Terrain V01 - Journal - Page 40
38 | Sterling College
Margaret Sterling Society
Plannned Giving
Written By
Julie Wormser ‘86
In most people’s lives there is a crossroads moment that profoundly changes
what comes after. For me, that was
Sterling College.
When I came to Sterling in 1985 after
graduating from a pretty standard
public high school, I was a kid who liked
academics, but didn’t much like myself.
I was insecure enough to judge my
value by the number at the top of my
tests, not by how well I treated others or
how well I knew my surroundings. I was
drawn to Sterling initially for its emphasis on traditional skills. I had no idea
how much I would be changed by my
time there. I gained integrity, tenacity,
generosity, and a tremendously satisfying career in environmental advocacy
with a side of organic agriculture.
Any Sterling graduate will experience
something similar on meeting a fellow
alum. Sterling alums are people you can
count on. We take a myriad of career
paths, but there’s something about our
time together that forges a sense of
self, a sense of place, and a sense of
service that is very grounding.
After college I worked first as a consultant for the US Environmental Protec-
tion Agency, then for a range of national
environmental groups: The Wilderness
Society, Appalachian Mountain Club,
and the Environmental Defense Fund.
More recently I’ve been involved in
urban climate resilience at a watershed scale. Each of these jobs involved
working to improve the connection
between people and the natural world,
something I first learned about during
my time at Sterling.
And always I kept coming back to Sterling. First as a faculty member, then as
a graduation speaker, then as a member
of the Board of Trustees, and finally as a
donor. We give to Sterling on a monthly
basis. I have included Sterling College in
my will as part of the Margaret Sterling
Society. Sterling College is my highest priority charity—by a lot!—not only
because I know that they will use every
dollar wisely, but because I hope that
others will have their own crossroads
experience there as I did.
Sterling College is a place of hope,
beauty, and optimism. Students graduate with the skills and aspiration to
contribute to the beloved community,
whether through sustainable agriculture
or social justice. We are going through
a time of tremendous change: social,
economic, climate. A Sterling education
teaches not only how to navigate these
breathtaking changes, but also potentially how to steer.
Julie Wormser ‘86 is Deputy Director of
the Mystic River Watershed Association
and a proud Sterling alumna.
Photo: Compliments of Julie Wormser
The Margaret Sterling Society recognizes individuals and families who have
included Sterling in their estate plans
by making a planned gift to Sterling.
Margaret Sterling Society members
provide a needed foundation of future
support for the College through their
wills, retirement plans, or life insurance
policies, often lessening their tax burdens in the process.
Members of the Margaret Sterling Society can designate their planned gift
any way they choose: in support of the
annual fund, towards financial aid or for
a specific scholarship, or for addition to
Sterling’s endowment.
To learn more about joining the Margaret Sterling Society, please contact
Christina Goodwin ‘02, Vice President
for Advancement, at 802-793-7443 or
cgoodwin@sterlingcollege.edu.