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 Newsletter - Fall/Winter 2000
In May, 2000, Grace Cottage Hospital was notified by Fleet Bank of Boston
that Edna Louise Holt of Grafton, who died in February, 1998, had established
a trust, of which Fleet had become sole Trustee. The FANNY HOLT AMES and
EDNA LOUISE HOLT CHARITABLE FUND trust, established in 1987 and now worth
over $30 million, stipulates: "the net income to be distributed at least
annually to meet the medical needs of the Grafton, Vermont community and
its surrounding towns, with primary consideration to be given to GRACE COTTAGE
HOSPITAL [caps in document], Townshend, Vermont, so long as the Trustee
of the Foundation, in its discretion, determines that the said hospital
continues to provide health care for the community."Fleet will pay out 3%
of the trust annually or, at present value, approximately $700,000, to be
distributed among applicants to the fund. The origin of the Holt Fund goes back 85 years to 1916, when Fanny Holt married William Hadwen Ames, head of the Ames Shovel Factory, whose family fortune had roots in the Union Pacific Railroad. After William died in 1918, Fanny invested her inheritance wisely (for example, she kept his hold- ings in newly emerging companies such as IBM and GE). She also continued her husband's philanthropic tradition, supporting MIT and Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital in Boston and Easton's public library, in MA. During the 1960's, Fanny and her sister, Louise, moved to Grafton, VT. Extremely private people, they traveled the world together, but lived quite frugally. In 1983, Louise and Fanny were in a car accident in Grafton, which killed Fanny, age 97, and put Louise in the hospital for six weeks. From 1991 until her death in March, 1998, she received her medical care from Grace Cottage Hospital; in fact, Dr. Bob Backus frequently made housecalls. "When I met this woman," Dr. Bob recalled, "I found a diminutive, cultured, twinkling-eyed New England lady who was shrewd, good-humored, and incredibly courageous." The feeling was mutual. According to Pauline Dickison, neighbor of Fanny Ames and Louise Holt for 40 years, Louise "became very fond of [Bob] and the care she received helped her in many ways and she was very grateful. I know she wanted a goodly amount of her vast investments to help that little hospital to survive well."
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