Legacy support is important for the longterm survival of any non-profit organization, but it is vital for organizations tasked with maintaining cultural landmarks in perpetuity. For these organizations, the long term protection of the physical asset is the raison d’être (a fancy way of saying “the reason they exist”).
When we created the Friends of the Hartman Rock Garden and took ownership of the site in 2009, we simultaneously created an endowment fund to ensure that our treasured art environment would never again fall into significant disrepair. The Turner Foundation and Springfield Foundation both agreed to donate $5000 to cover our daily costs, and we pledged to transfer every dollar raised from visitors into this new fund. The fund grew to over $60,000 by the end of our first decade! This might sound like a lot, but we know that we need to reach at least $1,000,000 to create sustainable operating support. The good news is that we do not need to raise all of this money at once. Or, to rephrase the classic adage, Ben Hartman did not build the Hartman Rock Garden in a day!
I am excited to announce the creation of the Mary Hartman Legacy Society, which is focused on our future sustainability. This new society recognizes and honors individuals who have made a planned gift to benefit the Hartman Rock Garden – donors who want to ensure that the Hartman Rock Garden remains a treasured cultural resource for generations to come.
We are also excited to be able to celebrate Mary Hartman by naming this new society in her honor. Mary devoted sixty-five years of her life to the Hartman Rock Garden, alongside Ben for the first twelve and with the help of family, friends, and neighbors for the next fifty-three! No wonder she called it her “Garden of Love”. At this point, I hope you are asking the question, “How can I join the Mary Hartman Legacy Society?”. Just include the Hartman Rock Garden as a beneficiary of gift in your estate and notify us of your plan – it is that simple. For many, this will be through our friends at the Springfield Foundation (who better to work with than the organization that helped save the Hartman Rock Garden!). My wife and I worked with the Springfield Foundation to leave a legacy gift to Hartman back in 2015. I felt great knowing that I will continue to make an impact on a place that I hold dear long after I am gone.
For more information, please visit the new Mary Hartman Legacy Society section of our website. Better yet, send me an email (Contact Us). I would love to grab a cup of coffee and answer any questions that you might have.
Mary Hartman never stopped working at the Hartman Rock Garden. This photo from May 1949 shows her cleaning the glass on one of the greenhouse roofs. Unfortunately, the greenhouses were later demolished during the garden’s years of decline.
