. All they receive is room and board. When they sell an item in the store, the majority of the money goes to the person who made it. The remaining money goes to keeping the lights on and furthering their mission.
Jim and Marian are very active members of Shepherd of the City Lutheran Church. They truly see themselves as Christ’s hands and feet on the earth put here to help people.
Previous Award Recipients
2023 – Judy Kiess
2022 – Ellen Luepke
2021 – Chaplain Leslie Haines
2020 – The Reverend Jon Anderson
2019 – Mike Buhr
2018 – Cheryl Brockman
2017 – Elvis Netterville
2016 – Martha Weber
2015 – Bernice Ostermeyer
2014 – Dr. Saneta Maiko
2013 – Pat Patton
2012 – Margarete Matiszik
2011 – Roger and Carrie Macke
2010 – Vivian Purvis
2009 – Martin “Bud” Scheimann
2008 – Roland and Marian Masenthin
2007 – The Reverend Vernon Graham
2006 – Thelma Heine
2005 – Robert and Ramona Scheimann
2004 – William and Betterae Ihssen
2003 – Richard and Doris Hagen
2002 – Earl and Irma Dressler
2001 – Merle Altstiel
2000 – Norma Hartman
1999 – Annette Diemer