The work of nationally renowned artist Walter Hatke came to the library late this year with the passing of Hatke’s mother, Mary, who was a longtime library supporter. She passed away July 30, 2009.

Though she is gone, Mary’s legacy of giving lives on. Her estate plan included a provision in which she named The Library Foundation as the recipient of 50 pieces of Walter’s art, from childhood up to mid-career. Walter made an additional gift of 13 pieces from the same time period.

The works have become part of the library’s permanent art collection. They are not on permanent display, but will be featured in exhibits, used for educational purposes and available to tour groups who make advance requests. Gallery Director Sherry Best said it’s a tremendous honor to accept this gift of art by such a well-known and critically acclaimed painter.

“Though we lost a dear friend, the whole community becomes richer through her generosity,” Best said. “My hope is that young artists will see Hatke’s work and respond to it; they will think ‘he’s from Topeka. If he can do it, I can too.’”

Hatke, who spent his childhood in Topeka, now teaches at Union College in Schenectady, New York as the May I. Baker Professor of Fine Arts. His work is handled by Gerald Peters Gallery in New York and Santa Fe, a premier gallery.

His mother volunteered at the library for more than 25 years. Mary was a storehouse of information about the community and its citizens and served in the capacity of “resident historian” in the Topeka Room, which provides researchers with extensive data on local history.

“Mary was always willing to help with any project put before her to advance the library’s mission,” Library Foundation Gift Planning Officer Kathy Groesbeck said. “She is dearly missed and remembered by all her library friends.”

Mary’s isn’t the only legacy living on at the library. Many individuals have committed legacy gifts to The Library Foundation to benefit the library after their lifetime.

Legacy gifts, as they are called, can also take the form of retirement plan distributions or charitable trusts. If you want more information on how to make an investment in the future of the Topeka and Shawnee County Public Library, contact Kathy Groesbeck, Foundation gift planning officer, at 785-580-4493.

With a commitment of a legacy gift, a donor becomes a member of The Wilder Society, a group of philanthropic-minded individuals joined together by a shared perspective that the library is an indispensable community asset.