A Lifetime of Stewardship

Ken Howes devoted his career to helping others secure their future, working 30+ years as an agent for a major insurance company. He became involved with The Salvation Army in 1980 when he was part of planning and fundraising to build a corps center in Fairmont, MN. Upon moving to the Twin Cities, he served with Emergency Disaster Services and the planned giving team where he helped people leave legacy gifts to the Army as he and his wife Sharon had done.

Approximately 10 years ago, Ken and Sharon were diagnosed with cancer and took chemo side-by-side. Ken went into remission but Sharon passed. With planned giving in place, their children and designated charities received proceeds from her trusts in an orderly process, which gave Ken peace of mind as he grieved.

"You can get rid of your own grief when you help other people," Ken says. He returned to volunteering and lay ministry, helping with grief recovery. Ken created a four-part Christian planned giving study series: Omega Stewardship, based on the scripture that had guided Sharon and him in planning their legacy gifts.

"It's God's money to begin with," Ken reminds us. "Put yourself in the hands of trusted advisers. Select one charity as the hub that can work with all of them. For me, that's The Salvation Army."

Ken has established a planned gift by including The Salvation Army in his estate plan. To learn more, please contact Tom Cierzan, Senior Director of Gift and Estate Planning, at 651-746-3515 or visit TheSalArmyGiftPlan.org.