“Our family never took real vacations,” Dorothy explains, “but we tagged along with Dad on some of his business trips. He ran an advertising agency, and one of his clients were the Marian Fathers in Stockbridge, Masssachusetts. “Dad would call on them 3 or 4 times a year to place vocation ads in various Catholic newspapers and magazines. My Mom, sister, and I got to go with him on his summer visits. “What impressed me most were the grounds. There was lots of open space to run around, and there were lots of statues of the Blessed Mother and other saints.” Serenity After college, Dorothy moved to New York City. “It’s only a couple of hours from the National Shrine, so I continued to visit from time to time, and sometimes brought friends with me,” she recalls. “As a young adult, I still appreciated the beauty of the grounds, but I also enjoyed the peace and serenity of the setting and the traditional style of the Shrine and the Mass. “When my son was born, we decided to move to an area that would be friendlier for raising a family. We selected a place in Tennessee that was also closer to my sister who had moved to Indiana. “But I miss visiting the National Shrine. I have seen Fr. Chris Alar and Fr. Donald Calloway at conferences in our area, and watch the livestreamed daily Mass and occasionally listen to talks on DivineMercyPlus.org. But I want to plan a trip back to Stockbridge soon.” Daunting task Dorothy knows how to plan a trip, but she admits that the thought of making estate plans was a bit daunting. She kept putting it off. Like many of us, she thought that she had to figure out everything and predict all that the future would bring. She finally decided not to put it off any longer and engaged an attorney to help her prepare her plan. One of the choices she considered was including gifts to charity in her will. She discovered that she could provide for her family first and then designate a percentage of the residue of her estate to support the Marian Fathers and other charities that are important to her. FreeWill Much like Dorothy, you don’t have to figure it all out on your own. We've partnered with FreeWill, a reliable online tool you can use to help prepare your estate plan, including your will or trust and a durable financial power of attorney. While FreeWill makes it possible to prepare these legal documents yourself, some people like to use this tool to create drafts that they then discuss and fine-tune with an attorney. We offer this service to help Marian Helpers take care of a very important task. There’s no obligation to include a gift to the Marians in your plan, so please use FreeWill to help make your plans and put your mind at ease. Visit Marian.org/Will. As always, feel free to get in touch with me if you have any questions. We often refer to Marian Helpers as “our family of faith and prayer.” In some cases, like Dorothy’s, the Marian family connection spans generations. FAMILY OF FAITH Outstanding Helpers In 2002, Anthony and Dorothy Faggello celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary with their daughters Miriam and Dorothy. Ellen Miller is a planned giving manager. Contactherat [email protected]; (413) 298-1380; or Association of Marian Helpers, Stockbridge, MA 01263. VisitGiving.Marian.org to learn more. Marian Helper • Fall 2024 • Marian.org 31
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