Meet Our Donors

John A. LeMieux '83

Including Lyndon State College in his estate plans came naturally to John LeMieux '83.

"It was an easy decision to make. Lyndon State had a very large impact on my ability to be successful," LeMieux notes. He remembers how successful faculty members were at getting good work out of him: "They didn't let me slide by. They kept pushing me until the skill they saw as raw potential showed up in my work. Graduate school was easier for me as a result of my time at Lyndon."

In fact, one of his professors encouraged him to go on to graduate school at the University of Indiana in Bloomington. They actually drove together to visit the University and the professor used his influence at the institution to help get John admitted.

While this type of caring attention from the faculty was important, the overriding memories from his time at Lyndon come from playing basketball for Skip Pound. The great teammates he played with remain his friends to this day. As he remembers, "We learned how to work hard, how to play hard, and the difference between the two."

Since John can't put a value on what he took away from Lyndon, including the College in his estate plan was an easy way for him to give back to the College. When reviewing his estate plan, he realized that his wife would be well provided for in the event of his death. With this assurance in mind, he made a provision for Lyndon State College and his high school alma mater.

John offers the following advice to others interested in including LSC in their estate plans:

• If you're 21 or older, make sure you have a will, a durable power of attorney, and a health care proxy.
• Make sure you review your estate planning documents every two or three years, especially following major life events such as the birth of a child, getting married, or moving between states.
• When making a change, contact your attorney.
• Take an inventory of what's important to you. Is your family taken care of? Are your immediate concerns met?
• Then look to what's really important to you, your family, and your community and ask how you can make a difference. What can you give back?

John also notes that the simplest way to make a planned gift to Lyndon State is to designate the College as a partial or secondary beneficiary of a life insurance policy or retirement plan.

By including Lyndon State College in his estate plan, John feels invested in Lyndon on a very real level. As an alumnus, it keeps him tied to the school and he knows how important it is for alumni to remain connected to the College.