William E. and Margaret E. Durall Family Endowment

 

“I was the unhappy recipient of Peggy’s insurance money and I didn’t need that money for myself,” said Bill. “So, as I was reflecting back on Peggy’s life, I thought it would be a good time to set some anchors down in the community.”

 

Bill established several different funds with and for a variety of local, educational, and service organizations as a way to honor Peggy’s interests and the life he and Peggy built together. One of those funds was the William E. and Margaret E. Durall Family Endowment, an unrestricted endowment at the Community Foundation.

 

Bill was born in Kirksville, Missouri and still has family ties to Lewistown, Missouri. He grew up across the river in Hull, Illinois and moved to Pittsfield in high school. Peggy was born and raised in Pittsfield. Their parents, Charles & Clara Durall and Johnson & Gwen Stilwell, were also longtime residents of the area. 

 

“The fact that the Community Foundation serves both sides of the river is attractive to me in the sense that I have interests in both Missouri and Illinois,” said Bill. “I don’t want to limit my philanthropy to just one particular cause or one particular area.” 

 

As an unrestricted fund, grants will go to support needs and opportunities throughout the Community Foundation’s 12-county service area.

 

“Being in the rural Midwest is a tough proposition these days,” explained Bill. “There are many people in need, and I don’t necessarily have a specific focus on how to do good in the community. However, an unrestricted fund provides maximum flexibility to meet the needs as they come up.”

 

Following Peggy’s passing, she has been described as a foundation for her family, always helping to keep Bill and her two children happy, healthy, and whole as they frequently moved during Bill's long career in the Air Force. Bill hopes their family endowment fund will follow those same principles- serving the area for generations to come.