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FOR THE FUTURE OF SCIENCE AND EDUCATION

Join the Legacy Society

The F. Clark Howell Legacy Society is a community of people who imagine a world beyond the present and who are making human origins science and education part of their lasting legacy.

Your generosity will have a profound impact, empowering scientists to explore humanity’s biggest questions and helping curious minds understand our world. Your legacy gift will inspire future generations and advance knowledge for years to come.

Those who plan to remember The Leakey Foundation as a beneficiary of their will, living trust, IRA, or estate plan will be invited to join the F. Clark Howell Legacy Society. As a member, you will join a circle of friends who share your commitment to fostering human origins research and education far into the future.

Ways to give

A gift in your will

Choose to leave a specific amount or a percentage of your estate to ensure that human origins research and education become a part of your enduring legacy.

Qualified charitable distributions

If you are 70.5 years or older, you can contribute up to $100,000 annually from your IRA. This can help you fulfill your Required Minimum Distribution (RMD) while reducing your taxable income.

Non-cash assets

Contributing non-cash assets, such as real estate, can offer significant tax advantages while supporting our mission.

Beneficiary designations

Your retirement plans, life insurance policies, and annuities can all help sustain human origins research, education, and conservation.

Share your vision

If you are considering a legacy gift to The Leakey Foundation, we encourage you to contact us to discuss your vision and ideas.

If you have already included The Leakey Foundation in your estate plan, let us know! We would be honored to officially welcome you to the F. Clark Howell Legacy Society.

Legacy Giving Contact Form
Sending

Legacy Society member Dr. John Mitani with chimpanzees in Uganda.

Legacy Society Stories

“I received my first grant from The Leakey Foundation as a graduate student in 1978. The Leakey Foundation provided the essential kindling to keep the fire of my young scientific career going. I hope that my estate gift to the Foundation will help to provide the same critical fuel to others.”

Dr. Nina Jablonski
Member of the Legacy Society together with Dr. George Chaplin
Leakey Foundation supporter since 2006

“Lucy is a dramatic example of an enduring legacy gift. Her fossils were preserved for millions of years until they were discovered by Leakey Foundation grantee Don Johanson in Ethiopia in 1974. Her gift to us was evidence of the course of hominin evolution.

Each of us has the capacity to leave a legacy that will enable future generations to learn more about human evolution. We can do this by making a gift to sustain The Leakey Foundation’s mission.

Providing an estate gift is not as complicated as Lucy’s journey through time, but it has the capacity to provide expansive opportunities for countless years into the future.”

Owen and Kris O’Donnell
Founding members of the Legacy Society
Leakey Foundation supporters since 2006

The F. Clark Howell Legacy Society

Your legacy gift makes you a lifetime member of the F. Clark Howell Legacy Society, named in honor of Dr. F. Clark Howell, an anthropologist who was instrumental in creating The Leakey Foundation. A passionate proponent of multidisciplinary research, Dr. Howell also advocated for popularizing science.

F. Clark Howell Legacy Society members are invited to special events such as the annual Legacy Society luncheon. Members are also recognized in Leakey Foundation publications and on our website (unless you prefer to remain anonymous).

If you have already included The Leakey Foundation in your plans, it would be our honor to personally thank you and welcome you into the F. Clark Howell Legacy Society. For more information, please contact Sharal Camisa Smith by email.

Want to know more about F. Clark Howell? Click here to download a biography of F. Clark Howell written by Dr. Richard Klein.

F. Clark Howell with his wife Betty Howell in the field.

F. Clark Howell Legacy Society Members

We gratefully acknowledge the following Legacy Society members for advancing science through a legacy gift commitment:

  • Dr. Alan J. Almquist
  • Mrs. Kristin Berger and Mr. Tom Berger
  • Carol Broderick
  • Dr. John Broderick
  • The Estate of Dr. Francis H. Brown
  • Mrs. Nina Carroll
  • The Estate of Donald Allen Carson
  • Mr. Jim Carty and Ms. Pat Randall
  • Mr. Don Dana and Mrs. Jeanne Dana
  • Mrs. Joan Cogswell Donner
  • The Estate of Brian Boru Dunne II
  • Mrs. Paddy Moore Goodhart
  • Dr. Jack Harris
  • Dr. Nina Jablonski and Dr. George Chaplin
  • Mr. Mark Jordan and Ms. Jennifer Gomersall
  • Ms. Julie LaNasa and Mr. John Kunzweiler
  • Dr. Carol MacLeod
  • Dr. John Mitani and Mrs. Sally Mitani
  • Ms. Jeanne Newman
  • Mrs. Kris O’Donnell and Mr. Owen O’Donnell
  • Dr. John W. Olsen
  • Mr. William P. Richards and Mrs. Deborah Richards
  • Dr. Jo Rainie Rodgers and Mr. George Rodgers
  • Dr. Sandra Miller Ross
  • Dr. Robert Seyfarth
  • Mrs. Camilla Smith
  • Dr. Anne Stone and Mr. Eric Hiser
  • Mrs. Naoma Tate
  • Ms. Rosemary Urbigkeit
  • Mrs. William Wirthlin and Mrs. Lisa Wirthlin
  • Dr. Mary Alice and Dr. E. William Yund
  • and seven anonymous members

The information on this page is intended for informational purposes only.
We recommend consulting with a trusted financial advisor before making decisions involving your estate.

I [name], of [city, state ZIP], bequeath the sum of $[ ] or [ ] percent of my estate to L.S.B. Leakey Foundation for Research Related to Man’s Origins, Behavior & Survival, (dba The Leakey Foundation), a nonprofit organization with a business address of 1003B O’Reilly Avenue, San Francisco, CA 94129 and a tax identification number 95-2536475 for its unrestricted use and purpose.

If you have questions, please contact Sharal Camisa Smith sharal at leakeyfoundation.org. 

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