When Joyce “Jackie” (Tantillo) Aab ’71 thinks of her time at SUNY Potsdam, she can’t help but smile.
“My memories of my time at Potsdam are probably among the happiest memories of my life,” she shared. “Leaving home and attending college is where I became self-sufficient. I became independent.”
Jackie graduated from Potsdam with a Bachelor of Arts in English and a certification in elementary education. Afterward, she taught elementary school in Northern New York before moving back to Rochester and completing her master’s degree in education at Nazareth College.
At Potsdam, Jackie’s chance meeting with Joan (Sibilla) Staples ’70, led to one of the greatest decisions of her college career—joining Alpha Delta Kappa sorority. “My sorority sisters became like real sisters to me, sisters I never had as an only child. Some of those friendships have become lifelong friendships for me.”
One such enduring friend is Joyce (Barnholt) Yianoukos ’71. It was Joyce who introduced Jackie to the Rebecca V. Sheard Literacy Center at SUNY Potsdam. Joyce had contacted the Office of Alumni Relations to learn about areas of campus that could use her help and support as a local volunteer. Because of her career as a reading teacher, the opportunity that resonated most deeply with her was the Literacy Center—a campus resource that helps equip future teachers as they lead educational programs for local schoolchildren.
Once Joyce told Jackie about the Center, they decided to adopt it as a project in honor of Alpha, which was originally founded as an honorary literary society in 1886. Many other Alpha alumnae were also educators who shared a love of teaching and learning, and so the cause was a perfect fit.
“When I was at Potsdam getting my certification in education, there was a campus school, and we would work with local students. I student-taught there, so I really liked the idea of supporting the Literacy Center,” Jackie reflected. “I liked that I’d be helping Potsdam students but also the students in the community, and I liked honoring Alpha through it. So it touched a lot of different pieces that made sense to me.”
After conducting a successful book drive for the Sheard Literacy Center, Joyce and Jackie chose to take the “adoption” of the Center one step further by raising funds to create an endowed fund that would provide ongoing financial support for the Center’s greatest needs.
To give the fund drive a healthy head start, Jackie made a lead gift over $20,000 to establish the endowed fund and a matching gift challenge to encourage other donations. A committee of Alpha alumnae—Ellen Davey Burns ’59, Kathy Benson Elliott ’73, Barre Hobkirk Hall ’65, Kathy Jordan Londraville ’75 and Sandy Lawrence Tomalty ’64—joined the effort. Two years later, they achieved their goal of raising $60,000, thus meeting Jackie’s match and creating an endowed fund that exceeded $120,000.
In 2017, Jackie and Joyce were honored with Distinguished Service Awards from the SUNY Potsdam Alumni Association in honor of their commitment to the Literacy Center and the College. They have both continued to support the endowed fund, which now boasts a market value over $150,000.
Jackie has been strategic with her giving—choosing giving methods that provide her a tax benefit in addition to supporting the fund. For a few years, that meant giving through stocks and securities, but now that she is required to take distributions from her IRA, she uses that to make her gifts.
“Talking to my accountant, we were always looking for the best way to give. So my decision was first and foremost that I wanted to give back and be philanthropic, but then secondarily we looked at what best fit my tax needs. Right now, the IRA is the best way,” Jackie said.
IRA owners aged 70½ or older may distribute $100,000 per year directly to SUNY Potsdam without the distribution being included as taxable income, instead being counted towards the individual’s annual required minimum distribution (RMD). Learn more about giving through your IRA.
After nearly ten years, Jackie is still devoted to Literacy Center and the reason it intrigued her in the first place.
"Potsdam is a place I love, and so I wanted to find some way to help others who are there. A lot of people give to scholarships, but for me, I like this way of touching a lot of different lives. I think that was the thing that really made me want to give—impacting so many students year after year after year.”
Ready to find your passion project to support at Potsdam? Connect with a member of our fundraising staff to learn what resonates with you and how you can make a difference in the lives of SUNY Potsdam students.