Gina Wettlaufer Makes Nichols Part of Her Estate Plan with a Bequest in Her Will

Gina Wettlaufer '98 has deep roots in Buffalo and a correspondingly deep love for Nichols, which is why she has chosen to include a bequest in her will supporting her alma mater.

The bequest enables Gina to determine over the coming decades exactly how her planned gift will be directed. Whatever the details turn out to be, she knows she wants to help maintain Nichols as a pillar of the Buffalo community while supporting its national reputation among outstanding college prep schools.

"I have a deep love of Buffalo, and I think that Nichols is such an important institution for the city. I think it's important for all of us who have left and who have benefited from the education to give back as much as we can," she says, speaking from her home in New York City.

After graduating from Nichols, Gina headed south - very much on purpose for the warmer climate - to attend Tulane University where she studied business. Making the transition to college was seamless, she says, because of the outstanding education she received, academically and socially, at Nichols.

Over the ensuing years, Gina has not forgotten her hometown or her high school alma mater. In addition to insisting her family, including her New Yorker husband, Walter, support the Bills and the Sabres, she believes strongly in sharing her good fortune with future Nichols students by including the school in her will.

"I would not be the person I am if I hadn't gone to Nichols. And I feel very lucky in my life, and I feel very grateful for my experience there. I want to make sure I always pay it back to where I benefited in my life," she says.

Gina urges her fellow Nichols alumni to do likewise.

"Even if you don't have family in Buffalo, you still got to your place in your life - your career and family - because of your time in Buffalo and at Nichols," she says. "You can't forget where we all came from. It's important to make sure other people get those same opportunities."