When the pool on the Shepard family’s 136-acre Cottage Grove farmstead started crumbling, Connie Otis called Tom Kingston, president of the Wilder Foundation, for advice on whether to fix it or fill it in. While it may seem an odd question to pose to the president of Wilder, Otis had good reason. She and her brothers, Roger (who has since passed away) and Stanley Shepard, have put the farm into a life estate, with Wilder as beneficiary. That means the Shepard farm is theirs to use during their lifetime, after which it will become the property of the Wilder Foundation.

It’s why the family has graciously started making decisions based not only on their current needs, but the future needs of Wilder programs.

“Tom Kingston told me that many of the children they serve aren’t used to wooded areas or farmland, but they always enjoy swimming,” said Otis. “So we decided to fix the pool.”

That’s not the only generous gesture Otis and her brothers have made to Wilder. Because the land was put into a conservation easement, it cannot be sold for development purposes. That leaves a wonderful oasis of undeveloped land for Wilder participants and the surrounding community to enjoy, but also places a potential financial burden on Wilder, which would be responsible for ongoing operating costs.

So the Shepard family also created a trust, the proceeds of which are designed to cover operating costs. Other than stipulating that the land remain undeveloped, the Shepard family is leaving it up to Wilder to determine the best use for the property.

“I know Wilder touches every part of the community—children, the elderly, all different races and nationalities—and when the time comes, I trust Wilder to decide how the land and buildings will be used,” said Otis.

This is not the first time Wilder and the Shepard family have put their trust in each other. During the 1950s, Otis’ father, Roger B. Shepard, and her husband, James C. Otis, both served on Wilder’s Board of Directors. And even earlier, in 1872, Otis’ great-grandfather, David C. Shepard, joined with Amherst H. Wilder and others to launch Merchants National Bank. Later, Amherst Wilder asked David Shepard to be a substitute executor of his will—the will that ultimately established the Wilder Foundation, now the recipient of the Shepard family’s generous gift.

One suspects that somewhere, Amherst H. Wilder and David C. Shepard are smiling, pleased with how their respective legacies have once again become intertwined.