“There is a passage in Luke that pretty much sums up our approach to philanthropy and the Wyoming Community Foundation,” wrote Kim and Mary Kay Love, in an email responding to the question, “What inspires you to give so generously?”

 

The Loves continued, “It’s Luke 12:48, which says, ‘For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required: and to whom men have committed much, of him they will ask the more.’”

 

The Loves oversee two Donor Advised Funds at the WYCF – The Kim and Mary Kay Love Family DAF, and the Christine Gempp Love Endowment Fund, established in honor of Kim’s late mother. In addition to this, both Kim and Mary Kay have served on the advisory board for the Sheridan-Johnson Community Foundation, a WYCF affiliate. Kim is currently a member of the board, and Mary Kay is a past member.

 

“Throughout our lives,” they said, “we have been blessed in so many ways. There have, of course, been the inevitable ups and downs, but on balance, we have been very, very, lucky people. As a result, we feel it is the right thing for us to give back to the community that has given so much to us.”

 

Mary Kay continued, saying that it is important for all people to give back to their communities, because people investing in their towns and cities allows those places to stay healthy and continue to grow. She said that if nobody ever invested in Sheridan, “it would be a very different place.”

 

The Loves added that “the more one gives, the more one receives.”

 

For them, philanthropy is not just about the obligation to do good, but also about the joy of doing good.

 

Both of the Loves’ Donor Advised Funds have been designed in such a way as to allow the funds to address as many needs and issues as possible, while still allowing for Kim and Mary Kay’s involvement.

 

Kim said that he and Mary Kay do not want to restrict their funds to address a single issue or cause because they don’t want to preclude grant money coming out of their funds from aiding any good purpose or idea that comes to their attention.

 

“As you look down the road, you’ll see that needs change, and you don’t want to limit yourself” to addressing just one need that may become outdated, Kim said.

 

Kim said that he trusts the WYCF staff to continue stewarding the funds long into the future, even after he and Mary Kay can’t. He knows that the money in the funds will be used to address Wyoming’s ever-changing and most pressing needs.

 

Kim also said that setting up Donor Advised Funds at the WYCF, as opposed to creating private foundations made sense because “we can really have all of the benefits of our own foundation without the expense and trouble a stand-alone foundation would entail.”



And as the admonishment of Luke made clear to both Kim and Mary Kay, the feeling of obligation they have to give back to their community is strong and ongoing. At the Wyoming Community Foundation, we admire and thank donors like Kim and Mary Kay Love. We do everything we can to steward our donors` charitable giving, which will help address need in the state forever.