BLACKSBURG — Donors and supporters of the Warm Hearth Foundation for 27 years, Jim and Mary Ellen Moore recently bequeathed $426,299.13 to the foundation to benefit the Brian H. Smith Benevolence Endowment.
The endowment was established to support seniors in need of housing and care at Warm Hearth Village (WHV) well into the future. Their gift leaves a legacy of lasting impact for residents of WHV that will benefit countless seniors in need who would not otherwise be able to afford the cost of their healthcare.
The Moores were both born and raised in Bloomington, Ind. They lived in Blacksburg for 60 years where Jim was an associate professor at Virginia Tech in the Agricultural Economics Department. Mary Ellen was the Home Economics teacher at Radford High School for 22 years.
The Moores moved to Warm Hearth Village in 2012, first to Showalter Center and then to the Kroontje Health Care Center.
Jim was instrumental in helping to establish Warm Hearth at Home in 2013, which provides in-home companions and caregiver services to help seniors maintain their current living arrangement or navigate the transition to a higher level of care when needed.
“They loved Warm Hearth and enjoyed the time they lived there,” said Barb Moore, the Moores’ daughter. “They appreciated the care they received, and believed in the organization’s mission.”
“We were truly blessed to know Jim and Mary Ellen,” said Karen Nelson, Warm Hearth’s associate director of development. “They were an important part of the Warm Hearth family for many years and a special part of the Wybe and Marietje Kroontje Heritage Society, a group of individuals who have pledged their support to the Foundation by leaving an estate gift and a legacy at Warm Hearth Village.”
Warm Hearth Village is a nonprofit senior living community in Blacksburg that provides a full continuum of living options on our campus and in the home.
