Investing in the Future

Monte Greenawalt Foundation Supports Chiropractic; Donates $1 Million to Northwestern

Kent Greenawalt (at left) and his father Monte Greenawalt, DC, have been long-term supporters of Northwestern through their company, Foot Levelers, Inc. This painting of them hangs in the Greenawalt Library, named after them in honor of their support of the facility.

Although Kent Greenawalt is not a doctor of chiropractic, the profession has been part of his life since he was a child. His father, Monte Greenawalt, DC, and his uncle are both chiropractors. And, since 1979, he has been the president of Foot Levelers, which supplies doctors of chiropractic with custom-made orthotics for their patients

"I've lived with chiropractic all my life," says Kent Greenawalt. His father, Dr. Monte Greenawalt, founded Foot Levelers in 1952 after realizing he had to refer so many of his patients to podiatrists – and still saw unsatisfactory results. Since then, the company has grown and now has 30,000 customers, who are mostly chiropractors.

But supporting the profession by offering custom-made orthotics is not the only way Monte Greenawalt is advancing chiropractic, according to his son Kent. He has long supported the profession by donating financial resources, including giving millions to chiropractic colleges around the country.

Most recently, the Monte Greenawalt Foundation donated $1 million to Northwestern Health Sciences University. The gift includes a $500,000 gift and a $500,000 challenge grant. The donation will be used toward the construction of a $6.5 million addition to the University’s existing building.

"We are grateful for Monte Greenawalt's ongoing support of the profession and of Northwestern," says Mark Zeigler, DC, President of Northwestern. "His gift will allow us to expand our research facility, provide students with a state-of-the-art library, and improve our student affairs, alumni relations, and admissions areas."

Although this is the first gift from the Monte Greenawalt Foundation, Monte's tradition as a philanthropist began many years ago. In 1991, Foot Levelers, founded by Dr. Greenawalt, donated $350,000 toward the Greenawalt Library. Foot Levelers also has provided a $250,000 grant to fund a research chair at Northwestern, as well as several dozen scholarships to Northwestern students.

"I want people to see the vision and say, 'I'm in.'" says Monte Greenawalt. "I think chiropractic is at a tipping point, and it is important to take proactive steps to fun education, because what better investment can you make than in the mind of a young person?"

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