Meet Our Donors
Leonard Humphrey
Volunteer Gives Back to Paoli Hospital in Many Ways
"It's amazing — the number of things that they do," said Leonard Humphrey, speaking of the 500-member strong volunteer force at Paoli Hospital that he joined 19 years ago. Mr. Humphrey has served many areas of the hospital through the years, including patient transport, the Emergency Department, the mail room, and the cafeteria, where he can currently be found helping manager Tiffany Phelps-Brown and her staff.
When asked what first drew him to Paoli Hospital when he moved to Chester Springs many years ago, Mr. Humphrey related that many of the new friends he was making at church spoke highly of the Hospital. When he was in rather sudden need of hospital care, he knew that Paoli was the place to go. Although he fortunately has not needed to be hospitalized again since his initial visit, he remembers that he had a positive experience both in the Emergency Department and on the patient floor. Mr. Humphrey also recalls the "friendly and competent" staff who took good care of him. One experience, in particular, stuck with him. A new friend from church appeared at his bedside one day wearing a Volunteer smock with books in hand for him to read during his week-long stay. At that point, Mr. Humphrey resolved that as soon as he was able, he would join the ranks of Paoli Hospital volunteers.
When he retired from his position as a lead electrical engineer with General Electric, Mr. Humphrey began helping in the x-ray department handling patient transportation. He relates: "Among the group volunteering at that time were many, like myself, who were GIs who had served in World War II." While waiting to carry patients, the group shared stories and developed friendships, which have lasted until this day.
When Mr. Humphrey reflected on the positive experiences he and his late wife, Rosemary, had at Paoli, he was inspired to contribute financially in addition to donating his time to Paoli. Mr. and Mrs. Humphrey chose to make their initial gift in the form of a charitable gift annuity, a simple vehicle that supported Paoli Hospital while providing steady, ongoing payments to the Humphreys that are partially tax-free. Mr. and Mrs. Humphrey realized that they could make a significant gift to Paoli while also prudently enhancing their retirement income. The process of creating a charitable gift annuity proved so easy that the Humphreys made a second gift of this nature a few years after the first.
What is perhaps most remarkable is that Mr. Humphrey has taken the extraordinary step of donating back to Paoli Hospital the quarterly payments he receives from one of his gift annuities. Mr. Humphrey notes that he currently doesn't need the income, and likes the idea of the additional funds being utilized by the Hospital.
As a charitable gift annuity donor, Mr. Humphrey is a member of the Paoli Society, a group of special donors who have expressed their commitment to Paoli Hospital in their long term financial and estate plans. Typical forms of gift planning include providing a bequest provision in one's will, funding a charitable gift annuity, or naming a charity as a partial beneficiary of a retirement or life insurance plan. Mr. Humphrey recalls that as a member of the Paoli Society, he participated in a special opportunity to tour the new Pavilion before it opened to the public. Having seen the building progress each week as he volunteered at Paoli, he greatly appreciated this insiders' tour.
For many reasons, Paoli Hospital's status as a non-profit is important to Mr. Humphrey. He appreciates the fact that Paoli Hospital serves both as a provider of community services such as free screenings and wellness programs, and also as a place where volunteers can give back in a variety of ways. He sees volunteer service as a definite win-win: the network of volunteers, of which he is a vital member, is a key benefit to Paoli, but the experience also serves the volunteers well by providing meaningful connections and opportunities to be of service.
Paoli Hospital is certainly lucky to have such a dedicated and charitably-minded volunteer in its midst. Mr. Humphrey thinks that our region is equally lucky to be served by Paoli Hospital, a community institution dedicated to excellence in health care.