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“If you are an American, you must allow all ideas to circulate freely in your community, not merely your own.” This was one of the themes of Night of Vonnegut, sponsored in part by Wabash College on April 11. While “So it goes” and other quotes were referenced as part of our 50th anniversary celebration of Slaughterhouse-Five, the theme of the evening related to Vonnegut’s courage in sharing his honest description of war at a time in our country when people didn’t necessarily want to be honest about war. The truth was often too ugly for people. Interestingly, Greg Castanias (who served as Honorary Co-Chair of the event, along with his wife Jane) further reflected on the book by describing how he discovered that his own father was one of those service members involved in the firebombing of Dresden.

And if that story wasn’t interesting enough, Night of Vonnegut featured an author, who, like Vonnegut has been banned. Best-selling author Salman Rushdie, who was interviewed by the exceptional historian Douglas Brinkley, wowed the crowd. The introduction to Rushdie was given by an 11-year-old student, Sophie Maurer, who has read Rushdie’s work. Her speech on freedom of expression and her appreciation of Rushdie led to a standing ovation. Rushdie’s thoughtful perspectives and sharp wit also brought our nearly 400-person audience to its feet. 


Eleven-year-old Sophie Maurer, a big Salman Rushdie fan, introduced Mr. Rushdie at this year’s Night of Vonnegut.

And if that wasn’t enough, something else made the evening magical. It could have been the two Shortridge High School students, Lucy Pickett and Corbin Katner, who received $1,000 scholarships for their thoughtful essays on Slaughterhouse-Five

It could have been the film world-renowned entrepreneur and philanthropist Kimbal Musk shared with us as we presented the Common Decency Award to him in absentia. It could have been the folks from Jockamo Upper Crust, who won this year’s first-ever Kurt Vonnegut Cuisine Award. It could have been the extraordinary Rushdie/Brinkley conversation. It could have been the creative and hilarious 1969 costumes. It could have been all the food vendors that donated to us that night. It could have been the far-out 1969 music. It could have been the presentation we gave about the ways in which 543 Indiana Avenue will make the ideal permanent home for KVML. It could have been the fact that our friend Mickey Maurer led the fundraising call-out, which raised more than $190,000 in cash and pledges that night. It could have been any of those things or any number of additional aspects of the evening that made it special – that made it really stand out as the BEST EVER Night of Vonnegut.

I think it could be summed up as one clear thing that made the evening so special – Kurt’s Karass – from everyone listed above to the committee that planned the event along with the hardworking staff, the volunteers who showed up to do the thankless jobs,  the journalists who wanted to mark this moment in our local history, the board members who helped to fill the tables with guests and asked them to donate to our cause, and to our very generous sponsors, this event could not have happened without a loving Karass that knows Vonnegut matters and recognizes that our mission of advocating for free expression and common decency is important.

We thank you all!

Kathi Badertscher, PhD

Director of Graduate Programs at the IU Lilly Family School of Philanthropy
Kathi Badertscher, PhD, is Director of Graduate Programs at the IU Lilly Family School of Philanthropy. Dr. Badertscher teaches a variety of BA, MA, and doctoral courses, including Applying Ethics in Philanthropy and History of Philanthropy. She has participated in several Teaching Vonnegut workshops and is a member of the Kurt Vonnegut Museum and Library. Dr. Badertscher has been a guest speaker on ethics in philanthropy, including at the National Association of Charitable Gift Planners – Indianapolis Council; Association of Fundraising Professionals – Indiana Chapter; and Zhou Enlai School of Government, Nankai University, Tianjin, China. In 2019 she received IUPUI Office for Women, Women’s Leadership Award for Newcomer Faculty. In 2019 and 2020 she received the Lilly Family School of Philanthropy, Graduate Teaching Award.
Dr. Badertscher’s publications include “Fundraising for Advocacy and Social Change,” co-authored with Shariq Siddiqui in Achieving Excellence in Fundraising, 5th ed., 2022; “Insulin at 100: Indianapolis, Toronto, Woods Hole, and the ‘Insulin Road,’ co-authored with Christopher Rutty, Pharmacy in History (2020); and three articles in the Indiana Magazine of History: “A New Wishard Is on the Way,” “Evaline Holliday and the Work of Community Service,” and “Social Networks in Indianapolis during the Progressive Era.” Her chapters on social welfare history will appear in three upcoming edited volumes on the history of philanthropy, including “The Legacy of Edna Henry and Her Contributions to the IU School of Social Work,” Women at Indiana University: Views of the Past and the Future, edited by Andrea Walton, Indiana University Press, 2022 (forthcoming). Dr. Badertscher is also the Philanthropy and Nonprofits Consulting Editor for the forthcoming Digital Encyclopedia of Indianapolis, edited by David J. Bodenhamer and Elizabeth Van Allen, Indiana University Press, 2021. Dr. Badertscher is an active volunteer in the Indianapolis community. At present, she is a Coburn Place Safe Haven Board Member and a Children’s Bureau/Families First Brand and Marketing Advisor. Dr. Badertscher holds the MA in History from Indiana University and the MA and PhD in philanthropic studies from the Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy.

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