President's Letter:

We began on the corner of Elmwood and South Avenues more than 30 years ago. Recently, we've expanded to the corner across the street. In fact, seven of our eight partner agencies have at least one office at these corners, and the eighth is here every day dropping off and picking up in their special vehicles. It is for these reasons and many others that these are truly the Caring Corners of our Heart.

Looking back at 1998, we can see that there was so much effort and so many successes on The Elmwood and Wolk Campuses at the corners. But, there was much to celebrate in virtually every other corner or our community--where our partners and the people they serve gathered and grew together. In fact, our partners served 43,000 children, adults and families dealing with disabilities in 1998. That's 10% more than last year and more than 12 times the people served during our first year at Elmwood and South in 1968. You can see why our corners seem to be growing.

The growth in the number of the people who need our services has caused the Al Sigl Center and our partners to set aggressive goals. Year after year we pull out all the stops to reach them. 1998 was no exception. Our volunteers and staff had large tasks ahead of them in all areas. But through the size of their efforts and the care in their hearts, they saw tremendous successes.

Real Estate: We wanted to own or manage 465,000 square feet of space to serve our community. By year-end we had 509,345 square feet occupied.

Business Services: We said we would start three new businesses to support our partners. We launched the Human Resources, telecommunications and insurance practices in 1998 and set the foundation for future growth.

Philanthropy: Our 1998 goal was to raise $3,755,000 including gifts of property. We actually raised $4,565,905, which included the wonderful gift of the former Park Hope Nursing Home at 1556 Mt. Hope.

Human Resources: Our goal was to have 90 volunteer leaders on our way to a Year 2000 goal of 120. We now have 89 volunteer leaders on our various boards and committees.

The Caring Corners of our Heart refers to more than the physical location of our buildings. It is a statement of what is inside each of us today and what we must look for in others to achieve more. One example is last year's formation of the Al Sigl Center Partner's Foundation. The foundation will help us raise endowment funds for our partners individually and as a group.

Thank you for all you did this last year and thank you for staying committed to our future growth.

From the Caring Corners of our Heart to yours,

Daniel M. Meyers
President

Zeke Duda
Chairman of the Board