A Legacy of Giving
While working on their will and putting together a living trust, Carl '68 and Joyce Roof discussed the distribution of their estate to family and deserving non-profits. "Because of our belief in Saint Michael's and the educational opportunities it offers, we wanted to do something substantial in addition to our annual gifts. Including the College in our trust was the best way to accomplish this," says Carl.
Carl credits Saint Michael's for the person he is today, saying "my liberal arts education broadened my view of the world, gave me a thirst for knowledge and introduced me to a wide range of new cultural experiences."
Carl believes that a college education, especially in the liberal arts, is a lifelong gift. He says, "The value lies in what you do with that education and what kind of person you become as a result of it. I learned many things at Saint Michael's, but most importantly I gained an insight into my rather rigid social views of the time and moved both spiritually and intellectually toward a more empathetic and caring view of the world."
His time at Saint Michael's helped shift Carl's interest toward human service work and led to his eventual career in that field in Vermont. Carl became a pioneer in the effort to establish local restorative justice practices, working with other corrections, judicial and law enforcement officials, to help Vermont move toward a successful and more community-based approach to conflict and criminality. Concurrently, he had a second career with the U.S. Army Reserves training new recruits in basic training and retired after 29 years of service with the rank of Lieutenant Colonel.
When asked about the people that made his Saint Michael's experience memorable, Carl acknowledges the "wonderful lunch ladies who challenged us to behave as adults in the cafeteria," Father Nelson "Zippy" Ziter who was there to listen and offer advice, and Professor Ed Pfeifer who whetted his interest in history. Carl also fondly mentions classmates Tom Ford '68 and Ed Boutin '68 and their memorable cross-country hike from campus to the top of Mount Mansfield.
When asked what advice he has for current students, Carl says, "The things you learn from classmates socially are often as important as those things you learn in the classroom, and in many cases, are more useful to you throughout your life."
Both Carl and Joyce, a Trinity graduate, have strong ties to the Saint Michael's community. Joyce remembers coming to Saint Michael's with her dad, Ed Lewis, in the late 50s to watch Y.A. Tittle and the New York Giants when they held their summer training camps at the College. Her love of Saint Michael's basketball comes directly from her Dad's part in establishing a booster club for the team in the early 60s.
Carl concludes that "having benefitted from all that the College has to offer and having two sons who went to Saint Michael's, it is only natural that we want to give back."
Joining the ranks of the Golden Knights with the Class of 1968 at Reunion this coming June, Carl encourages his classmates to make a planned gift in honor of their 50th Reunion, which will count toward the class gift.
To learn more about the different ways you can give to support Saint Michael's, please contact Carla Francis at 802-654-2618 or cfrancis@smcvt.edu
Information contained herein was accurate at the time of posting. 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 any examples are for illustrative purposes only. References to tax rates include federal taxes only and are subject to change. State law may further impact your individual results. California residents: Annuities are subject to regulation by the State of California. Payments under such agreements, however, are not protected or otherwise guaranteed by any government agency or the California Life and Health Insurance Guarantee Association. Oklahoma residents: A charitable gift annuity is not regulated by the Oklahoma Insurance Department and is not protected by a guaranty association affiliated with the Oklahoma Insurance Department. South Dakota residents: Charitable gift annuities are not regulated by and are not under the jurisdiction of the South Dakota Division of Insurance.