Wilbur C. Dollens

Wilbur C. “Web” Dollens grew up in Lawrence County. He spent his adult life in Indianapolis where he worked for more than 30 years in pharmaceutical sales for McNeil Laboratories. In planning his estate, Mr. Dollens’ first concern, of course, was his wife, Eileen. But he also wanted to help the community where he grew up.

In early 1992, Mr. Dollens’ advisor reached out to Reverend Stephen Braden explaining that Mr. Dollens was considering making a large gift to Lawrence County and encouraged creating a community foundation to receive the gift.  In response, a small group of community minded individuals led by Rev. Braden, founding board president, established the Lawrence County Community Foundation.

With the formation of Community Foundation complete, Mr. Dollens established the Wilbur C. Dollens Charitable Remainder Trust, the first planned gift of LCCF. His wife, Eileen, was listed as the primary beneficiary. The Lawrence County Community Foundation was named as the remainderman of the trust.

Mr. Dollens passed away in 1993. Mrs. Dollens benefited from the trust until her death in 2005. After her death, the remaining funds were bequeathed to LCCF to establish the Wilbur C. Dollens Fund for Community Grants, an unrestricted, permanent endowment fund held by LCCF.

By designating the Lawrence County Community Foundation as the remainderman of his Charitable Remainder Trust, Mr. Dollens knew that the financial resources he worked hard to acquire would benefit his community…our community, forever.  He could have specified a particular charitable organization to receive distributions from his gift, but he preferred to allow the LCCF Board of Directors to make that decision each year based on the community’s current needs.

Through thoughtful planning Mr. Dollens was able to provide for his wife and benefit Lawrence County for generations to come. Mr. Dollens’ legacy, however, is not only the permanent, unrestricted endowment he established, but the creation of the Community Foundation itself. He helped create an avenue for other charitable individuals to leave their legacies in our community. We are so thankful to Mr. Dollens for his generosity and commitment to helping Lawrence County prosper.