Chuck '66 and Kathie Joseph

Over the years, Chuck '66 and Kathie Joseph have made some good choices, have been lucky enough to be in the right place at the right time, and have been blessed with some financial success. Because they believe in sharing their blessings and because Saint Mary's represents the two most important building blocks of their success — faith and education — they established a charitable remainder unitrust for the benefit of Saint Mary's University. The trust pays them income for their lives, and the remainder is their legacy gift to a school that has meant so much to them.

"In the early 1960s, on the near north side of Chicago, education was, for me, the only way to advance," says Chuck. "Saint Mary's gave me the tools I needed: the ability to think and learn." Chuck remembers his time at Saint Mary's and many of his teachers with fondness, including Dr. Morgan, who in physics class taught him if a job needed to be done, then just do it, "a necessary skill for accomplishing anything of value," according to Chuck. "Brother Edward in math taught me to think on my feet and present my thoughts in an orderly fashion before a group." He also recalls tests given by Brother K. Basil that required students to view situations from both sides and gave him skills he still uses today to sort out where he wants to go, what he wants to do, and who he wants to be.

Chuck and Kathie hope that their gift of a charitable remainder unitrust will encourage others who may not have been leaders or stars during college to look at their lives, give credit to Saint Mary's for their accomplishments, and decide to share their blessings in ways that will help the university continue its good work for future students.