Reprint from Collections & Connections
Fall 1997, Vol.2, No. 1

Friends and alumni of Western Kentucky University now have a new way to provide financial support for university programs, while at the same time reducing personal taxes and providing for their future financial security. At their April meeting, the WKU Foundation Board of Directors approved a policy to create a charitable gift annuity program for the university.

By utilizing a gift annuity, a donor can transfer cash or property to Western and receive a favorably taxed and dependable income for as long as he or she lives. In addition, a portion of the gift may immediately be deducted on the donor's individual income tax return. The annuity payment received is specified at the time the gift is made and is based on the donor's age at the time the gift is made. For example, at age 65, the rate of return is 7.2 percent; at 90 and above, it's 12 percent.

At the time of the contributor's death, the current value of the gift is transferred to a permanent endowment fund. The income then will be used for a program specified by the donor, or for general purposes of Western Kentucky University.

The Kentucky Museum has been named the beneficiary of one of the university's first charitable gift annuities. Medora DavisonWithers, a WKU graduate and friend of the museum, recently transferred a maturing certificate of deposit to the Foundation. Her gift makes her a member of the newly-created Society of 1906 designed to honor individuals who have made a provision for university programs in an estate plan.

Mrs. Withers has designated her gift for the conservation of Kentucky Museum collections. According to Riley Handy, Library Special Collections department head, contributions like hers are very important to the program.

Handy said, "Every collection has special conservation needs. The cost of these technical services escalate each year and we are always in need of extra funds."

"Gifts like hers," Handy added, "will help make it possible for artifacts to be viewed and studied by both students and the public for years to come."

To find out more about planned giving opportunities or Western's new charitable gift annuity program, contact me at (502) 745-5406 or toll-free 1-800-WKU-ALUM.

~ Carol Cummings

One of the most exciting aspects of working at The Kentucky Museum is handling new acquisitions. Some gifts are important for their uniqueness. Unusual recent acquisitions include Michael W. Howell's gift of a diamond and platinum wristwatch made for President John F. Kennedy, and Miko Muraguchi's donation of two hand-painted silk kimonos. The latter was presented as a token of the Sister City relationship between Bowling Green and Kawanishi, Japan.

Other objects are significant, however, for the representative qualities they document. Barbara ford recently donated the matched pair of alligator pumps and purse she bought with her first earnings as 4-H Club agent in Christian County; and Gordon Wilson, Jr., donated his first suit of clothes, short pants and all!

In July, long-time Kentucky Building supporters William and Roslyn P. Stamps offered an Art Deco period lithographed candy tin; one month later Dan and Frankie Stone gave a circa 1918 General Electric fan. Artifacts such as these are essential if the museum staff is to interpret the lives of most Kentuckians.

The Museum Recent Acquisitions Committee continually looks for donations that supplement existing collections. Lexington lawyer and Western alumnus Julius Rather continues to add artifacts to his extensive political memorabilia collection. His latest gift includes a campaign button promoting William Howard Taft's 1908 presidential campaign. Other individuals donate political memorabilia as well, including Judge Sara Walter Combs, who recently gave several items relating to her late husband's, Bert T. Combs', gubernatorial career.

Individuals interested in donating objects to The Kentucky Museum should contact Sandy Staebell, Museum Registrar, (502) 745-6260 or e-mail sandra.staebell@WKU.edu.

~ Sandy Staebell