When Putnam resident Gerald J. Bibeault died last fall at age 95, the community lost a friend. Now the effects of that bond are being felt.
Bibeault bequeathed $1.5 million of his estate to local nonprofits in healthcare, education and community services, with the largest local gift being $289,000 to Day Kimball Healthcare.
“Gerry was a quiet, unassuming man passionate about the charities to which he left his estate,” said Thomas A. Borner, president and chief executive officer of Putnam Bank and estate attorney for Bibeault.
Bibeault accumulated his wealth working as an engineer in the aeronautics industry employed at Sikorsky Aircraft. He was a student at Williston Northampton School before graduating from Worcester Polytechnic Institute in 1942 with a bachelor of science degree in mechanical engineering. He left $578,000 gifts to each school.
Other beneficiaries included YMCA of Greater Hartford, which received $50,000, and St. Mary Church, Putnam, which received $5,000.
Pamela Watts, director of development at Day Kimball Healthcare, said that planned giving donations are a meaningful way for families and individuals to leave a legacy to their community. “Day Kimball is immensely grateful for Mr. Bibeault’s generosity, and we will be sure to honor him in a manner that allows his donation to be shared with a community he obviously cared about a great deal.”
The YMCA of Greater Hartford is applying the Bibeault estate donation to the capital campaign for the Regional YMCA being built in Putnam, Conn. The two schools and church are still determining how best to appropriate the funds to honor Bibeault.
Catalyst Fund kick-off
The Community Foundation of Greater New Britain’s Catalyst Fund will host an introductory meeting for prospective donors on Tuesday, June 18, at the Hospital of Central Connecticut.
The fund takes a start-small approach to making a difference in the communities of Berlin, New Britain, Plainville and Southington.
The Catalyst Fund is a giving circle of donors who make a modest, $250 investment per couple or individual each year. Three times per year, members gather to learn about a member-chosen issue facing their community, and to consider funding requests from charitable organizations addressing this issue. The year concludes with a collective vote to award a $10,000 grant to a chosen grantee.
Past issues taken on by Catalyst Fund members have included early childhood/pre-K education, food insecurity and hunger, access to oral health care, challenges facing veterans and risky behavior in youth. In its 10 years of existence, Catalyst Fund members have awarded more than $100,000 to a variety of programs meeting important needs and addressing difficult challenges in the community.
Members are engaged in a ballot process to choose the 2013 topic, which will be unveiled at the June meeting.
The kickoff meeting will take place from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. in THOCC’s Lecture Rooms 1 and 2. RSVP to Kaylah Smith by June 10 ksmith@cfgnb.org or 860-229-6018, ext. 300. For more information about the Catalyst Fund, contact Cheryl Farmer cfarmer@cfgnb.org or 860-229-6018, ext. 305.
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Oak Hill’s Johnson retiring
Oak Hill President Patrick J. Johnson Jr. has announced his retirement, effective the end of August, after 45 years of managing human services in Connecticut.
Johnson became the sixth president of Oak Hill in its 120-year history in 2003. Oak Hill is the state’s largest private nonprofit provider of services for people with disabilities and has over 100 sites in 58 towns throughout Connecticut.
Johnson had previously served as director of Catholic Charities for the Archdiocese of Hartford.
Today, Oak Hill offers the only approved private school model in the state where the classrooms of children with disabilities are integrated onsite into public school systems and local communities. Oak Hill students come from 51 school districts.
Oak Hill provides residential care for 400 children and adults throughout the state, as well as day programs for people with intellectual disabilities, supportive employment, a center for relationships and sexuality education, and birth-to-three programs.
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In brief …
Prudential Retirement, a business unit of Prudential Financial Inc., will contribute $15,000 to become the presenting sponsor of nonprofit Our Piece of the Pie’s Sip ‘n’ Sail 2013, a wine tasting fundraiser which will be held June 13 along the Connecticut River … Foodshare’s Walk Against Hunger drew about 4,000 walkers, who raised $553,000. With gifts still being counted, the nonprofit is it will surpass its goal of $625,000 … Operation Fuel raised more than $30,000 from its fourth annual Burn Calories for Fuel 5K and 10K, which was held recently at the Metropolitan Learning Center in Bloomfield. The proceeds from the run will be used for emergency energy assistance for Connecticut families and the elderly.… The Ronald McDonald House Charities of Connecticut and Western Massachusetts is accepting applications for grants to be awarded in the fall of 2013. The deadline is Friday, June 14. Projects must address and have a measurable impact on children. For more information about RMHC or to apply for a grant, please call (860) 659-0514, visit www.rmhc-ctma.org.
