John W Fisher

Fisher was a retired chairman of the Ball Corp., an international packaging company. Janice Fisher is the daughter of Edmund B. Ball, one of the five brothers who founded Ball Bros. Glass Manufacturing Company, the forerunner to the Ball Corp. John Fisher, who died in June at 93, and Janice gave a building valued at more than $20 million to the Ivy Tech Foundation, the fundraising arm of Ivy Tech Community College in Muncie, Ind. Included in the donation of the Fisher Building, which was the former headquarters of the Ball Corp., is the land it sits on, plus all furnishings and parking lots attached to the facility. The couple donated the building shortly before John Fisher's death from leukemia. The structure will house classrooms, computer labs, faculty offices, and student study spaces, lounges, and collaborative work areas. Although Fisher retired in 1986, he kept an office in downtown Muncie, near Ivy Tech's campus. As a result of this proximity, he and his wife became acquainted with the college and its students and became donors to the college through personal gifts and through the Ball Bros. Foundation. In addition, Fisher bequeathed $2 million to Ball Memorial Hospital Foundation in Muncie, Ind. He earmarked half of the gift for medical education and the remaining $1 million can be used for any purpose approved by the hospital's board. Mr. Fisher served on the hospital's board of directors for 55 years.