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 A GIFT FOR FUTURE GENERATIONS
It was a combination of forethought, thrift – and most
of all care – that turned one person’s gift into
one that will touch many people for many years to come. That
one person is Inga Johnson and her gift was the Inga M. Johnson
Endowment Fund. It is a gift that continues to give to the
families of Fergus Falls and to the surrounding area, and it
is one of
which West Central Initiative is very proud to be a part.
A
LIFE – FULL OF ENJOYMENT AND CARING
Inga was born in 1902 on a farmstead in Elizabeth Township.
She was the youngest, and the last survivor, of eight children
of
Oscar and Kari (Jensen) Johnson. After completing grade school
in Elizabeth, Inga went on to Park Region College in Fergus
Falls and Dakota Business College in Fargo.
Early in her
work life, Inga was employed as a cashier and stenographer
at DeLendrecie’s Department Store in Fargo, and at
the First National Banks in Mayville and McIntosh. While
she was
employed as a cook at Two Medicine Chalet in Glacier National
Park, Inga began to enjoy photographing the scenery and hiking
in the mountains.
A COMMITMENT TO COMMUNITY
Her travels took her as far as the Pacific Ocean, and while
in California, she learned that her brother Charles had
purchased the Lake Alice Grocery in Fergus Falls. Inga soon
joined
him in the neighborhood grocery business. She worked for
50 years
at the store – into her 80’s – and some
ten years after her brother had died.
Inga also was active
in her church – singing in the choir,
teaching Sunday School and working with the church women’s
organizations. She continued her love for climbing mountains
and tending flowers. With her interest in photography,
Inga was a charter member of Heart O’Lakes Camera
Club. During the Second World War, she was a member of
the Red Cross Blood Mobile
Canteen.
As Inga began to reach 90 years of age – and having been
in and out of nursing homes several times – she knew
it was time to begin planning her estate.
ESTABLISHING AN ESTATE
PLAN
With legal counsel, Inga established a living trust
to manage her assets and contain her estate plan. She provided
management
of her assets for the years she expected to be in a nursing
home. Inga planned to make appropriate gifts to relatives
(nine nieces
and nephews), local friends and associates, and charities – as
the success of her investments permitted. Inga also decided
to establish a permanent endowment fund to provide benefits,
in
perpetuity, for people living in and around the Fergus
Falls area. The plan considers her investments, insurance,
trusts and
annuities. Inga also made a will, which was designed to
reduce or eliminate income tax and death taxes and to
provide maximum
benefits
for her friends, family and chosen charities.
WEST CENTRAL
INITIATIVE WAS SELECTED
A Living Trust and Endowment Fund with West Central Initiative
(WCI) were the means Inga chose to accomplish her goals.
For many years, Inga had contributed to a number of charitable
non-profit organizations in the Fergus Falls area. And,
for the rest of her days – and beyond – she
continues that support. The Inga M. Johnson Endowment Fund,
at WCI, was a key
instrument in fulfilling her wishes. A GIFT OF LOVE LIVES
ON IN FERGUS FALLS
Inga died in October 1998 at the age of 96. Before her
death, she had contributed $130,000 over seven years to
the Endowment
Fund.
Inga received an income tax deduction for the amount
of the gift that she was able to make each year from the
annual
earnings of her investments.
These gifts gradually and
steadily increased the size of the Endowment. Inga reduced
her income tax liability by
the deductible
charitable gifts she made to WCI and other charities.
AN
ADDED-VALUE TO INGA’S GIFT
Upon her death, Inga also left a residuary portion of
her estate, further increasing the size of the Inga
M. Johnson
Endowment
Fund to more than three-quarters of a million dollars.
By doing so, she accomplished another goal – to
eliminate all death taxes on her estate.
MAKING COMMUNITIES
STRONGER AND HEALTHIER
Through earnings from the Inga M. Johnson Endowment
Fund, contributions support a number of organizations
in the
Fergus Falls area
Inga
Johnson. One of life’s true gifts.
Giving of herself and her financial resources. That
is how Inga lived her life and that is how she is remembered
today:
Making
life better for future generations in Fergus Falls
and
for the entire region. |
