Helping future Oles with an easy gift

A couple of things have stuck with Lois Anne Indorf ’71 from her St. Olaf nursing education. One of the most important things she learned from an Ole — it’s come in handy this year.

One night she was struggling with chemistry homework and asked her friend for help.

“She gave me an orange and said, ‘Take a break, have an orange, and then think about it.’ That lesson stuck with me. To this day, I think about it when things get rough. Just step back, pause, and reset.”

It’s a lesson Lois Anne took with her into her nursing career, along with her St. Olaf education.

“Throughout my education, there was an emphasis on leadership,” says Lois Anne. “You step up, you take responsibility, and you make things better. While my St. Olaf education got me into an excellent graduate school to be a nurse practitioner, I’ve kept in closest touch with my Ole friends. Having that shared experience — that has kept us together even as we have changed over time.”

“The process was easy. Because I did it now, I got to choose the impact I wanted to create.”

Lois Anne Indorf ’71

When Lois Anne met with her financial advisor last spring, she shared her interest to support her favorite charitable organizations. She established a charitable estate plan and named St. Olaf as a beneficiary. It was a way she could create a larger impact.

“I had a wonderful career as a nurse,” says Lois Anne. “I have always given something to St. Olaf and wanted it to continue. The process was easy. Because I did it now, I got to choose the impact I wanted to create.”

Lois Anne’s gift will help provide future Oles the same opportunities to learn, excel, and make friends for life.

“I was among the first generation in my family to go to college,” says Lois Anne. “Thanks to St. Olaf, I went on to a great graduate school. But going there was never as important as having gone to St. Olaf for me.”