From early experiences under the stars to serving on the Starlight Board, Katie Fitzgerald and her husband, Matt Fitzgerald, have a longstanding appreciation for Starlight and what it means for the Kansas City community. They both joined Starlight’s Legacy Society earlier this year. Find out more about their Starlight story below from Katie herself.
Where did you first get your passion for live entertainment?
Both Matt and I have been attending live entertainment for as long as we both can remember. For me, my first love has always been the Broadway Musical. For Matt, it’s always been live music. The combination of the two, plus being outside and under the stars is what makes Starlight so special. My mom took me to Starlight when I was younger, and it was always my favorite night of the week. We would go out to dinner and finish the evening with a live musical. I would come home singing and dancing for days and couldn’t wait for the next time we could return.
Why did you want to include Starlight in your estate plans?
Having grown up attending Starlight we couldn’t imagine the legacy of Starlight not continuing for future generations. We have taken our own children to Starlight since they could sit still and with the variety of programs there is always at least one show that is appropriate for their age group. As they have grown up, our oldest gets to pick her own show, and they all three look forward to our summer date nights with mom, and sometimes grandma, too.
Describe the process of listing Starlight in your estate plans.
The process of leaving Starlight in our estate was simple. We decided a few years back when we were updating our estate plan that we wanted to carve out a certain amount of money for charities that have made an impact on our lives. We made a list of those charities and came up with an agreed upon amount that we thought made sense. With us both being Kansas City natives and having attended Starlight since we were young, it was a no brainer to agree on.
Should others consider making a planned gift to Starlight?
If you have any intention of leaving money to charity, then the answer is yes! It’s simple to designate your charity and ensures that your wishes will be carried out, even when you are no longer here to do so yourself.
Interested in joining Starlight’s Legacy Society? Learn more about our 70 for 70 Campaign here.
