A Legacy Gift that Reflects Lifelong Values

El Camino Health Foundation is grateful for Ken Kaye and Dianne Gershuny’s bequest, which reflects their gratitude and their commitment to give back to community, in legacy as well as in life.

“After my mom Mary-Lou Kaye died in 1990, my dad always expressed appreciation for the El Camino Hospital staff members who took such good care of her and gave him so much support throughout her long illness,” Aaron Kaye remembers, even though he was only 7 years old at the time. “And being an estate attorney, he suggested friends and family members honor her memory by making a donation to El Camino Health Foundation.”

His dad, Kenneth Kaye, was passionate about planned giving and regularly used his legal expertise to help nonprofits set up planned giving programs and encourage clients and friends to include charitable contributions in their estate plans. He followed his own advice by including a bequest to El Camino Health Foundation when he and his second wife Dianne Gershuny, a former Los Altos city manager, did their own gift planning. Devoted parents and well respected in their professions, Ken and Dianne had always been actively engaged with local community organizations and helped numerous nonprofits.

Ken turned to El Camino Health again when he was diagnosed with cancer toward the end of his own life. Despite the difficulties of his final months, he remained appreciative of everyone there. “He knew all the nurses’ names. He left treats at the nurses station to express his gratitude,” Aaron recalls. And he sat down with Aaron and his sister Eva Kaye-Zwiebel to explain the charitable donations he wanted to make. After Ken died in 2007, Aaron and Eva credited Dianne with anchoring the family until her own death last year.

El Camino Health Foundation is grateful for Ken Kaye and Dianne Gershuny’s bequest, which reflects their gratitude and their commitment to give back to community, in legacy as well as in life. Aaron and Eva, who were both born at El Camino Health, will dedicate a bench on the Mountain View hospital campus with a plaque that honors their parents and serves as an enduring reminder of their values.