Ian and Nancy Wood OAM are proud supporters of HRI’s life-saving research, with a legacy that will continue after they both pass away.
Born in Adelaide, Ian met his wife Nancy at the University of Adelaide, before moving to Port Pirie in South Australia, where he was a pharmacist for 40 years. After their two daughters married and moved to NSW, the couple also decided to relocate to the beautiful Southern Highlands.
Ian and Nancy love being involved with their community, and both have always found time to volunteer for several community projects, including singing and entertaining in aged care facilities.
“We have found this hugely rewarding and love to see the residents smiling and singing along to our music,” says Ian. “I suddenly lost my sight due to giant cell arteritis in December 2022. I have continued singing and have found this therapeutic in coping with the blindness.”
With a family history of heart disease, Ian and Nancy have been donating to HRI for the past 12 years.
“My father died from a heart condition when I was just 13,” Ian explains. “He had been suffering from high blood pressure for some years before his death at the age of 47, but his sudden death from a heart attack was still a shock to our family.”
Nancy also has a close personal connection to cardiovascular disease. In fact, her father had a heart attack on the morning of their wedding!
“He also had other heart episodes requiring hospitalisation following that, and his brother also died of a heart attack,” Ian shares. “Given our family history, it seemed logical to support the vital research being carried out by HRI.”
Continuing their life-long commitment to serving their community, the Woods also decided to leave a gift to HRI in their Wills and set up a charitable trust fund.
After much research, they established a Charitable Fund Account with the Lord Mayor’s Foundation in Melbourne to provide ongoing financial support in perpetuity to their favourite not-for-profit organisations, as well as funding a singing scholarship for young performers.
“HRI is one of the beneficiaries of this, receiving an annual donation from the fund, and this will continue in perpetuity after we die,” Ian says. “The trust funds are very easy to establish, and I would recommend them to readers wishing to support research institutes like HRI into the future.
“Our hope is that the continued support for HRI research and education will have far reaching benefits to individuals and for the community as a whole.”
If you’d like to know more about how to leave a gift in your Will to HRI, please contact Andrea Natoli for a friendly chat on 1800 651 373 or email her at andrea.natoli@hri.org.au