The miracle on market street: big donations from small-town residents help cultural center grow.

• Author: Mayer, Kathy

If you convinced 225 people to chip in $70,000 each, what would you have? A miracle, many would say.

If you live in Wabash, you'd have the newly remodeled and expanded Honeywell Center, a non-profit, foundation-owned "festival and meeting place" on Market Street.

The original 45,000-square-foot facility was built in 1952 by The Honeywell Foundation Inc., which was created by native son Mark Honeywell. The center operated for years as the community's cultural and recreational mecca. Residents enthusiastically supported major theatrical and other fine arts performances held there.

There came a time, though, when lining up folding chairs in the gymatorium for renowned performers didn't seem quite right. Interest in expanding and improving the center began to stir.

In 1988, local resident Henry Leander - a frequent visitor to the center, chairman of Wabash-based Ford Meter Box Co. and former foundation board president - stepped forward. He told Honeywell's board, "If you'll sponsor the project, I'll raise most of the money."

By the time the $17 million, 75,000-square-foot addition was unveiled last summer, he'd raised about $15 million from just 225 donors, most of them city residents. He calls the project's success a miracle.

"In 1983, the foundation board commissioned a design team to study ways to make the gym better for performing arts. They concluded it would make more sense to build a new hall," says Donald Knapp, the Honeywell Center's executive director.

When Leander offered to raise the money for what he and the board then thought would be a $6 million addition, the design team went to work. "The project grew to $17 million," Knapp says: $1 million was spent on the design, $13 million for construction and $3 million for an endowment.

Fund-raising consultants advised the foundation that the best way to raise the money was one-on-one, so that was Leander's approach.

"A lot of others joined in, and many made major contributions," Knapp says. "We had several $1 million donations and several of half a million dollars. We found that most of the people who donated money are people who care very much about this community project and are very familiar with the existing Honeywell Center."

The expanded Honeywell Center includes the new 1,500-seat Ford Theater, a large lobby that doubles as an art gallery for traveling exhibits, an outdoor activity stage and Eugenia's Restaurant, open daily for lunch and dinner.

The center's range of events is...