Many of us have purchased a brick at our children’s schools or at our places of worship. These bricks provide a visible tribute to family and loved ones for years, but sometimes they become worn or the need for new construction arises.

This year, the UIW Planned Giving Office is launching a program called 100 Legacies in the Making led by Mary Helen “Pinkie” Pinner ’46 and Alumni Dean Emeritus Dick McCracken. This is not your ordinary brick campaign, but an endeavor aimed at building a new foundation of support for Incarnate Word through legacy giving.

Dick McCracken and Mary Helen "Pinkie" Pinner

Mary Helen "Pinkie" Pinner and Dick McCracken

McCracken and Pinner are looking for 100 new members for the Verbum Society, the university’s giving society of alumni and friends who have made a provision for UIW in their estate or financial plans.

Please consider how you can leave your legacy at UIW through a gift to the endowment or through your will that will help the university and its students for years to come. It’s often as simple as naming UIW as a beneficiary (all or part) of a retirement fund such as an IRA or adding a codicil to your will specifying an amount or percentage to UIW after your family is taken care of.

We will color each brick red as we receive word of a new planned gift. These gifts will not fade over time. They will continue to encourage students and uphold the Mission of the University of the Incarnate Word for future generations.