

In honor of the one-year anniversary of the death of Butler basketball
standout Andrew Smith, a Fund honoring his life has been created by the Indiana
Family Institute. The campaign is titled 4-44 (Andrew's jersey number at Butler
was 44). The four-year goal is to raise $440,000 (4-44). It has more than
$200,000 in pledges toward the overall goal of $440,000.
The Andrew Smith Center For Family Prosperity
honors Smith's academic and family commitments.
Smith was a four-year scholarship winner who played in two national
championship NCAA Final Four games and was named an Academic All American prior
to graduating in 2013. Smith developed
lymphoma, a blood cancer, while playing professional basketball in Europe, a
disease which he succumbed to on Jan. 12, 2016, in Indianapolis.
"Andrew
always said he loved God, his family and Butler basketball," his father,
Curt Smith, said in making this announcement.
"This honor highlights his commitment to family and a passion for
numbers," his father added.
"Perhaps we should add to the list that Andrew loved numbers,"
the elder Smith said. Smith was a
finance major at Butler and was anticipating a career in business after his
professional basketball play ended.
The Andrew
Smith Legacy Fund is the fourth public honor drawing on Andrew's inspirational
life and battle with cancer. Butler
University created a sports scholarship in Andrew's honor shortly after his
death. Andrew and his widow, Samantha,
supported Be The Match, a bone marrow registry seeking to expand options for
blood cancer victims. A drive on two
college campuses in December led to more than 200 new registrants. Finally,
Andrew's high school, Covenant Christian on the west side of Indianapolis,
dedicated its gym floor in Andrew's honor and retired his basketball jersey and
number in December.
The new center
will focus on Indiana's fiscal, tax and budget priorities as part of the
overall work of the Indiana Family Institute to provide policy analysis and
advocacy for Hoosier families. Indiana's
sound financial management during the past decade-plus has led to lower taxes,
more jobs, efficient and frugal state government, and a bond rating higher than
the US government.
"Andrew
was a fierce competitor, and I know from talks with him that translated to a
commitment to free markets and
competition," the elder Smith said. "This new Center and the activity
it will sponsor perfectly blends Andrew's convictions about faith, family and
free-market competition while focusing that effort on helping us retain the
remarkable legacy of fiscal discipline and economic opportunity across the
Hoosier State," Smith added.
Initial
activities of the Center will include:
- Serving as
the Indiana partner with the American Conservative Union in publishing and
highlighting the Family Prosperity Index, which provides a roadmap for federal,
state, local and civic leaders and policy makers to improve the well-being and
health of the Hoosier family. The index,
which currently rates Indiana 28th among the 50 states, is published annually, and
will be updated in March. The Center will be an in-state expert on the analysis
and policy prescriptions this new national tool provides.
- Oppose tax
increases for infrastructure projects before all options for user fees, sales
tax reassignment, tolls, privatization, asset sales and other options are fully
explored and exhausted. The Center will
help policy makers explore and identify options so that a 10-cent per gallon
new tax can be set aside in favor of more pro-family funding options. Static
gasoline taxes are regressive and impact large and active families more than
other taxpayers.
- Convene a
monthly meeting for policy leaders to share ideas and find ways to grow family
prosperity throughout Indiana.
The initial Project 4-44 campaign for the Andrew Smith Center for Family Prosperity
has as its goal to fund the Center's activities for four year and then
determine if the work can be sustained beyond this initial campaign. The annual budget is $110,000, for a total of
$440,000, of which more than $200,000 in pledges has already been secured.
Would you like to support the Andrew Smith Center for Family Prosperity?
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