Programs and results
What we aim to solve
Too often family members who cannot speak for themselves due to illness or accident, and find themselves approaching End of Life healthcare rely on relatives to make important end-of-life decisions for them. Yet, well in advance of the end-of-life situation, family conversations and resulting legal documents to pursue such decisions, leave a void. The family member, or agent, who is charged with making end-of-life healthcare decisions for her/his loved one is at a loss to know what this loved one would want. And therein lies fear, anxiety, and the most distraught emotions. People want to do the right thing for the people they love, but they must know what the person they love would want in end-of-life healthcare. Therefore, Light the Legacy helps families and professional healthcare staff - through education - navigate the process of from having and supporting difficult, yet necessary conversations to completing appropriate documents, and the procedure that follows.
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
Training Adults and Healthcare Staff
Light the Legacy conducts Advance Care Planning Facilitator classes (ACP) for medical staff, other professionals, and adult family members wishing to learn about End-of-Life Healthcare planning. Training is also arranged for Physician's Orders for Life-Sustaining Treatment (POLST) facilitators. During the pandemic, Light the Legacy conducts virtual ACP classes every month through the Whitney Senior Center. Partnerships and donors' financial support make these classes for the public and medical staff possible.
We encourage adults 18 and over to prepare an Advanced Healthcare Directive. Light the Legacy classes navigate the way.
Where we work
External reviews

Goals & Strategy
Learn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.
Charting impact
Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.
What is the organization aiming to accomplish?
Light the Legacy seeks to reach families in central Minnesota with education about completing Advanced Healthcare directives well in advance of being needed for decision-making. Such preparation decreases anxiety, fear, and the emotions surrounding decisions about end-of-life healthcare for loved ones.
What are the organization's key strategies for making this happen?
Light the Legacy reaches out to community members through Health Fairs (prior to Covid 2020), Zoom classes for community members, professional healthcare staff, and for Seniors and family members twice a month at Whitney Senior Center in St. Cloud. An evening class will be added in 2021. Prior to Covid, Light the Legacy's Executive Director, and assisting professional medical staff provided classes for civic groups, churches, and other organizations by request. There is a website: https://www.lightthelegacy.org to visit to gain free materials and information. Light the Legacy sned out, via email, a monthly newsletter. We are also present on Facebook. Getting the word out!
What are the organization's capabilities for doing this?
What have they accomplished so far and what's next?
Financials
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Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
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Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.
Light the Legacy
Board of directorsas of 4/30/2021
Mary Ellen Wells
C-Suite Resources
Term: 2021 - 2023
Deborah Laxson
Author, "The Gray Zone"
Term: 2021 - 2023
Patricia Bresser
St. Cloud State Univ.
Joy Hornung
Clifton Larson Allen
Merryn Jolkovsky, M.D.
St. Cloud Hospital
Dan Whitlock, M.D.
St. Cloud Hospital - CentraCare
Michelle Jaskolka
St. Cloud Hospital - CentraCare
Natalie Spiczka
St. Croix Hospice
Catherine Anderson
St. Cloud Veterans Administration
Abdalle Jamaa
CentraCare
Kirstin Erickson
Quinlivan & Hughes, P.A.
Sangeeta Jha
St. Cloud Technical College
Organizational demographics
Who works and leads organizations that serve our diverse communities? GuideStar partnered on this section with CHANGE Philanthropy and Equity in the Center.
Leadership
The organization's leader identifies as:
Race & ethnicity
No data
Gender identity
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Sexual orientation
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Disability
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