Peterson Keynote Encourages GenerosityNearly 80 participants from throughout the tri-state area participated in the sixth annual Women, Faith, and Finance seminar Friday, April 9, at the Hotel Winneshiek. Keynote speaker Jenny Norris Peterson, philanthropic adviser for Luther Seminary in St. Paul, Minn., shared perspectives from her own personal journey and professional experiences in her presentation “Women’s Philanthropy: A Heart and Soul Story of Generosity.”

Peterson’s interactive presentation, which included powerful, heartfelt glimpses of her own personal family story, was well received by participants. “Jenny talked from the heart,” one woman noted. “She helped me focus and inspired me to get better organized with estate planning.” When contemplating charitable giving decisions, Peterson encourages people to give to what you care most about, and make sure your values and passions align with interests and giving. She also suggested that everyone identify

three to four “pillars of philanthropy” and focus larger amounts on these causes.The day-long seminar was rich with information about finance and philanthropy. All those in

attendance selected two of four concurrent sessions led by area professionals. This year’s sessions included tax-free planning for college, retirement, and legacy by Londa Grinna, Lifetime Financial Solutions, and Jan Cordell, Luther College; life-planning tools for financial and health-care considerations by Deanna Clingan-Fischer, Iowa Department on Aging; investing for your future by Tracy Dostal, Bank of the West; and polish your personal finance skills by Erin Ludwig, Iowa State University Extension.

The event concluded with a timely and informative session on the current state of the economy by Ramona Nelson, Luther College, in a follow-up to her highly rated presentation in 2009. Nelson recapped the significant events that contributed to the financial market crisis and offered an update on signs of economic recovery and change in the last year.

Now in its sixth year, the Women, Faith, and Finance initiative, considered a unique collaborative model, is now being replicated in other communities. Each year, many participants cite “meeting new friends and renewing old friendships” as one of their favorite parts of this seminar event.

Women, Faith, and Finance is a collaborative initiative led by Luther College in partnership with Aase Haugen Homes, Canoe Ridge Lutheran Church, Decorah Lutheran Church, and Glenwood Lutheran Church to educate women of all ages about financial management, retirement and estate planning, and charitable giving.

Fall 2010

To subscribe to the Women, Faith, and Finance mailing list or request more information, e-mail Jeanie Lovell at lovellje@luther.edu.

Advisory GroupThe following individuals currently serve as members of the Women, Faith, and Finance Advisory Group. If you have ideas to share or would like more information regarding this initiative, please contact one of the advisory group members.

Jim AndersonSue BjellandKeith ChristensenTracy DostalMichelle EinckCindy HansmeierKate KlimeshJeanie LovellRev. Doug MathisonLynn MonroeJulie Strom Hendrickson

April 1, 2011 Hold the Date!Mark your calendars and plan ahead! The 7th annual Women, Faith, and Finance seminar is scheduled for Friday, April 1, 2011, at the Hotel Winneshiek in Decorah. We hope you can join us!

Watch for more information in the months ahead (including discounted tickets for the Center Stage Series performances of Church Basement Ladies: A Second Helping on Saturday, April 2). See article on page 3 for more details.

La Crosse area friends (l-r) Dee Otto, Sonja Nelson, Rita Martin, and Lisa Sauer have made attending the Women, Faith, and Finance seminar an annual tradition.

2010 Women, Faith, and Finance Seminar Highlights

Parents Influence Giving Decisions

According to the findings of a new study of donor attitudes and giving behavior, parental involvement in nonprofits increases the odds of a child becoming a donor by more than 80 percent. With parents who don’t, there is only a 25 percent chance the child will grow up to be a donor, the study found. The “Heart of the Donor” study, conducted by Russ Reid, a California-based company that provides direct-marketing services to nonprofits, surveyed more than 2,000 adults.

Kitchen Table Philanthropy Involving the Whole FamilyThe following article is taken from West Central Initiative’s quarterly newsletter Focus on the Region. Thanks to WCI for letting us share this article in our newsletter.

