Doris and Howard Schiefelbein were active members of St. Teresa parish, and believed in the importance of Catholic education. They were married June 9, 1949, at St. Cecelia’s in Hastings. During their 62 years of marriage, they were blessed with four children who attended St. Teresa Catholic School and Pius X High School (Susan Schwartz ’69, Barbara Sullivan ’70, Steven Schiefelbein ’75, and Scott Schiefelbein), and six grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren.
Howard studied Business at Hastings College in Nebraska, was a WWII Army Veteran, and worked and retired from the Fiscal Department at the Lincoln Veteran’s Administration Medical Center. He was a 45 year member of the event staff at the UNL Athletic Department, an avid Husker Football and New York Yankees Fan, and a member of Pine Lake Golf Club. Howard served as an usher at St. Teresa Church.
Doris worked for the City of Lincoln at Pershing Auditorium for over 30 years and was a member of American Business Women Association, Lincoln Chapter. Doris loved to golf, and as a big fan of Nebraska Sports, ushered for Husker Football games for more than 20 years. At St. Teresa parish she enjoyed being an active member of the Altar Society and volunteering at the St. Teresa Thrift Store, which helped support St. Teresa School.
Howard and Doris provided their children with parochial schooling and were extremely proud of their children, grandchildren and grandchildren’s spouses who received a college education.
Looking toward the future, Howard and Doris took action upon their belief in the importance of Catholic education. By partnering with the Pius X Foundation, they pursued a planned giving investment strategy that provided revenue throughout their lifetimes via a tax-exempt vehicle that helped build their assets while fulfilling their wishes to forever benefit Pius X High School students from St. Teresa’s. In 1996, the Schiefelbein’s set up a Charitable Remainder Unitrust agreement with Pius X Foundation. This type of planned giving tool works similarly to an IRA, offering significant tax benefits for asset growth, while providing annual income with a plan for remaining funds to go toward charitable causes.
Potential benefits of a Charitable Remainder Unitrust include preserving the value of highly appreciated assets to avoid capital gains, and the ability to take an immediate tax deduction when the trust is funded. The investment income is also tax exempt, providing a good option for asset diversification and growth if tax savings are reinvested. Doris and Howard worked with their financial advisor to manage their trust’s assets in collaboration with Pius X Foundation as the trustee. Their initial trust investment was $61,000, and they gave additional contributions to build their trust, for a total investment of more than $120,000. The Schiefelbein’s trust payed out 7% of its fair market value annually to Howard and Doris, providing income over their lifetimes that far exceeded the total they had invested. After Howard passed away at age 84, Doris continued to receive yearly income from the trust they set up together until she passed away on December 6, 2022, at age 92.
The $95,041 that remained in their trust will fulfil their wishes to forever benefit Pius X students from St. Teresa Parish, and will be used to establish the Howard and Doris Schiefelbein Scholarship fund.
