Compassionate Care Worth Supporting

Anne Smallwood has watched her mother, brother and niece struggle to breathe.

“If you can’t breathe, you can’t swallow, you can’t eat, you can’t move or have a conversation,” she explains. “Without oxygen, nothing else really matters.”

As someone who has worked in health care her entire career, Anne immediately understood the difference compassionate, coordinated, expert care can make in the lives of those who have trouble breathing.

Anne, a retiree who worked in Medical Affairs in the biopharmaceutical industry, is showing her appreciation with a sizeable legacy gift to National Jewish Health payable from her estate. She has also generously donated cash to the institution.

“I like their mission,” Anne says about the nation’s leading respiratory hospital. “The maximum you can live without oxygen is about three minutes. So breathing is a very basic need, and when you have asthma or an airway disease, National Jewish Health is the place to visit.”

Anne, who lives in Overland Park, Kansas, and teaches as an adjunct professor in the graduate program at the Drexel University College of Medicine, isn’t looking for recognition; she simply wants to encourage others to donate.

“Most people don’t realize how good they have it,” she says. “It’s really worth your peace of mind knowing that you donated to a cause that’s dear to your heart.”

If a member of your family was struggling to breathe, as in Anne’s case, imagine how important expert care would be in providing quality of life to that individual. Consider supporting National Jewish Health with a gift this year. To learn more, contact Gordon Smith, MBA, CFRE at 1.800.423.8891, Ext. 6549 or giftplanning@njhealth.org.

The information on this website is not intended as legal or tax advice. For such advice, please consult an attorney or tax advisor. Figures cited in examples are for hypothetical purposes only and are subject to change. References to estate and income taxes include federal taxes only. State income/estate taxes or state law may impact your results.