Lilly Endowment Names Vice Presidents

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As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe NowLilly Endowment has named Ben Blanton vice president and general counsel. He is a partner at Faegre Baker Daniels in Indianapolis. Peter Buck has been named vice president for investments. He is currently the endowment’s controller and director of diversified investments.
For more than 30 years, Blanton has provided legal counsel with respect to the structure, governance and operation of nonprofit organizations; federal and state income, property and sales tax exemptions; and compliance with various tax, legal and regulatory requirements; as well as charitable giving, endowments, philanthropy, institutional investing and related matters. His clients have included large and small private foundations, trusts, museums, churches, colleges and universities, fraternities and sororities, business leagues, community foundations and other nonprofit enterprises. He also has significant experience working with governmental agencies in the areas of public finance, bidding requirements, open door and public records issues, and related topics. Blanton has served on the boards of numerous nonprofit organizations, including Allen Whitehill Clowes Charitable Foundation, the Clowes Fund, Pacers Foundation and Noble of Indiana. Blanton joined Faegre Baker Daniels in 1982. He is a graduate of Vanderbilt University Law School (J.D.) and Memphis State University (now University of Memphis). Blanton will join the Endowment staff in October.
Buck began his employment at the Endowment in 2015 as controller after nearly 15 years in public accounting. He most recently served as an audit director at Katz, Sapper & Miller. While with the firm he served a variety of clients, including many in the nonprofit and governmental sectors. In 2016, he became the Endowment’s director of diversified investments. Buck is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and of the Indiana Society of Certified Public Accountants. He serves on the audit and finance committee of United Way of Central Indiana. Buck is a 2001 graduate of the University of Indianapolis.