(La Porte, IN) - A former mayor of La Porte has been made an honorary member of a giving back to the community organization he helped create.

 

Leigh Morris is now an Honorary Member of the Board of Directors for the Unity Foundation of La Porte County.

 

Morris, 88, was a founding member of the foundation 30 years ago and helped chair the board for several years.

 

“It’s quite an honor and I’m very pleased,” he said.

 

Unity Foundation now has more than $40 million in assets used to provide scholarships and other beneficial things annually for La Porte County.

 

Many donors are people who leave money and other items of value from their estates upon death.  Just the interest from the donations are used to do positive things in the county.

 

“I know the organization well and I know just a bit about how significant its impact has been and will be into the future,” Morris said.

 

Morris said Unity Foundation was formed after the Indianapolis based Lilly Endowment suggested a foundation be formed strictly for La Porte County instead of separate foundations for La Porte and Michigan City.

 

“So, that’s what we did.   Now all 92 counties in Indiana are served by a community foundation,” he said.

 

Morris was mayor from 2004 to 2007 after a more than 20 year career as President and Chief Executive Officer at La Porte Hospital.

 

Currently, he’s an advisor for Purdue University Northwest and has served in many other capacities for various organizations in recent years.