Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital Stanford will always hold a special place in Joe Louderback’s heart, even though he lives roughly 3,000 miles away in Seneca, South Carolina. Joe first heard about Packard Children’s Hospital in 2005 when his son, Joe Jr., and daughter-in-law, Pam, who live in Campbell, were expecting their first child.
Joe Jr. and Pam learned that their unborn baby had hypoplastic left heart syndrome, a congenital heart defect in which the left side of the heart is underdeveloped, making it difficult to deliver oxygen-rich blood throughout the body. The disease was once universally fatal, but it’s now treated with surgical interventions at the renowned Betty Irene Moore Children’s Heart Center, and researchers at the Stanford School of Medicine are studying the underlying causes of congenital heart disease and other potential treatments.
As they met the team at the Children’s Heart Center and navigated their baby’s diagnosis, Joe Jr. and Pam knew their family would be in good hands. Baby Will underwent surgery soon after birth and would have two more operations before his fourth birthday. Joe and his late wife, Micky, flew from South Carolina to be with Will, Joe Jr., and Pam in the hospital and were moved by the kind and caring staff.
Will, less than 1 hour old, was intubated at the hospital
“It was a very emotional time. You see this poor little infant with what seemed like endless IVs and tubes,” Joe says. “But the treatment we received and the facilities we were in were wonderful. Everyone made every effort to keep our family occupied, safe, and comfortable.”
Today, Will is thriving. He is a bright, artistic young man, and he recently earned the rank of Eagle Scout. In June, he had his grandfather by his side to celebrate his high school graduation, and he will be off to college this fall.
Will, age 18, and his parents at his Eagle Scout ceremony
Joe and Micky made their first gift to Packard Children’s Hospital the same year Will was born, dedicating it in honor of their grandson’s extraordinary care team. The couple continued their gifts annually and stayed connected with our hospital over the years.
Years later, as Joe was exploring financial planning strategies, he discovered the benefits of giving through a qualified charitable distribution from his traditional IRA. By directing a portion of his required minimum distribution straight to charity, Joe satisfies the requirement without having to pay taxes on the portion he has gifted. When asked about the annual process of making his gift, he responds, “It’s a breeze!”
Joe instructs his broker on how much to distribute to each charity and gets an acknowledgment letter to support his tax filings. “For anyone who has a traditional IRA and is making gifts to charity, it’s worth considering. It couldn’t be simpler,” he says.
When Micky passed away in 2022, Joe honored her memory by making a meaningful gift to Packard Children’s Hospital from his retirement plan. And now, as he prepares to update his estate plan, Joe intends to create a planned gift to our hospital as well. He remains grateful to Packard Children’s Hospital for the strong start it provided Will and all the joyful years that have followed.
To learn more about how we can assist you in achieving your charitable goals, reach out to the Gift Planning team.
