WMVCF NEWS June 10, 2010: Gertrude Oakley bequests $300,000 to Wet Mountain Valley Community Foundation!

A Westcliffe woman, who died earlier this year, has left more than $300,000 to the Wet Mountain Valley Community Foundation.
The cash bequest came from Gertrude Oakley, who died in early February. She had been a long-time resident of the Valley, having lived in the Rosita area until moving to the Westcliffe Town Homes several years ago.
The board of directors of the Community Foundation was notified of the gift and expressed gratitude for the generous bequest.
The funds, which totaled $300,562.55,  will be added to the foundation’s financial assets and will increase its ability to financially assist local charities and non-profit organizations.
A portion of Mrs. Oakley’s bequest has already been allocated. During a foundation meeting on June 18, the board agreed to fund a $15,000 grant request from Custer 2020/Club America which will use it to leverage additional grant funds from the Colorado Health Foundation. Half of the grant -- $7,500 – will come from the foundation’s previously existing  assets and half will come from the Gertrude Oakley bequest.
Mrs. Oakley was born on a farm near Vieanna, Austria, on June 22, 1921. She had been a resident of Custer County for about 20 years prior to her death on Feb.4 at the age of 88. She had no known surviving relatives.
The Community Foundation was established in 1999 thanks to a generous gift from the Stermer family. Since its inception, the foundation has given or leveraged more than $1 million in grants to more than 50 non-profits headquartered here in Custer County. The leveraged grants come primarily from the annual Community Spirit campaign, in which the foundation partially matches donations from the public to local qualifying non-profit organizations. Funds go to organizations that work in the areas of education, health care, recreation, the arts, historical preservation, public safety, public welfare and other services for residents and visitors of Custer County.
The Community Foundation is always seeking financial contributions, both large and small, from the public.
For more information about gifting options or about the foundation in general, contact any board member or peruse the pages of this website. Members of the board are Arlie Riggs, Randy Rusk, Will Sibbald, Don Kaufman, Butch Gemin, Don Hopkins and Jim Little.