Springs Rescue Mission:

Planning Your Legacy

Janine celebrating her graduation from the HOPE Program, symbolizing her journey from homelessness to stable work and housing.

Warren Buffet has taken a Philanthropic Pledge: he will give 99% of his wealth to charity. Bill Gates has also taken the Philanthropic Pledge, pledging 95% of his wealth to charity. These numbers are extreme to those of us who are not billionaires, but you don’t need to be a billionaire or even have extra disposable income to make a big impact. What if you pledged just 1% of your estate to a philanthropic cause? That 1% may not be at all missed by your family members, but it could mean all the difference for a charity in Colorado. For example, if an individual has an estate worth $750,000, 1% of their estate could provide food and care for 3,860 neighbors at Springs Rescue Mission! What’s the value of your estate* and how many neighbors would 1% of your estate feed? As Catherine’s story below illustrates, helping to feed just one neighbor might mean changing one life for the better.Catherine Hammond, the founder of Hammond Law Group, and a new Board Member at the Mission has some very personal reasons for why she’s passionate about supporting the Springs Rescue Mission and helping you, our donors, find easy ways to continue your legacy. Here’s her story:I became an attorney because of what happened with my own mother, who had early onset Alzheimer’s. When I was 22, I had to hire a lawyer, go to court, have my mom declared incompetent, and ask the court for permission for every little thing. It was a heart-wrenching process, and ended in a mess of end-of-life decisions 20 years later that I really wasn’t prepared for. I’ve become passionate about helping families continue their legacies of generosity, particularly with the Springs Rescue Mission, because of my personal connections to their important work in the community. My older sister did drugs as a teenager, dropped out of high school, spent a little bit of time in the Army, and after a series of personal struggles she first became homeless around 15 years ago. About 2 ½ years ago she ended up living on the street full-time, declining my offer to stay with me. I got several voicemail messages from her, when it was 20 degrees below zero that winter, saying, in a faint voice, that she thought she was dying. About a year ago she was able to move into an apartment complex in Ft. Collins, specifically for the chronically homeless. Today she is doing pretty well and feeling like she hasn’t been totally abandoned by society. Today she has a glimmer of hope.And just when my sister moved off the streets, things took a turn for the worse with my little brother. Dave has lived in Amsterdam for 20 years, but lost his job as an architect after the 2008 recession and hasn’t been able to find steady work since then. Last spring, his girlfriend of 20 years packed up their daughter, moved to another town, and put their home on the market. When it sold last fall he had nowhere to go, leaving him some nights at a friend’s home and some nights on the streets. My heart was broken just imagining what he was going through on the freezing cold streets of Amsterdam. Two weeks ago I finally got an email from Dave, letting me know that he is now living in a home where he can stay for at least a year.I don’t have to tell you that the people being helped by the Springs Rescue Mission are real people, somebody’s brothers, sisters, children, maybe even parents. Many of them are struggling to find hope. Thank you for your support of the Springs Rescue Mission and making hope possible in the lives of those in our community. With spring upon us, it’s a great time to think about an issue like estate planning that may have slipped to the bottom of your to-do list. Come join us to learn how to continue your legacy of giving after you have passed away. We’ll also fill you in on the medical and financial issues that your family will face if you become incapacitated and the steps that you can take now to ensure that you don’t leave behind a legal mess for your family when you pass away.I hope you will join us and the team from Hammond Law Group to learn how to ensure your legacy of giving. Call us today to register for Planning Your Legacy and we will save a seat for you!