Profiles in Philanthropy: Dick Berndt
Fresh from serving in World War II, Dick Berndt attended UW-Stevens Point on the GI Bill
from 1946-50. A talented athlete on the football field (later inducted into the Hall of
Fame in 1981), Dick was coached by Hale Quandt. As a tribute to his former coach and mentor,
Dick and several fellow athletes launched the Hale Quandt Scholarship in 1968, which has
helped many physical education majors fulfill their college dreams. Recently, Dick
increased the size of his scholarship gift by designating the University as the beneficiary
of a life insurance policy.
As a former insurance agency owner, Dick is well versed in how insurance coverages and beneficiary designations work. However, any donor can easily use this type of gift as a way to give back to their alma mater.
"There's basically three ways you can use insurance policies as gifts," Dick explains. "You can take a paid up policy, and whatever the reduced value amounts to is what you can donate to the University now or upon your death. If it is an older, dividend paying policy," Dick notes, "the policy continues to pay dividends, and the annual dividend could be sufficient to pay the premium. You can also continue to pay the premiums on an existing policy." In these last two scenarios, the donor is entitled to take income tax deductions for the amount of premiums paid in future years.
When the donor passes away, the death benefit is paid to the UWSP Foundation and allocated according to the request of the donor.
Dick recommends that donors contact their insurance company or agent to determine the type of insurance policy donation best suited to an individual's situation.
Designating the University as beneficiary may not be a widely used method of philanthropy, but it makes good sense to Dick, who credits UWSP with giving him the rock-steady foundation that helped him throughout his professional and personal life. "I'll continue to support the University in whatever ways that help advance the hopes and dreams of our future physical education professionals."