Hazel Grove Winesett, who passed away on March 30, 2002, will be remembered as always on the go. The 1938 RU graduate enjoyed travel, the Florida sunshine and visiting friends. And she had a lot of friends. Winesett loved to write letters to friends and her Christmas card list included more than 100 people to whom she sent a story about the past year and her kind hopes that they have a wonderful New Year.
"She would always mail them the last day of November so you'd receive it the first week of December," says Winesett's good friend Jean Blankenship, a 1951 RU graduate and retired guidance counselor from Pulaski County High School.
What Blankenship remembers most about Winesett (pictured at right), though, is her generosity, both in thought and deed. When Blankenship moved to Pulaski as a young teacher in 1951, Winesett took her in until she could get her own home.
Like Blankenship, RU has also been blessed by Winesett's generosity. "She was a great believer in community service," says Blankenship "and always made you feel good when you were around her." Blankenship remembers how Winesett appreciated the kindness of her friends. She carefully planned her estate, through her will, to ensure that those kindnesses were repaid to several charities and colleges that were important to her in life.
As a Radford alumna, Winesett used her Will to bequeath an endowed gift of more than $820,000 to enhance Radford University's future. "Ms. Winesett's generosity and forethought, typifies how she lived her life," says associate vice president for development Jim Watson. "By using estate planning, she has ensured that her assets went to the people and organizations she cared most about. She was able to make much larger gifts than would have been possible during her lifetime."
Winesett had donated to the RU Magazine Fund several times over the years. Watson says that her estate bequest will benefit the McConnell Library and other departments across campus that she designated in her estate plan. "She provided a gift that will keep on giving in perpetuity," according to Watson.
Hazel did have a lot of friends in her life and she has ensured that future RU students will know of and benefit from her kindness and thoughtfulness toward her alma mater.
If you would like to receive information about how estate planning can benefit your current and long-term financial plans, please contact Dr. Jim Watson, at the Radford University Foundation, Inc. at 540-831-5752 or jwatson35@radford.edu or www.radford.edu/Foundation/index.html
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