Board of Advisors

Where It All Began

Lake Institute was created in 2002 and exists through the generosity of the late Tom and Marjorie Lake, their daughter Karen Lake Buttrey, and the Lilly Endowment, Inc. We strive to honor the Lake family’s philanthropic values and to bless the community with a place for conversations about faith and generosity.

Read the Lake Institute story

Faith keeps its eyes fixed on the future in absolute certainty that it will be better than the present or the past.
Thomas H. Lake (1919–1999)

Lake Institute Board of Advisors

The board of advisors was formed in 2003 to assist Lake Institute in fulfilling its mission, shaping ongoing dialogues, and providing strategic direction.

Leadership

Fred Kniss, Ph.D.
Board Chair
Provost
Eastern Mennonite University

Karen D. Buttrey
Vice Chair
Chief Governance Officer
Young Presidents’ Organization, Inc.

Donald Buttrey, J.D.
Lifetime Member
Attorney, Retired

We were eager to replicate the philanthropic mentoring role that my father (Thomas H. Lake) played for so many people. But we also wanted there to be time for conversation and reflection. Dad was very thoughtful, but with a practical bent. He loved getting people together to talk and to look at things from different perspectives.
Karen Lake Buttrey (1945–2010)