Larry Weidemier '59 looked once more at the stack of financial planning brochures in front of him. The brochures represented an array of charitable giving plans—all very worthy, all requiring an investment.

He knew he wanted to do something. He also knew he was going to need a sorting process, a tiebreaker, to single out the plan he wanted. Ideally, he liked plans that offered a competitive return and a future supplemental income stream. Most of all, he wanted a plan that would ultimately benefit a favored institution.

At the moment, the Pru had the highest rate of return on its annuities. The Heart Fund, his college's plan, and other charitable plans included decent rates, tax deductibility, and potential for a significant gift to the institution. But every time Larry shuffled the brochures, the one with the dark red background and the Taft School logo kept finding its way to the top of the pile.

Joining the Taft Family in his youth, Larry had been just another farm kid from Watertown; Taft was not in the cards for him. One day, some of his buddies talked him into applying for the local Taft scholarship. Whatever the reasons, Taft chose him to participate in four years of excellent academics with superb faculty and accomplished fellow students. It became clear: Now was the time to do something for Taft. From every appearance, the Taft of today is enhancing its tradition of excellence and reaching out in new and exciting directions. As a former farm kid with firsthand knowledge of the subject, Larry, now a lawyer, was pleasantly astonished to see Taft faculty member Carly Borken's Plymouth Rock hen featured on the cover of the Taft Bulletin—Spring 2014. This sealed the deal.

After several productive conversations with Taft's director of planned giving, Larry agreed to fund a charitable gift annuity. A gift annuity is when you make a donation and, in return, the school agrees to give you fixed payments for life. He also named his wife Carol to benefit from the secure payments. It was a good feeling, something significant for Taft to continue its good works and something for Larry and his wife in the meantime.