It is rare that a family leaves all of its assets to a charitable foundation, but it does happen, as it did recently in Ohio, and the wonderful gift is surely a testament to the foundation’s good works.
This story from the Columbus Dispatch describes the multi-million dollar bequest's impact.
An excerpt.
“Robert M. Wopat wanted to share his wealth with neighbors in need.
“Before his death in 2008, the retired GTE executive and his wife, Dorothy, donated $200,000 to the Marion Community Foundation and created charitable funds in their name.
“The couple ultimately gave much more. When Mrs. Wopat passed away in October, she bequeathed $16 million to the foundation.
“That gift will double the nonprofit foundation's size and the amount of money awarded to the community through annual grants and scholarships, said Brad Bebout, the foundation's president.
"They gave us everything they had," he said. "It's just mind-boggling."
“The Wopats' legacy includes a $9.7 million community fund, a $3.3 million college-scholarship fund for county high-school graduates and a $3.2 million fund designated for the Marion Family YMCA.
"The timing is good from a community standpoint because we're still hurting (from the recession), and we have the ability to spend that in areas for people that are hurting," Bebout said.”
About
- David H. Lukenbill
- I am a California native, married, we have one daughter and live close to the American River with two cats and all the wild critters we can feed. I am a management consultant to nonprofit organizations and have an Associates of Arts degree in Administration of Justice from Sacramento City College, a Bachelor of Science degree in Organizational Behavior from the University of San Francisco and a Master of Public Administration degree, also from the University of San Francisco.