Cheers to Miss Pat

Through the power of planned giving, a fun-loving former Latin teacher leaves a “philanthropia legatus” for kids.

The guiding wisdom about factors that contribute to a long and fulfilling life include staying active, maintaining social connections, getting fresh air and exercise, and continuing to learn for mental sharpness.

Pat Delano did all of those in spades before she died in November 2017 at the age of 101. A Latin teacher at Greenwood Laboratory School by profession, Mrs. Delano played golf into her 90s, loved being part of the P.E.O. sisterhood for 63 years, worshipped at Westminster Presbyterian, traveled extensively when her husband was alive, and enjoyed music and dancing.

Pat Delano enjoyed a big birthday celebration, especially from about age 95 on. She celebrated her 101st birthday in January 2017, which included a party at Nicola’s restaurant in Springfield, a favorite spot with owner Nicola Gilardi among her good friends. (Photo courtesy of Sherry Bureman)

Oh, and a nightly nip of her favorite Grey Goose vodka undoubtedly contributed to her longevity, her friends maintain.

“She was just always very fun-loving and always enjoyed a party,” says Sherry Bureman, who helped care for her in her later years. “Everywhere we took her, she would run into someone she knew.”

Mrs. Delano’s husband, Bill, preceded her in death by some 30 years. She worked at the U.S. Army hospital in Springfield, O’Reilly General, while Bill was away serving in World War II. She was with him on many of the trips he made to fulfill his high-school goal of visiting every county seat in the United States. They had no children, so she became a member of the CFO’s Legacy Society to include a planned gift for the community in her estate plan. She established the Bill and Pat Delano Fund, a field-of-interest endowment to grant to organizations furthering early childhood education and development.

“She grew up in tough times. She would have been of an age where the Depression affected she and her family a great deal,” her attorney Topper Glass says. “She lived conservatively, but was very generous.

“I think her teaching and natural personality made her concerned about education for young people,” he added. “Pat Delano is an example of a person who cares about a charitable cause and when she makes a pledge and commitment to leave the money, it was true and it was there when she died. It is going to be used for the purposes intended.”

This story was originally published in the CFO’s Annual Report FY2018. You can read the full publication here.