The ASSP Foundation’s Legacy Donor Program offers a way for dedicated safety professionals to continue moving the profession forward with what they leave behind. To become a Legacy Donor, members can designate the ASSP Foundation as a beneficiary for a portion of their estate, 401(k) or even life insurance policy, after making sure their loved ones are taken care of. Donors can earmark these contributions for the ASSP Foundation programs of their choice.
Dave Crowley, CSP, CHMM, STS, is a professional member of our Greater Boston Chapter and a member of our Environmental, Management, Manufacturing, Risk Management and Transportation practice specialties, as well as the Blacks in Safety Excellence and Women in Safety Excellence common interest groups. He and his wife, Penny, chose to be Legacy Donors because they want to continue contributing to the ASSP Foundation and the Society.
“[Being a Legacy Donor] is a way for me to continue to support the ASSP Foundation,” Crowley says. He was actively involved in the ASSP Foundation for many years and eventually joined the organization’s Board of Trustees. He found that the Legacy Donor Program was a way for him to contribute to the next generation. “It’s a great way for me to give back to the Society as well as the ASSP Foundation to enable others to grow in their careers.”
Wyatt Bradbury, CSP, CHST, CIT, is a professional member of our National Capital Chapter and a member of our Training and Communications Practice Specialty and Emerging Professionals in OSH Common Interest Group. He learned about the program from other members who were involved, such as Pam Walaski, CSP, a professional member of our Western Pennsylvania Chapter and a member of our Consultants and Risk Management practice specialties and Women in Safety Excellence Common Interest Group.
Bradbury stresses how rewarding it is to contribute to the program and help provide for those interested in joining the safety profession. “For me, one of the marks of a leader is not necessarily success when you're there, but to sustain the success that you leave behind,” he says. “This is a way for us to support the ongoing success and the mission of ASSP, and really make sure we are setting up our future generations of safety professionals to be in an extremely successful position in what are rapidly changing and often uncertain times.”
Jan Simon Clark, CSP, CIH, a professional member of our Permian Basin Chapter, was the recipient of a scholarship from our Central Texas Chapter in the 1980s and chose to become a Legacy Donor to continue that chain of giving. “One of my passions in life is to ensure workers go home each and every night to their families, and I have devoted my career to both process safety and personnel safety,” she says. “I chose to become a Legacy Donor for the same reason I donate to the ASSP Foundation every year — to help others with educational expenses so they, in turn, can help workers go home each and every night to their families.”
Walaski echoes that paying it forward is at the heart of the safety profession. “I think, as safety professionals, we all owe it to future generations, whether through professional grants or scholarships, to help fund the future of our profession and that's really what the ASSP Foundation does,” Walaski says.
For those who are still considering whether to become a Legacy Donor, Bradbury explains that it is important to understand who the program benefits and recognize the greater reward. “The ASSP Foundation supports not only emerging professionals but also those professionals who are continuing to grow,” he says. “It's not something you just need at the beginning or the end of your career, but it's certainly something that we can all work to give back to for the benefit of all of us. We're building into that next generation of professionals and, in turn, they're going to be the ones supporting us and supporting our legacies.”
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