The next time your family comes together for a day at the lake or a barbecue in the backyard, why not take an hour to discuss your estate and how your family can make an impact on the things that are most meaningful to all of you?

To help you start the discussion, here are some topics and questions to post to your “kitchen table philanthropists”:

1) First, let your family know that including charitable giving in your estate does not mean leaving out children, grandchildren, and other family members. Including charities in your planning can actually enhance what your loved ones will inherit. Because your family is important to you, their input into how those charitable dollars are spent and what organizations they will support is also important to you.

2) Encourage your family to talk about the charitable organizations they currently support. Ask each about the most satisfying charitable gift that they have made. Other questions could include: • Do you see your family as a family

who “gives back”? How do you feel about that?

• Are local issues and organizations more important to your family than national or international organizations?

• Are there projects or organizations you would like the family’s name linked with?

• What would the family like to see accomplished through charitable giving?

Including your loved ones in these discussions can provide multiple benefits. It gives them a role in your decision making. They will understand what you want to do and how you want to do it. It should also ensure that there will be no surprises for the family at the time your estate is settled.

The West Central Initiative serves to improve west central Minnesota by uniting ideas and resources to help people and communities create a better tomorrow. To learn more about WCI, visit their website at wcif.org.

Clockwise from left:

Participants Lynn Monroe (WFF advisory group member), Kristi Berge, and Karen Crawford enjoy one of the concurrent sessions.

Jan Cordell (l) and Londa Grinna (r) co-presented on college savings strategies for parents and grandparents.

Erin Ludwig of ISU Extension offered tips on personal finance skills.

Did you know?The Martin Luther statue on Luther’s campus is an example of women’s philanthropy:

The most noteworthy visible monument of their love for the College that the women have left on the campus is the heroic bronze statue of Dr. Martin Luther. It cost $2,547, which was collected in small sums from the women of the former Norwegian Lutheran Synod. They could not have made the College a more fitting gift. The statue, which is a replica of the statue at Worms, is a reminder to all who see it of the principles which were championed by the great reformer and for which Luther College stands today, as it has done from the beginning. Luther College values the good-will of its women friends, and has no fear of the future so long as it has their hearty support.

Source: Luther College Through Sixty Years (p. 472)

Luther’s Early Women Philanthropists Church Basement Ladies: A Second Helping

On Saturday, April 2, 2011, the Luther College Center Stage Series will present two performances of the laugh-out-loud production Church Basement Ladies: A Second Helping. From the elderly matriarch of the kitchen to the young mom-to-be, the Church Basement Ladies will have you laughing ’til your side dish splits with their hilarious antics and down-to-earth charm. A special Norwegian-themed buffet (complete with some church potluck favorites!) will also be available before both performances.

Group ticket sales of 10 or more for the 2 p.m. matinee performance go on sale Thursday, September 9. Individual tickets for the matinee and 7:30 p.m. evening performance will go on sale March 3, 2011. Those who register for the Women, Faith, and Finance seminar before March 3 will receive a discounted ticket price for the evening performance.

Why not bring your favorite group of lady friends to a weekend of enjoyment with the WFF seminar on Friday, April 1, and Church Basement Ladies: A Second Helping on Saturday, April 2. Learning and laughing—we can all use a “second helping” of those! Contact the Luther College Box Office at 563-387-1357 for ticket information.

While women’s philanthropy is getting a great deal more attention in recent years, charitable giving by women certainly isn’t new. There are many notable examples of early women’s philanthropists—women whose gifts made a significant impact on their communities and helped form American history.

Clara Barton, who organized a relief program for soldiers and eventually founded the American Red Cross in 1881, and Jane Addams, who with the help of a $50,000 estate she inherited from her father co-founded Chicago’s Hull House in 1889, are two such women who led the way with their generosity.

As Luther College reflects on its first 150 years, we celebrate some notable examples of women philanthropists from early in our college history.

