By Dawn Fell
This question has been on my mind as it once again is time to update my will. My youngest is about to turn 20, so there are no longer any “children” in my estate plans. Like many people, I wrote my first will to ensure there would be someone of my choosing designated to look after the kids if anything happened to me and my husband. Now, more than 20 years later, it’s time for an update.
The kids will still inherit most of my estate, but I’ve been thinking about other ways I can make an impact, and which causes I would like to support with a legacy gift. For me, UHN made a significant impact on my life in my early 30s, and it’s important for me to support the team who cared for me so that in the future, others can receive the same outstanding care that I did.
That draw to support UHN brought me to UHN Foundation where I lead the Estate Giving portfolio, helping others leave a legacy that will support health care and medical innovation.
UHN has a rich history of discovery that has saved — and continues to save — countless lives, in our local community and beyond. The teams of world-class clinicians and researchers are driven every day to unlock new ways to make lives better. By leaving a legacy gift to UHN, ordinary people can help UHN achieve extraordinary things — allowing UHN to accelerate discoveries and provide patients with the world-class care they need and deserve.
We all need healthcare
At some point everyone will need the health care system, and we want to be able to offer the best care and most advanced treatments when our communities are in need. Donor support, including legacy gifts, are part of the reason UHN is the #1 hospital in Canada. Philanthropy is absolutely critical to the work happening every day at UHN — it attracts the best-and-brightest medical minds and allows us to remain at the forefront of health care innovation on the world stage. Donations have helped UHN to do so many incredible things, like working towards a blood test that can diagnose arthritis early, using AI to increase the likelihood of a successful organ transplant, and developing a remote monitoring program to help cardiac patients in remote communities better manage their care. Supporting UHN —the world’s #1 publicly funded hospital — means accelerating the advancement of patient care and saving lives here and around the world.
None of us knows what the future holds, but by supporting and encouraging philanthropy through our work, our legacy, and that of our donors, will be a lasting positive impact on the future. At UHN, we have launched a new campaign, UHNITED, which reminds us of the power we have when we come together to support a common goal. No one ever changed the world on their own, but when we come together with donors believing anything is possible, it is.
Many of you work with donors and clients who support charities, and encouraging them to consider a legacy gift is an important way to help them achieve their philanthropic goals and change the future for the better.
Over half of Canadians haven’t made a will at all, and many admit that their will does not reflect their current wishes for their estate. For me, this likely isn’t the final update to my will, but I will sleep better knowing that it is up-to-date with where I am in my life right now, and it will benefit not only my children, but people from across my community who may need life-saving care at UHN in the future. I am hopeful that one day, my legacy gift will fuel the next major breakthrough in medical research that will make a difference in countless lives, the way UHN made a difference in my life many years ago.
I encourage you to think about your own legacy wishes, and to help and support your donors and clients in the achievement of their legacy aspirations.
Dawn Fell is Vice-President, Estate Giving with UHN Foundation.
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