Pillar Society
Plan today so that your legacy endures beyond your lifetime!
Join the Pillar Society by remembering the Los Angeles Conservancy in your estate plans! Your legacy gift provides enduring support for the preservation of historic places that matter in Los Angeles.
Your legacy gift generates income that supports all of the Los Angeles Conservancy’s important programs and activities, including:
INVESTING IN YOUTH
Student programs bring local history to life in ways that inspire, inform, and celebrate the people and places important o Los Angeles' history and heritage. To expand our reach, student walking tour field trips are now offered free of charge to participants.
SAVING HISTORIC PLACES
The Conservancy inspires and empowers Angelenos to value, advocate for, and protect our shared heritage through program, like our weekly and seasonal walking tours, People + Places virtual series, Community Leadership Boot Camp, and more.
TELLING THE STORIES OF ANGELENOS
Through our digital and print outreach and collaborations, the Conservancy elevates the stories of L.A.'s historic places and the people who helped shape them, reinforcing their relevance today, and underlining why they need protecting.
BUILDING COMMUNITY
Pillar Society enjoy good food, great company, and a shared passion for the enduring legacy of Los Angeles.
INVESTING IN YOUTH
Student programs bring local history to life in ways that inspire, inform, and celebrate the people and places important o Los Angeles' history and heritage. To expand our reach, student walking tour field trips are now offered free of charge to participants.
SAVING HISTORIC PLACES
The Conservancy inspires and empowers Angelenos to value, advocate for, and protect our shared heritage through program, like our weekly and seasonal walking tours, People + Places virtual series, Community Leadership Boot Camp, and more.
TELLING THE STORIES OF ANGELENOS
Through our digital and print outreach and collaborations, the Conservancy elevates the stories of L.A.'s historic places and the people who helped shape them, reinforcing their relevance today, and underlining why they need protecting.
BUILDING COMMUNITY
Pillar Society enjoy good food, great company, and a shared passion for the enduring legacy of Los Angeles.
Create or Update Your Estate Plans
Now is a great time to make a planned gift that protects your loved ones and preserves the places that honor the history and heritage of Los Angeles. Consider remembering the Conservancy with a planned gift, designate beneficiaries, notify us about intentions, and become a member of our Pillar Society planned giving group.
“I give to the Los Angeles Conservancy, a California nonprofit corporation, Federal Tax ID #95-3273046, whose present address is 523 W. 6th Street, #826, Los Angeles, CA, 90014, the sum of $_____________ or _________ percent of the rest, residue, and remainder of my estate.”
Unless otherwise specified, bequests are directed to a Board-designated fund for specific projects or future endowment.
Please let us know if you make a bequest or other type of legacy gift to the Los Angeles Conservancy. This information helps us plan for the future and enables us to honor you as a member of the Pillar Society.
Please return the form to:
Liz Leshin
Director of Development
Los Angeles Conservancy
500 South Grand Avenue, Suite 1640
Los Angeles, CA 90071
(213) 430-4213
lleshin@laconservancy.org
Common Ways to Make a Legacy Gift
There are many ways to remember the Los Angeles Conservancy in your estate plans and build a legacy that will preserve L.A.’s architectural and cultural heritage for generations.
- Include the Conservancy in your will or living trust with a dollar amount or percentage of your estate.
- Designate the Conservancy as a retirement plan or life insurance policy beneficiary.
- Leave the Conservancy a gift of personal property such as stocks, bonds, mutual funds, or real estate.
The Los Angeles Conservancy is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization (Federal Tax ID: 95-3273046). We encourage you to consult your legal and financial advisors when considering a planned gift.
Pillar Society Benefits
The Pillar Society honors and recognizes individuals and families who have made gifts to the Los Angeles Conservancy through their will, trust, retirement plan, or estate. Just as pillars hold up buildings, Los Angeles Conservancy’s Pillar Society members, through their planned gifts, provide substantial support for our efforts to protect L.A.’s historic places—and enjoy exclusive benefits, too!
Your membership in the Pillar Society entails no dues or solicitations, but it does allow us to thank and recognize you for the plans you have made. It may also inspire others to follow your lead. Your gift will be kept completely confidential if you prefer to remain anonymous.
Pillar Society members receive:
- An invitation to an annual special event with the Conservancy President
- A Pillar Society membership certificate
- Acknowledgment on our website (below)
- A complimentary subscription to LAndmark, the Conservancy’s new member quarterly (if you don’t already receive it)
Pillar Society Member List
Thank you to our Pillar Society Members! Click “Read More” to see our Pillar Society member list as of March 2026.
Janis Ashley
Suzanne Avila
Margaret Bach
Jay Bacon
John Bacon
Rona Lynn Berns
Janet Charlton
Robert Chattel, AIA
Bud Coffey
Judy & William Cormier
Bill Counter
Donna Crane
Rory Cunningham
Clare DeBriere
Linda Dishman & John Hinrichs
Lindsay Doran & Rodney Kemerer
Kimberly Dudow & Sascha Schleumer
Marla Felber & Raymond Kwan
Adrian Scott Fine
Joan Gordon
Barbara Hadsell
Kevin Harlin
Sheila Harlow
Jim Heimann
Hernan Hernandez
Leslie Heumann
Douglas Hileman
Kevin Kane & Sandra Snider
Dale Kendall
Pamela LePoint
Liz Leshin & Dennis Smith
Mary Ann Lovato
Lorraine McIntire
Christy McAvoy
Thelma Mericle
Alan Merson
Lisa Murray
Brian B. Niemiec
Cindy Olnick & Tom Davies
Gail Ostergren
Catherine Pegram
Barbara Petersmeyer
Saryl Radwin
Tom Rau & Carolyn Griffiths
Suzanne Ridgway
Darling Rooney
George Rooney
Michael Rutigliano
April Sakai
Deanne Sando-Neiman
Patricia Serenbetz
Loren Smith
Steven Smith & Michelle Guy
Max Stolz
David K. & Elizabeth S. Thompson
Paul Tolbert
Ruta Vaisnys
Robert Vogt
Roslyn Wilkins
Mary Alice Wollam & Bob Brennan
Joan Yarfitz
IN MEMORIAM
D.T. Burch
George Dunning
Dan Harlow
Connie Humberger
Steve McAvoy
Morynne Motley
Donald Weggeman
Contact
Thank you for your interest in and support of the Los Angeles Conservancy and its programs. If you are planning to designate the Los Angeles Conservancy in your estate plans, or if you already have, please let Liz Leshin know so you can be considered a Pillar Society member and invited to an annual reception.
If you have any questions about the Pillar Society, please get in touch with us at lleshin@laconservancy.org or (323) 270-4334.
Give with trust.
PILLAR SOCIETY MEMBER STORY
A Couple's Bequest Ensures Future Angelenos Can Access Their Heritage
Avid architecture fans Kimberly Dudow and Sascha Schleumer were moved to join the Conservancy, as Kim puts it, because “the Conservancy’s constant battle to preserve historical architecture as well as the legacy of the businesses in Los Angeles is hands down the most meaningful aspect for us. The number of important buildings that the L.A. Conservancy has rescued through their expert preservation work is impressive.”
When their daughter was born, Kim and Sascha started crafting their estate plan, including a legacy gift to the Conservancy.
