Supporting industry members in need can take many forms, and one you might not think about is your will or trust. Almost 50% of adults between 50-64 years old don’t have an estate plan in place, and MPTF is here to help take that first or even last step in creating your legacy. One person who’s planned ahead and included MPTF among the beneficiaries in her trust is Laura Elkus Gross who runs her own production company, L.E.G. Productions. She started off doing radio specials and interviews before moving to television, “I was interviewing mostly rock stars,” she recalls, “and then MTV started. I went and met with the people there and literally spent four and a half years trying to get them to hire me. Talk about persistence! Finally, I became the unofficial West Coast person for MTV when they didn’t have an office here.” From there she moved to creating electronic press kits for companies like Disney, Pixar, Sony, Universal and DreamWorks, and now produces Blu-ray and DVD features as well as awards season material.
Laura was aware of the need for a safety net like MPTF when her mother suffered a massive stroke, with the possibility of moving her to our campus giving peace of mind. Last year Laura suffered two fractures in her arm (“I’m an overachiever, and one was not enough!”) which required surgery, prompting her to take a look at her planned giving. “I wanted to give to charities and organizations that could give back or could be meaningful in my life,” she realized. “There are so many options of ways you can participate in charitable functions, and all of them are great. MPTF is an organization that I know is helpful to me and to people in my creative community. It’s a valuable choice, and beyond a legacy in my trust, I wanted to make sure that below-the-line people were supported during the strikes. Helping while I’m still alive is significant, too! The industry has so many creative people and it’s great to be around that; why would you not want to share in that and contribute? I think those are all things that make MPTF so important and so special.”
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