I love meeting passionate people! Whether they love music, gardening, family, an alma mater, volunteer work or giving back to a community, or a career, passionate people are just fun to be around.
Take, for example, a friend of mine who spends nearly all of her free time delicately sewing intricate stitches into small patches of cloth that painstakingly come together to form a beautifully handmade quilt. I once asked her why she spends so many long hours on Buckeye Beauty, Attic Window, Log Cabin, Hour Glass, Jacob’s Ladder quilt patterns only to give them away once they are laboriously assembled. “It’s my passion,” she explained, “to make cloth art that I can pass along to my children and grandchildren. I love knowing that, when I am gone, there will be a part of me that remains to hold them and keep them warm. Each one is something they can pass along to their own children in turn.”
As a professional fund-raiser at St. Joseph’s Hospital, there is rarely a day at work that passes when I am not privileged to learn about another person’s passion–the reasoning behind why they give of their time, knowledge and financial resources.
Most recently, I had the opportunity to learn quite a bit about Olga and Myron Hrynczuk, a sister and brother who left their legacy through bequests to St. Joseph’s Hospital. Raised in a hard-working, close-knit, private family, Olga and Myron were second generation immigrants to the United States. According to neighbors and friends who knew the Hrynczuks, their parents–Tessie from Brazil and Michael from Ukraine–were passionate about the future success of their children. Both sacrificed so that Olga could go on to become a registered nurse after graduating from St. Joseph’s School of Nursing in 1940 and Myron could fulfill his goal of becoming an engineer following his own graduation from Notre Dame University in 1952.
It became clear to me that both of the Hrynczuk children gleaned their inclination to give from their parents. When Myron passed away in 2009, his estate left a large gift to St. Joseph’s Hospital Health Center as well as roughly a dozen other Catholic-affiliated charities. One year later, when Olga passed away in 2010, she made bequests to the same organizations.
Myron and Olga were passionate about leaving behind a legacy of generosity through their planned giving to those who were most important to them. For Olga and Myron, being passionate meant leading lives dedicated to their family, friends, church and community. They worked hard, later giving back to organizations, such as St. Joseph’s Hospital, that had helped them to do so along the way.
Our donors at St. Joseph’s Hospital Foundation, who make planned gifts, don’t fall into a particular income level. They give to us through simple bequests made through their wills. Those who are young and just beginning their own families are often already looking into the future and beginning to make decisions to help ensure the continued health and wellbeing of their children. Our hospital’s mission is preserved for future generations when passionate donors choose to give to us through their estates.
You can make a significant and meaningful donation while eliminating capital gains taxes or reducing the tax burden on your heirs. Often times, planned giving allows you to make a larger gift through a bequest, charitable unitrust, charitable gift annuity or retirement planning than you might previously have thought possible.
At St. Joseph’s, the 1869 Society was founded to recognize individuals who demonstrate their deep commitment to St. Joseph’s Hospital Health Center and its mission of service by making a planned gift. The generous contributions from 1869 Society members serve as the cornerstone of our future by establishing a strong foundation from which many generations shall benefit.
Olga and Myron’s bequests kept their passion for others alive–passing it along to future generations much like the piecework in my friend’s quilts. Her ‘hugs’ will warm toes and soothe hurt feelings. A gift to St. Joseph’s Hospital will comfort and heal by helping us continue to help patients and their families. These are gifts that, quite literally, help heal.
What is your passion? Are you planning to share it with future generations?