Lessons in self-reliance
October 21, 2008| By The Heritage Foundation
"I had always been taken care of," says Heritage Legacy Society member Dae Miller. "At some point I decided I really needed to learn about money and investments."
The Montgomery, Alabama native had led a fascinating life, spending her college years in Colorado and upstate New York before marrying and raising three sons in the suburbs of New York City. She trusted her husband's management of her investment account—he was a specialist on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, after all—but Dae wanted to learn about investing for herself.
So she asked her husband to explain the world of high finance—and she was not happy with his response. "He said to me, 'You have everything you could possibly want, what is your problem?'" Dae recalls. "So I rolled up my sleeves and started taking courses."
That experience taught her an important lesson in personal finance. "As one of my teachers said, 'You don't have to know the answers, but you really ought to know the questions.'"
Dae (it's pronounced "day," a suitably bright and sunny name) eventually moved back to Montgomery, and as retirement neared she knew the question before her: How can a woman with a comfortable nest egg make her investments work for her, while also making a difference?
The answer, Dae learned, was a charitable gift annuity. "I thought, I need to give some of this money away, and this way it's working for me, but it's also benefiting places like Heritage that I want to help," Dae remembers.
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Dae got involved with Heritage through a hometown friend who is also a member of the Heritage Legacy Society. "Years ago, she sent me something from Heritage, and it was because of her that I became aware of the work Heritage is doing."
Now Dae is thrilled to be making that work possible. "I'm so delighted to hear the Heritage ads on the radio that offer free copies of the Constitution and ask 'What Would Reagan Do?'" Dae says. "I think that's wonderful."
Dae believes Heritage's work is particularly important now, given the dangers that could lurk after the upcoming presidential election. "The way this election could affect the
Supreme Court, and our entire judicial system, probably worries me more than anything," she notes.
Dae is also concerned about the threat of tax hikes, particularly the almost certain return
of a hefty estate tax—but that's strictly out of a sense of fairness and, again, common sense. "I'm not planning on dying anytime soon," Dae says with a laugh.
Indeed, Dae is energetic and outgoing, filling her days with everything from Bible studies and volunteer work to long walks with her cherished companion, a pound dog who, Dae says with a smile, "actually looks exactly like me, kind of blond and messy."
For a true resemblance, the dog would need plenty of southern charm, a quick wit, and an engaging personality, plus a healthy sense of self-reliance, for Dae has all of that—more than enough to take care of herself.
For more information about establishing a charitable gift annuity with The Heritage Foundation, please return the attached reply form or call our Heritage Legacy Society office toll free at (800) 409-2003.
