13 WTHR Indianapolis$1.5M gift to help center study religious giving

$1.5M gift to help center study religious giving

INDIANAPOLIS - A $1.5 million donation will endow the directorship at the nation's only university-based institute dedicated to exploring the relationship between faith and philanthropy.

The anonymous gift announced Thursday endows the directorship at the Lake Institute on Faith & Giving in honor of founder Karen Lake Buttrey, who died in 2010. The institute is part of the Center for Philanthropy at Indiana University and is located on the campus of Indiana University-Purdue University-Indianapolis.

Lake Institute Director Bill Enright says the endowment will help fund programs and research and assist the institute in reaching out to clergy and faith communities.

The Center for Philanthropy says giving to religion accounts for 35 percent of total U.S. giving of any type of cause, topping $100 billion in 2010.

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