Trust Company Leaders Honored for Connecting Donors with Local Giving
SiouxFalls.Business
Retail | Real Estate | Food & Drink | In-Depth | Videos | More
- Latest News
- Submit News
Retail | Development | Food & Drink | Real Estate | Health Care | Corner Office | The Incubator | Jodi’s Journal | Thought Leader | Up-And-Comer | People | In-Depth | 605 Made | Learning | Giving Back | Photos | General | Jobs | Executive Homes | Events | After Hours | Partners | About Us/Contact
Site Spotlight
- Loft Life
Search for:
Home | Trending | Latest News | Giving Back | Partners | People You Should Know
Trust company leaders honored for connecting donors with local giving
Submitted 2 hours ago
This piece is sponsored by the Sioux Falls Area Community Foundation.
For years, Matt Tobin and Pierce McDowell asked every family they worked with at the South Dakota Trust Company one important question: “Will you invest in the future of South Dakota?”
The answer was almost always yes.
Today, the team at JTC South Dakota Trust Company continues that tradition, and that simple question has helped bring millions of dollars in charitable giving to Sioux Falls and the state.
Pierce McDowell
In recognition of their lasting influence, the South Dakota Trust Company Foundation is the 2026 Friend of the Foundation honoree from the Sioux Falls Area Community Foundation. Each year, the award celebrates individuals, families or businesses whose generosity and commitment have shaped Sioux Falls in meaningful ways.
The award was presented at the Community Foundation’s annual donor reception earlier this month. The Community Foundation celebrated philanthropy and reported accepting more than $66 million in gifts and granting more than $73 million to nonprofits and causes in its past fiscal year.
Since its inception more than 40 years ago, the Community Foundation has granted more than $425 million in the Sioux Falls area.
Mary Kolsrud, chief philanthropy officer for the Community Foundation, said Tobin and McDowell have gone beyond being generous themselves and instead inspired generosity in others.
“What makes that even more remarkable is that many of the families they’ve inspired to give to Sioux Falls don’t live here. They’re from across the country and around the world,” Kolsrud said.
“These are charitable dollars that likely would never have found their way to South Dakota without someone inviting those families to give back here.”
Tobin said part of doing business in South Dakota is being a good corporate citizen. He and McDowell carried that belief into their work with families by encouraging philanthropy.
“Being a good corporate citizen and doing business in South Dakota carries with it an expectation that you will give back,” Tobin said.
Tobin and McDowell recognized that families wanted to give back, so they created the South Dakota Trust Company Foundation, a donor-advised fund and an endowment held at the Community Foundation, to help families invest in South Dakota.
“Those early conversations with families were easy,” Tobin said. “Everyone that’s come here to do business has really enjoyed doing business in Sioux Falls. Giving back and being philanthropic is part of who they are, so it was a matter of connecting the opportunities for them.”
He said it has been a fun way to engage families.
“It really adds a level of excitement and an added dimension to our overall relationship with these families,” Tobin said. “And, as our business has grown, this list of charitable contributors has grown, so it’s taken off. I’m really proud of it.”
McDowell said families quickly fell in love with Sioux Falls.
“They’ve learned to enjoy Sioux Falls, and giving back is part of their overall experience here,” McDowell said.