The Sunburst, Inc. records primarily document the actions of the agency's Board of Directors. The records date from 1922 to 2004, with the bulk of the collection dating to the 1990s and early 2000s. The collection consists of the meetings and minutes of the Board of Directors, various administrative and personnel files, correspondence, some historical documentation, and financial records. The collection is divided into four series, SUNBURST, INC. AND AGENCIES, PERSONNEL, FINANCIAL, and SUNBURST YOUTH HOMES CLOSURE.
The SUNBURST, INC. AND AGENCIES series covers the bulk of the collection and includes those records created by each of Sunburst's separate agencies. The series is divided into three headings: Administrative, which includes memos, analyses, correspondence, articles of incorporation and bylaws, pamphlets, employee handbooks, and several items relating to recruiting or orienting new members of the Board of Directors. Also included here is the one document that actually portrays the children who stayed at Sunburst. It is a “yearbook” from 1991 that contains photocopied pictures and captions of the children and their counselors taken during a summer program. The Early History heading contains the little documentation left from Sunburst's days as the Winnebago Children's Home and the Winnebago Benevolent Corporation, including a minute book, articles of incorporation, and deeds. The Board Reports and Minutes heading contains committee reports to the Board of Directors and minutes of their meetings ranging from 1990 to 1999. This heading is arranged chronologically but there are gaps in these records since meetings were not held every month.
The PERSONNEL series consists of papers dealing with employees of Sunburst. This includes files on the search for a CEO in 1995, meeting minutes and reports of Board of Directors personnel committee and the Personnel director, Owen Wahlstrand, and any files relating to payroll, salary, insurance, and workmen's compensation.
The FINANCIAL records consist of two groupings: General and the 2000 Audit. The General group includes a tax exemption report, an IRS document, EBC reports, an ERISA (Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974) audit from 2001, and some financial statements. The Audit heading contains the files dealing with the audit of Sunburst Youth Homes and Sunburst Family Services in 2000. These include compliance reports, county confirms of payment, and information on the meal programs. The raw financial data from 2000 is replicated in the Chief Financial Officer's frequent board reports.
The SUNBURST YOUTH HOMES CLOSURE series is composed of the various materials from the 2000-2001 period in which Sunburst Youth Homes experienced financial crisis and was forced to close down most of its operations. This was followed by the Bank of Withee foreclosing on its loan, leading to legal action by the bank against several members of the Sunburst Board of Directors. The documentation here includes inter-office emails, correspondence and any documentation between the Bank and Sunburst representatives, circuit court affidavits, lease materials to the Lutheran Social Services, and records dealing with incorporation under Orion Family Services.
