Sharing the Harvest
Becky and Paul Grothe
"Before we were married, I knew he wanted to farm again," reminisces Becky Grothe, about her husband, Paul Grothe (class of 1976).
Paul grew up on a family farm in northern Minnesota. After graduating from Concordia, he attended Wartburg Seminary and ordination and served ELCA congregations in Wisconsin, Michigan, Ohio, Minnesota and North Dakota. Over the years, Paul's love of farming remained strong—and he did farm again.
When it came time to wind down the farm business, Paul and Becky met with several advisors. During these conversations, Paul expressed his desire to leave a gift to Concordia College upon his death. Advisors encouraged the couple to consider a Charitable Remainder Unitrust (CRUT). This would provide them with payments during retirement and a generous gift to Concordia College after their lifetimes.
The Grothes worked with the Concordia advancement office and established a CRUT that named Concordia as the charitable remainder beneficiary. They transferred ownership of the farm machinery, and later the farmyard, to the trust. The farm machinery has been sold by the trust and the trust has invested the proceeds. The farmstead has been rented to a neighbor. Trust income generated from both sources flows through the trust to Paul and Becky. Paul and Becky will receive annual payments of five percent of the CRUT's principal balance, and upon their deaths, remaining funds in the CRUT will be given to Concordia.
"Concordia has had an incredible, positive impact on my life. I would not have done what I've done in life if I hadn't been a student at Concordia," says Paul. "We chose this way of expressing our gratitude, so that in the future, more young people who have financial need will be able to benefit from a Concordia education."
Make a lasting impact by making a planned gift through your estate. There are many ways to make a lasting impact by making a planned gift through your estate. Contact Trina Hall at 218.299.3445 or [email protected] today, to learn more.