Meet Yvonne Hammond
Yvonne Hammond has been an active member of St. Luke's United Methodist Church since 1987. What brought her to St. Luke's and what has kept her here? Read on to learn her story.
Yvonne grew up on a farm in southeastern Nebraska. She went to grade school in a one-room country school and high school in Beatrice. She attended the University of Nebraska for two years before transferring to the University of Illinois, where she received her bachelor's degree and an MBA in marketing.
Fresh out of college, she moved to Indianapolis to work in marketing at F. C. Tucker Company. After working for several different companies in advertising and marketing, she discovered her real passion was working with and helping others. She began working with McSherr Inc., which provides services to individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities in central Indiana. She worked there for nearly 25 years, and continues to work for them part-time.
Yvonne grew up in the Lutheran Church and continued to be an active Lutheran when she moved to Indiana. However, she heard about St. Luke's Singles Ministry and began attending. That is where she met her husband, Bob. They joined St. Luke's after they married, and started to get involved in other church activities. Yvonne joined the chancel choir, volunteered with the children's ministry, and attended numerous small groups. She also became a Stephen Minister. Yvonne and Bob were happily married for 26 years until he passed away suddenly from a heart attack in 2013.
Yvonne's greatest involvement with St. Luke's is with Caring Cars, which she started in 2019. Caring Cars is a free transportation ministry, where volunteers bring riders to medical appointments and to activities at St. Luke's. Caring Cars remained active even during COVID. Now, five years later, they have given rides to nearly 2,000 people. "Reliable transportation remains a challenge," Yvonne notes, "and the need Is great. I need more drivers to continue and grow this valuable ministry."
With such deep involvement at St. Luke's over so many years, it is not surprising that Yvonne has included the church in her estate plans. When asked what inspired her to include St. Luke's in her estate planning, she responded, "When my father died suddenly, I saw how difficult it was for my mother, who knew nothing about the family finances and funeral planning. My husband and I set up a trust for our final wishes and plans. It was easy to include St. Luke's in this plan to make sure some money would go to this church that means so much to me." While her gift is an unrestricted gift to the church's endowment fund, she hopes it will enable the church to continue the Caring Cars ministry and a strong chancel choir, both of which she loves.
Yvonne summarizes her deep appreciation for St. Luke's with these words: "I am so excited that St. Luke's is an open community for ALL. This church actually acts to include the community and to shower everyone with God's love."
St. Luke's is grateful for the many ways Yvonne Hammond shares her time, talents, and treasure to help St. Luke's shower people with God's love. The church is pleased to count her as a member of St. Luke's Legacy Society in recognition of her thoughtful estate planning. If you would like more information on how you too can become a member of St. Luke's Legacy Society, contact David Heetland, pastor of planned giving, at [email protected] or 317.399.6202.
