Baxters Presents JCEL with Important Gift
(Posted June 10, 2009)
The Daily News â?" March 16, 2009
Baxters present JCEL with important gift
By: Rob Carolus
"A gift like this not only helps the college and its students, but it also becomes a valuable asset to the community," Felice said.
Officials at the Juniata College Center for Entrepreneurial Leadership are pleased to announce that a gift has been given by a local husband and wife and Nick Felice, executive director of JCEL, says it's remarkable when citizens step up to the plate to back important community endeavors.
"We're just thrilled with the news," Felice said in an interview with The Daily News. "In these hard economic times, when something like this happens, it's hard to express in words just how appreciative we are."
Carl Baxter, a well-known Huntingdon businessman and president of Baxter Machine Products, and his wife, Marcia, have pledged a series of gifts to Juniata College to support the addition of an entrepreneurial studio to an expansion of the Sill Business Incubator in the Juniata College for Entrepreneurial Leadership.
"Carl and Marcia Baxter's timely and generous gift will allow JCEL to take leadership in Juniata's commitment to Huntingdon's economic development," said Thomas R. Kepple, president of Juniata College. "By expanding our incubator facility, we can accommodate more local entrepreneurs while also offering increased opportunities for our students."
Felice noted that the Baxter's gift will fund the expansion of the Bob and Eileen Sill Business Incubator and allow the college to create the Carl H. and Marcia A. Baxter Entrepreneurial Studio as part of a larger renovation of the incubator facility. The studio project has a budget of $250,000.
The new facility will be located on the second floor of the JCEL office complex, directly above the administrative offices. The studio will serve as a presentation space and video studio for JCEL's entrepreneurial video library.
"A gift like this not only helps the college and its students, but it also becomes a valuable asset to the community," Felice said. "I can't stress enough how extraordinary it is to receive a gift like this during the economic downturn we've been experiencing in the country."
The new space will complement the ongoing renovation and expansion of JCEL's second floor incubator space, funded in part by a $200,000 grant from the Appalachian Regional Commission and a $752,000 grant from the Economic Development Agency with an expected completion date of spring 2010.
"By turning a beloved former elementary school into a facility where college students can get hands-on experience and area entrepreneurs can find stability and services as they build a business, we can demonstrate that economic development can be sustainable both environmentally and economically," Kepple said.
"JCEL has the potential to develop new businesses with new products and innovations to strengthen our job base and local economy," Baxter said. "In more than 40 years in Huntingdon, I have been privileged to work with some of the best mechanically-minded and inventive individuals to be found anywhere. JCEL is a resource offering opportunities to those who possess the entrepreneurial spirit to succeed."
This is not the first time the Baxters have stepped up to help Juniata College. In 2001, they donated the original Baxter Co. manufacturing and office facility. The 14,000-sq.-ft. facility, officially renamed the Baxter Building, currently houses the office, labs and storage for Science in Motion, Juniata's science education outreach program.
The Baxter's donated the building to Juniata as a special gift arrangement that allowed Juniata to purchase the building for significant discount from its appraised value. The building was originally constructed for the National Youth Administration as a youth training facility in 1938. It later served as the vocational arts building at Huntingdon Area High School.
"The response of student and community entrepreneurs to the Sill Business Incubator has been tremendous," says John Hille, executive vice president for advancement and marketing at Juniata. "We're thankful that one of our community's leading entrepreneurs has stepped forward with his wife to help make an expansion possible. Carl's entrepreneurial example and their gift will be an encouragement to future generations of entrepreneurs."
Baxter founded Baxter Machine Products in 1976. He sold his company in 2008 and will retire as president in May 2009. He and his wife have four daughters, Natalie, Suzanne, Christina and Mary, who is a 2001 Juniata graduate.
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