It’s Easier Than You Think to Join the 1916 Society Through Planned Giving

The 1916 Society honors extraordinary people who remember The Rosecrance Foundation through bequests, trusts, and other planned gifts. Membership is open to all individuals who have made an estate provision for Rosecrance, regardless of the amount.

Does it seem a bit scary and overwhelming to make a financial plan to leave funds through your estate? Jennifer Jackson felt that way until a few months ago. She recently worked with her financial advisor to set up a Donor Advised Fund (“DAF”) and designated her two favorite charities as beneficiaries.

How hard was it? Jennifer shared “It was extremely easy to set up a Donor Advised Fund. I had put off making an estate plan because I thought it was going to be an onerous task. In truth, it took me less than an hour to set up. My first thought was, ‘Why didn’t I do this sooner?’”

When asked why choosing Rosecrance in her estate was important, Jennifer shared her family history. She was born in Sioux City, Iowa, to Dr. Bill and Marienne Jackson, who founded Rosecrance Jackson Centers (originally known as Gordon Chemical Dependency Center) in 1976.

“My parents had recently gotten sober and were very involved in the recovery community in Sioux City when they realized that there was no option for teenagers to get help. With help from the wider community, they created one of the first four adolescent treatment centers in the country to help treat teens struggling with addiction,” Jennifer expanded.

In the nearly fifty years since its founding, Rosecrance Jackson Centers has expanded from an adolescent-only center to a series of centers to address treatment options for all ages, genders, and addictions.

“My parents left an incredible legacy for Siouxland, and I wanted to contribute to their life’s work. To that effect, my sister Ellen (Jackson) Nichols and I joined the board in June 2006.  Ellen, who lives locally, has been the Chairman of the Board for several years now, shepherding us through the transition from Jackson Recovery Centers, which it was renamed in 2002 when our dad, Dr. Bill Jackson, retired as medical director, to Rosecrance Jackson Centers in 2019 after affiliating with Rosecrance Health Network, to post-pandemic life today.”

Jennifer has had an interesting career that has taken her from Sioux City throughout the country, but this value of community involvement has not left this small-town Iowa girl. She first left Iowa when she joined the Marine Corps from which she retired as a major. In the early 1990s, she moved to New York and started work on Wall Street, where she met her future husband.

They have worked together ever since and have set up a family office for private investing. In addition, Jennifer works as a managing director at Scherzer International, where she helps investors with their due diligence process through background checks on executives and companies. Having raised two sons, Jennifer is involved in Boy Scouts (her other favorite charity), where she was a Scoutmaster for her sons’ troop for eight years. Additionally, she sits on the board of the local Boy Scout Connecticut Yankee Council and helps future generations of leaders get training and experiences through outdoor adventures. Making an impact in the local community is yet another family legacy, it seems.

“There are many ways we carry on our parents’ legacy at Rosecrance Jackson Centers,” Jennifer explained. “Being an active board member, making meaningful donations, supporting two of Ellen’s children with their Eagle Scout projects to benefit Rosecrance Jackson Centers, and participating in the Women and Children’s Center auxiliary, to name a few, but I think one of the most impactful ways to carry on my parents’ legacy is through planned giving. I encourage everyone to speak to their financial planner and set up a Donor Advised Fund today.”