When we talk about a gift that keeps on giving, we don’t usually mean it quite so literally. But Hazel Syphers of Morgan County took the expression to heart. When she passed away in 2014 at the age of 100, she left behind a gift that will have the children of Morgan County unwrapping presents for years to come.
Hazel and her husband, Gerald, lived quietly and simply. Their grand-niece, Marsha Long, remembers staying summers with the couple as a child, helping with farm chores, walking on the backs of sheep and letting her imagination run wild in the woods with their dog, Rover. She also thinks she went home 10 pounds heavier from all the food Hazel fed her. “They loved kids,” Marsha said. “She was good with kids, and she adored them. They never had any of their own.”
So, it should have come as no surprise when Hazel left a series of gifts in her will for the Morgan Community Fund and other organizations that showed her love for her county and its children.
Hazel knew she wanted every child in Morgan County to open a Christmas present, but it was only after she learned about the local community foundation that she saw a way to do it. With her gift, the Morgan Community Fund works to ensure that kids who might not otherwise have a present to open on Christmas morning will be able to join the celebration. And in recent years, they’ve inspired the local business community to spread the joy further.
Today, the Hazel Syphers Christmas Wish for Kids program provides Morgan County children with Christmas goodies, an afternoon or evening holiday movie at the Twin City Opera House and a magical day in McConnelsville. And the Morgan Community committee honors Hazel’s wishes by adopting local families, with children receiving wrapped Christmas gifts and their families a complete holiday.
Through the Morgan Community Fund, Hazel’s gift is being carefully managed and invested to ensure it will help generations of children celebrate Christmas with excitement, wide eyes and joy.
Led by a local, volunteer committee, the Morgan Community Fund is a family of funds managed and supported by the Foundation for Appalachian Ohio. Its mission is to improve the quality of life for all who call Morgan County home, both now and in the future. The Morgan Community Fund not only awards grants and makes investments in the community, but it gives everyone – past, present and future – the opportunity to support the people of Morgan County, just as Hazel Syphers did through her estate.
In addition to her gift to the community fund, Hazel also invested in the Morgan County Historical Society, Morgan County United Ministries and the Pennsville Church of Christ through her estate. Together, Hazel’s final gifts celebrate the county’s past while uplifting its future by supporting children. Now that’s truly a reason to be merry.