Fall 2007
Lighthouse Employees Give: Amy Koehl, Doug Hildie and Karen Johnson Plan to Leave a Legacy
“I think it’s important to support the Lighthouse in general, especially blind and Deaf-Blind services,” says Amy Koehl, program manager. “I try to make my donations go to what’s needed. So many things we do are important and I want to make sure that money is available for what’s needed at the time.”
Amy supports the Lighthouse through several different giving arrangements. “I’ve done three things. I designated the [Seattle Lighthouse for the Blind Foundation] as one of the beneficiaries of my life-insurance policy, I give through a payroll donation, and I am giving a percentage of my estate to the Lighthouse through my will,” she explains.
For her payroll donation, Amy makes an outright cash donation in support of current Lighthouse programs through her paycheck each pay period. “I’m glad the Lighthouse is offering this,” she says of payroll donations. “I really think people want to support the programs here because they know how valuable they are.”
To ensure that the Lighthouse has funding support in the future, Amy has also chosen to include a bequest to the Seattle Lighthouse for the Blind Foundation in her estate plan. “When I did my will, my attorney advised me to designate a percentage of my estate to the charities I want to support,” Amy says. “Designating a percentage rather than a dollar amount works well because my future gift won’t be limited by my circumstances at this time. It’s more convenient. I don’t have to change my will if my situation changes.”
Amy has worked as Lighthouse program staff for twenty years and currently manages training and employee support programs at the Seattle Lighthouse. She was motivated to give because she sees the impact donations to Lighthouse programs have in the community every day. “I manage several parts of the program and I see the value. I like the direction the Lighthouse is going now. I see attention being paid to braille and computer training. Those two things are going to be a foundation for the future,” she says. “That’s what I’m interested in supporting. Later, people will be able to use those skills no matter what job they do.”
His extensive experience working in the blind community motivated Doug Hildie to make a planned gift in support of the Lighthouse. Doug is legally blind and currently works in the Lighthouse production area. His wife Karen Johnson is a licensed speech therapist who has worked extensively with multidisabled individuals. They decided to include bequests in their wills to the Seattle Lighthouse for the Blind Foundation in support of opportunities for people with visual disabilities.
Doug first worked at The Lighthouse for the Blind, Inc. as a job coach for blind adults with developmental disabilities in the 1970s. He then spent nineteen years as a vocational rehabilitation counselor for people with disabilities in the Seattle community before retiring and returning to the Lighthouse.
“I have a long history with the Lighthouse and I have always been supportive of it,” he says. “My experience is very broad working with people who are blind and who have other disabilities. The Lighthouse does great work with people who are blind. There needs to be a place with real work and ancillary supports for blind adults. That’s our mission. The Lighthouse provides people with an opportunity to be an integral part of society.”
In making a bequest to the Seattle Lighthouse for the Blind, Doug and Karen are investing in long-term growth of opportunities for people who are blind. “We’re supporting the Lighthouse to make it a bigger, better organization in terms of the variety of employment opportunities and upward mobility. The Lighthouse has a great potential to grow the variety of jobs here in the future. I would encourage people to do what they can to support them.”
Because they have included the Seattle Lighthouse for the Blind Foundation in their wills and estate plans, Amy, Doug, and Karen are charter members of the Lighthouse Legacy Society. The Lighthouse Legacy Society honors the dedication and generosity of donors making planned gifts to the Seattle Lighthouse for the Blind Foundation. For more information, please contact Annual Fund Manager Jennifer Moore at (206) 436-2253 or email jmoore@seattlelh.org.
Bequest Benefits
Making a bequest to the Seattle Lighthouse for the Blind Foundation is one of the simplest and easiest ways to help ensure the Lighthouse continues to serve the blind and Deaf-Blind communities.
Not only are bequests simple and easy to make, bequests carry a number of other benefits to the donor, including estate tax deductions.
Benefits of making a bequest include the following:
Bequests qualify for an estate tax deduction. The main tax advantage of making a bequest is that a charitable bequest is deductible for federal estate tax purposes for the full amount of the gift.
Bequests can take many forms. You have many options when it comes to leaving a bequest! You can leave a certain amount of cash or property. You can bequeath a percentage of your estate.
You can make a gift of residual assets after all other bequests, taxes, and estate expenses have been paid. Also you can make a bequest contingent on the status of your heirs.
Bequests are easy to implement. You can simply add a codicil to your existing will or have your attorney incorporate a bequest when preparing a new will.
Bequests are revocable. You can revoke a bequest at any time without losing any assets.
Bequests are flexible. Bequests can be for any amount and for almost any purpose. You can also change the bequest as circumstances or life goals change.
Bequests remain in the donor’s control for life. You retain control of your bequeathed assets and property for life — there is no immediate out-of-pocket donation.
Bequests can be used to honor loved ones. You can make a bequest in honor or in memory of a loved one.
Previous Page | Horizons Main Page | Home
|
