Leave Your Mark… Create a Lasting Legacy

Many people establish legacy funds at our Community Foundation while they are alive; others make provisions for an end-of-life gift as part of their will or estate plans.  Legacy gifts provide ongoing funding for something you care about for years to come.

Legacy In Action

The Pat & Tillie Bishop Legacy

Pat & Tillie Bishop were community leaders and deeply invested in education and seeing students succeed. They wanted to support their interests and leave their mark on the future by creating a Legacy Fund. Western Colorado Community Foundation (WCCF) worked to make an impact with their after-life gift, and leave a lasting statement about who they were and what they cared about.

Read the full report here.

Western Colorado Community Foundation worked closely with the donors to establish their fund and design a program to administer their funds that honored their legacy intentions:

  • Pat & Tillie Bishop created legacy intentions with WCCF

    They wished to support extra curricular programs at public high schools in Mesa County

  • The Pat & Tillie Bishop Legacy Fund was established

    Pat & Tillie Bishop passed away and left an estate gift to WCCF, the estate gift provided the funding to launch the Pat & Tillie Bishop Legacy Fund.

  • WCCF developed an application & review process to determine funding each year

    WCCF partnered with D51 schools to create a panel of staff to review requests and determine funding allocations.

Connect with us to discuss your legacy giving.

Take Action today

We’ve come to know that many of the residents in the areas we serve want to leave a legacy of giving beyond their lifetimes—for generations to come. The foundation is uniquely equipped to steward gifts to address single or multiple issues, organizations, and geographies, as well as to track emerging needs and opportunities. We will help you realize your intentions and ensure your legacy of generosity.

Through the foundation you can:

  • Allocate your gift to one of our endowed funds supporting our initiatives. see our leadership initiatives here.
  • Create an endowment that permanently responds to a cause you’re passionate about.
  • Designate an unrestricted gift to the Community Foundation.

Other reasons to choose Western Colorado Community Foundation:

  • Commitment to western Colorado – we are a regional, placed-based organization whose board and staff all live in the community.
  • Maximum tax benefits – we are a 501(c)(3) public charity offering full charitable tax deductions as allowed by the IRS.
  • Complex gifts – we can accept a wide range of assets, from cash and stock to real estate, royalty interests and business holdings.
  • Administrative ease – we take care of all legal, tax and accounting reporting so you don’t have to.
  • Low fees – our administrative fees are less expensive than establishing a private foundation.
  • Community expertise – we conduct research and share our knowledge of community needs and nonprofit organizations with our donors to help them maximize their philanthropic impact.
  • Community of donors – you are part of a larger circle of donors who can learn from each other and work together to make a difference.
  • Charitable legacy – your donation will be well-managed and used for the purposes you intend, invested over the long-term and benefiting the community for generations.

Thank you!

Ways to Establish a Legacy Endowment

Most common ways to establish a charity in an estate plan are below.

Bequests by Will or Trust

IRA or Qualified Plans

Charitable Remainder Trusts

Charitable Lead Trust

Legacy Society

Our Community Foundation appreciates and recognizes the planning and foresight of scores of individuals and couples who have made provisions to leave a charitable legacy gift to benefit western Colorado and have included WCCF in their will or estate plan. Please let us know about your plans so that we may thank you and keep you up-to-date on our activities. And, if you are comfortable, we’d like to recognize you as a member of our Legacy Society.

Thank you!

Liane Abrams
Dale and Donna Albertson
Michelle Alford*
Dave Armlovich
Tillie and Pat Bishop*
Roger and Janet Blind
Dee Blue
John Breckinridge
Elaine and Jim Brett
Bill and Rouene Brown
Lynn (Gus) Brownson
Bernie and Mary Beth Buescher
David Butler
Ed and Barb Chamberlin
Rod and Nina Christ
Genevieve Clough*
Lulu Colby
Anita Cox and Bill Ekstrand
Bob and Kate Denning
Anne Devine and Ray Cozzens
Bruce Dixson*
Mike and Mary Doring
Norman Dorsey
Martie and Rich Edwards
Adele Filener
Peggy Foster*
William and Kathleen Frey
Elizabeth Fulton
Richard Gamble
Jan and Mike Gage
Evelyn Haley*
Cheryl and Gordon Hebenstreit
Steven Hilbert and Phyllis Stephens
Tom and Sue Hillhouse
Quincy Hines
Laura Horan
Tom Huerkamp*
Johnson Family Charitable Lead Trust
Anita Johnson*
Eric S. Johnson*
Russel and Dorothy Johnson*
Doug and Laura Johnston
Samuel and Lana Kevan
Don and Shirley Kramer
Edwin Krebs
Stan and Pam Lochrie*
John Lorentzen
Sheila Maki
John and Janet Mayerik
Dennis and Alice McCary
Charles David McKean*
Carol Minion*
Kathleen A. McGinley
Richard Moore and Sharon Riegel
Virginia Reed Moore*
Dave and Crystal Murphy
Avon E. and Shirley F. Myers
Karen Nicholson
Mardell Niles*
Doug and Becky Noble
Brian and Joyce Olson
Tanya Pappas
John and Verda Patterson
Romagean Personne
Wendell (Del) and Nancy Petty
Gary and Kathy Pfeufer
Gregg and Sandy Pietak
Frank and Josephine Prinster*
Joe and Del Prinster*
Tony and Sally Prinster
Bill and Wanda Putnam
Charlie Quimby and Susan Cushman
Jane Quimby*
Fred and Susan Rainguet
Perry Rashleigh*
Robert Ringstrand*
Grace Roberts
Dorothy Ross*
Kay Sather
Al and Jean Schiesswohl
William Selden
Robert Shales*
Verne and Diana Smith
Roger and Sharon Sollenbarger
Charlie and Vicci Spencer
Linda Spencer
John Sprendrup
LaVerne Starbuck*
Thelma Starner
Helen Stenmark
Jim and Melissa Sullivan
Hal, Mary, and Norma Sundin
Pam Szédelyi
Susan and Gary Timm
F.A. Wise and Susan E. Treece
Steve and Wendy Vanderhoof
Joe Virgona and Mary Mastin
Ellen Jo Waldeck*
Jack and Lorraine Walker
Steve and Lenna Watson
Lynn Wegener and Karen Combs
Bill Welch and Laurae Fortner Welch
Anne Wenzel and David Miller
George Wheeler
Jim and Debbie Widdows
Dixie Lew Williams*
Felicie Williams*
Harry Willson
Nancy T. Wilson
Arlena Wood
Dave and Mary Wood*
*Denotes a planned gift that has matured

These are individuals who have informed WCCF of their intentions. We do not mean to omit any names.

If you have made plans for a future gift and would like to be recognized as a member of our Legacy Society or would like more information about planning a charitable legacy gift, please call (970) 243-3767.