How about the story of Ellen Knudson Mather. As a young girl, she often heard

her father and Laur. Larsen, Luther’s first president, discuss the problems of education for Norwegian-Americans. In 1868, when she was 14 years old, she

began to teach school, earning $16 a month plus board. Each month, from her first pay check and from every succeeding pay check throughout her teaching years, she sent a contribution to Luther College. Now,

keep in mind, women couldn’t even attend Luther at this time, but Ellen knew how important education was.

Another example comes from the Gjerjord family of Stoughton, Wisconsin. One of the first legacy gifts recorded by Luther College came from Halvor Olson Gjerjord in 1882. According to Luther’s records, he gave the sum of $7,343.23, the income of which was to be used for aiding “the most worthy and needy students at Luther College who are studying for the ministry.” But the story doesn’t end there. Halvor’s widow, Ingeborg Gjerjord, bequeathed $1,227.58 in 1911 on exactly the same terms as the earlier legacy by her husband.

Another wonderful example of women’s philanthropy is the Luther College Woman’s Club, founded in 1933 as an outgrowth of a faculty wives organization. This is really an early example of a modern-day giving circle, where individuals pool their resources and then decide together where they should be distributed. Together members of the Luther College Woman’s Club have raised substantial support for the college over the years for a variety of projects and student scholarships, and they continue this good work today.

These are just a few early examples of women who helped lead the way with their giving. Much like the generous donors of today, some made gifts in their own names; some made gifts with their spouses or families.

Throughout its nearly 150-year history, Luther College has continued to thrive thanks to the generosity of many generations of donors—men, women, individuals, couples, and families.

Thanks to our Sponsors!Several area sponsors generously supported the 6th annual Women, Faith, and Finance seminar, including the Arlin Falck Foundation, Winneshiek County Community Foundation, Thrivent Financial for Lutherans, Lifetime Financial Solutions, and Wipfli Hewins Investment Advisers. Thanks to their financial contributions, we were able to keep our valuable program affordable for all participants.

Roger Huinker shares a few words on behalf of the Winneshiek County Community Foundation, which sponsored this year’s luncheon.

Thrivent Financial representative Kate Rattenborg (left) with keynote speaker Jenny Norris Peterson. A grant through Thrivent Financial’s Regional Lutheran Relations Program underwrote the keynote presentation.

Ellen Knudson Mather by George Plasse; image courtesy of Vesterheim Norwegian-American Museum, Decorah, Iowa.

Luther College700 College DriveDecorah, Iowa 52101

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From the DirectorFor me, summer is often a time to try new adventures. So this year my husband and I decided to ride RAGBRAI (the Register’s Annual Great Bike Ride Across Iowa)—442 miles of pedaling and eating our way across the state. Each day was a new experience for me as a first-time rider.

By mid-week, everyone was buzzing with anticipation about the monstrous Potter’s Hill coming up on the final day’s route to Dubuque. Even the more seasoned riders were a little nervous about Potter’s stats—1.1 miles long, 19 percent gradient at its steepest point, and 370 feet in elevation. In short, it was going to be a long, steep climb. Since I’d just started cycling in April, I had never tackled a hill like Potter’s during my short training. As I looked toward the top, it was daunting. But I put my head down and started pedaling. At about two-thirds of the way to the top, I ran out of gears (and energy). So I hopped off my bike and started pushing alongside lots of other riders. While I didn’t make it to the top, it felt good knowing I gave it my best effort, especially as a newcomer.

That hill became symbolic for many of us. And much like other challenges we face in our lives—whether it be saving for retirement, paying for a college education, or tackling our debt—it was hard work, and it took some planning. With a climb that steep, often we don’t know how to approach it. Despite our best efforts to get to the top, sometimes we run out of steam and have to get off and push for awhile. And that’s OK, as long as we keep moving forward.

As with managing our finances and creating our financial plans, we may not always be able to conquer the challenge on our first attempt. But as long as we keep trying and keep learning, we’ll get further (and know more) next time. I invite you to join us in learning more about finance and philanthropy through the Women, Faith, and Finance initiative. Then we can all become better prepared to conquer those hills—whatever and wherever they may be.