May 10, 2024 | Community Building | Support
Dedication of the Hadley Hangout Space
Since Matthew 25’s founding, the Hadleys have been key supporters, from Len serving as President of the Board, to helping to paint our first space, cleaning up after the flood, and providing generous financial support.
During the Spring Celebration, we held a special ceremony honoring longtime Matthew 25 supporters Len and Marlene Hadley, naming the community area of the Cultivate Hope Corner Store the “Hadley Hangout Space.” Their unwavering dedication and generosity have been instrumental in driving our mission forward, and it seems only fitting to shine a spotlight on their invaluable contributions.
Len and Marlene grew up as Quakers in small town Iowa communities. From a young age, both learned the importance of community, education and growing healthy food. As their careers grew and Len eventually became CEO of Maytag, they continued to value local gathering spaces and keeping life simple.
Since Matthew 25’s founding, the Hadleys have been key supporters, from Len serving as President of the Board, to helping to paint our first space, cleaning up after the flood, and providing generous financial support. “Nearly every crazy idea I’ve thrown at them, they’ve supported,” said founder and executive director, Clint Twedt-Ball. “When you start something new and you don’t really know what you’re doing, having two highly respected professionals who know and have run among the most successful of businesses Iowa has produced, telling you they believe in you is huge. It gives you confidence that maybe you’re not as crazy as you think.”
Their guiding principle of giving has been to help Matthew 25 build strong neighborhoods where every child has the opportunity to thrive. The Hadley Hangout Space is dedicated in their name to honor their legacy of support and to provide a space where people can gather, deepen their relationships and learn about healthy food.
At the dedication ceremony, Len listed a variety of Matthew 25 programs and said, “It is a very real inventory of good works, to which I think the Lord would say, you’ve been a good and faithful servant. And that includes all of your team, and that has a good feel to it. Marlene and I are delighted to be associated with something that has that spiritual power and enduring thing to it.”