Former nun hopes her legacy gift allows St. Jude mission to endure

Isabel Villamil-González knows what it means to give to something you believe in wholeheartedly. 

She was a nun for more than 32 years, and now, decades later, she is giving back to another mission: St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.  

“St. Jude helps kids and their families regardless of their financial status or their backgrounds,” Isabel says. “They give the opportunity to help whoever comes knocking. That means a lot to me and has been part of my life.”

It also means a great deal to Isabel that families never receive a bill from St. Jude for treatment, travel, housing or food—so they can focus on helping their child live. Isabel chose to include St. Jude in her will, so her legacy can help support future generations of families in their darkest hours.  

Isabel has a large extended family and her nephews, who are designated as executors of her will, know of her planned bequest to St. Jude. She is also discussing with her financial planner making St. Jude a beneficiary of her accounts.

She plans to visit St. Jude to see firsthand how her support helps families.  

“God willing, this will be an institution that will go on for years,” Isabel says, “and it can only go on for years doing what it is doing now if we support it.”