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Florence H. Haehnlen Memorial Fund Benefits Bryn Mawr Hospital
Main Line resident Florence Holt Haehnlen loved to travel. When she passed away in 1959 she left behind a generous charitable trust that would give three generations of her family the ability to travel the world. When her great niece passed away last August, Mrs. Haehnlen's trust reached its final beneficiary — Bryn Mawr Hospital.
In 2008, Bryn Mawr Hospital received almost $1 million dollars from the Florence H. Haehnlen Trust. The interest from the Florence H. Haehnlen Memorial Fund is being used to support board-designated areas of need for the Hospital in perpetuity.
Now more than fifty years after her death, no one remembers Mrs. Haehnlen's exact connection to Bryn Mawr Hospital. Perhaps her husband, Walter, was treated here before his passing in 1942. Maybe the gift was made in gratitude for the Hospital's care of a close friend or family member at one time. Or possibly, as her great-great-niece, Pam Brown, reflected, giving to the community hospital was just "the thing to do" for someone who loved her community.
Although her family can only speculate as to the reason why she chose to give to the Hospital, they are certain of one thing: Mrs. Haehnlen's gift is making a significant difference to the healthcare of the Bryn Mawr community.
U.S. tax laws have always made it very difficult to establish a trust that will benefit family members forever. However, people can make the choice to name a charitable beneficiary, like Bryn Mawr Hospital, so that their local community benefits instead of the Internal Revenue Service. We all benefit from the wise choice Mrs. Haehnlen and her advisors made several decades ago.
Born in 1881, Mrs. Haehnlen and her family had rich ties to the Main Line throughout their lives. A daughter of the American Revolution, she married her husband Walter in 1902, settling in Bala Cynwyd. Walter, who served in World War I, was in the concrete business, and he supplied some of the concrete used to build the Hoover Dam.
Mrs. Haehnlen's great-niece, Jane Tyson, owned two popular dress shops in the 1960s called the "Cocked Hat," located on Lancaster Avenue, with stores both in Paoli and in Bryn Mawr. Powers Moore, the husband of Mrs. Haehnlen's niece, Reba B. Moore, was active in the Philadelphia political arena. Mrs. Haehnlen and her family were personally vested in the growth and prosperity of the area.
"We are all incredibly grateful for Mrs. Haehnlen's remarkable gift to Bryn Mawr Hospital," says Bryn Mawr Hospital President Andi Gilbert. "Her generosity will continue to live on, and we will honor her through a steadfast commitment to keep Bryn Mawr Hospital focused on providing the very best care for our community."
By taking steps to carefully plan for the future, Mrs. Haehnlen's desire to make a difference in her community still lives on today.
This story is taken from page 15 of the Fall 2008 issue of Bryn Mawr Hospital Partners magazine.
Click here to learn more about the benefits of creating a charitable remainder trust.