Over the next 10 years, more than $422 million will transfer from one generation to the next in McCook and Red Willow County as part of the “transfer of wealth.” That numbers jumps to $3.9 billion (yes, with a B) over the next 50 years.
Those numbers are staggering. But more importantly, those amounts are transformational.
Just think about what happens if all that money leaves the community when someone dies and leaves those assets to heirs who don’t live in their hometown.
But more importantly, just think about what happens if just a small amount of that money stays in the community when someone dies and leaves a donation to their hometown. Each and every one of us needs to make the decision at some point of to give or not to give, as well as where
As a a retired dentist who moved to McCook with my family in June 1969 to become the junior associate of the famous Blank brothers - Lavern and Don, I went on to practice dentistry for 45 years and developed a deep love of McCook.
Three days after I retired, I was asked to join the McCook Community Foundation Fund’s Advisory Committee. Over the past 8 years, I have slowly learned how this foundation-concept works and how I can be an asset to the foundation and the community.
We also benefit from being part of the Nebraska Community Foundation (NCF) network with more than 1,500 community volunteers from hundred of communities across Nebraska, providing resources and connections.
It was during an NCF trainings that I found my “why” I do this fulfilling work.
This work is important to me now is that I love McCook and I love making a difference. The values that MCFF represents are important to me. They are honesty, integrity and inclusivity. Our networking with NCF has accomplished so much and we are incredibly proud and grateful.
But there is more to do.
Over the years, MCFF has invested more than $3.4 million back into McCook and Southwest Nebraska, through grants, scholarships and investments. But the biggest impact will soon come from the “transfer of wealth,” which has already began.
The intergenerational transfer of wealth is massive and continues to move rapidly. Nebraska became the “Good Life” because people recognized and seized new opportunities. Now is the time to act on an opportunity that can shape Nebraska and McCook’s future.
Over the next 50 years, Nebraskans will transfer billions of dollars to the next generation. This transfer of wealth offers an unprecedented opportunity if we count our communities among our heirs.
Imagine what an investment of just five percent of this transfer of wealth could do for long-term economic development and qualify of life in McCook. The opportunity is massive. The time is now.
We must act now to encourage charitable investment in the future of our community while the window is open. We must teach, encourage and inspire each other to give back today. And we must include our community in our estate planning for tomorrow.
Regardless of your age, I recommend everyone to consider the following:
- Talk to your professional advisor about including your community in your estate plan.
- Give to the endowment of your community fund or favorite charity.
- Create a donor-advised fund to support charitable giving.
- Learning how you can create your own personal legacy.
And I can make this request because I not only talk-the-talk, but walk-the walk because of the planned gift my wife, Sandy, and I have made to create a legacy that will live on in perpetuity.
Everyone has the choice about whether to give or not give, but let me finish by sharing how making the planned gift made me feel: Sandy and I both love McCook and this gift was probably one of the most rewarding and grateful feelings that we could have ever imagined.
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Bill Graves is a member of the McCook Community Foundation Fund’s Advisory Committee and has been involved in most of the major projects that have shaped McCook from the creation of Heritage Hills Golf Course to building the new YMCA near the high school.
