If there was anyone who was fastidious about her money, it was Alice Youngberg Kozlowski. She handled her own investments, and each night, with a pencil in hand, she’d pore through the Wall Street Journal to review her stocks.
"I said, 'Alice, what is your strategy?'" recalled her nephew, David Youngberg, about her financial acumen. "She thought for a while, looked at me and said, ‘Women’s intuition.'"
Every month, when she would meticulously balance her checkbook, she made sure each cent was accounted for. She would shop garage sales and St. Vincent De Paul and would always buy a bargain that looked brand new.
Her instinct and thriftiness parlayed into a gift of nearly $760,000 to the Oconomowoc Area Foundation upon her death in 2015 at age 94. Her designated fund ensures that three Oconomowoc organizations — the YMCA at Pabst Farms, Silver Streak and Lake Area Free Clinic — will forever benefit from her generosity with an annual grant.
Kozlowski was born in 1921 in Chicago, the third of four children of Swedish immigrants Karl and Martha Youngberg. Her father died while the children were under the age of 10, and her mother made ends meet by setting up a boarding house for factory workers.
After graduating from high school, Alice worked in downtown Chicago for 15 years as an executive assistant for Will C. Grant, founder of Grant Advertising, which became an international ad agency that handled accounts for such companies as Mars Inc. and Chrysler Corp.
Her life sailed in a different direction — taking her from the Windy City to the Wisconsin town that became a popular retreat among tourists and the wealthy from Chicago — when she met widower Max Kozlowski aboard a Caribbean cruise. She quit her job, moved to the Village of Oconomowoc Lake and married Kozlowski, a local businessman, in 1963 at age 40.
Alice earned her real estate license following Max’s death in 1972 and went to work for Stapleton Realty as an administrative assistant and bookkeeper. Alice worked for founder and owner Maureen Stapleton until she was 84.
Stapleton originally introduced Alice to the idea of the Oconomowoc Area Foundation, a partner foundation of the Greater Milwaukee Foundation, but said Alice ultimately decided to leave her legacy at the Oconomowoc Area Foundation, starting with a gift annuity in 2002.
“She didn’t take my word for it,” Stapleton said. “She dug in and studied everything.”
Kozlowski knew that the YMCA’s scholarship program furthered its mission of building healthy spirit, mind and body for all. The agency gives $250,000 annually in financial assistance to about 1,400 individuals. Kozlowski took water exercise classes there and specified her gift support its annual campaign.
“She clearly was able to live a long and prosperous life, and you’d like to think that her involvement here and keeping healthy had something to do with that,” said Heidi Hoeft, the YMCA’s financial development director. “For her to make such a thoughtful gift to us to ensure we’re able to fulfill our mission to serve all is really humbling.”
This is the first gift of such magnitude for Silver Streak, which provides affordable transportation to ambulatory adults age 55 and older. Kozlowski most likely had an inkling of its potential impact. She once worked as a volunteer dispatcher, manually tracking appointments during her two-hour shifts.
With a two-car fleet, Silver Streak provides a monthly average of 800 rides and has experienced a spike in ridership within recent years.
“Alice's generosity will help us fulfill our mission of providing safe, reliable and affordable transportation for years to come to the senior and disabled residents of the community that she loved,” board member Lori Olson said.
Lake Area Free Clinic, located down the road from where Kozlowski used to live, also has seen demand for its services increase. Kozlowski’s gift is enough to support a month and a half of medication for every medical patient it serves. Executive Director Mary Reich said Kozlowski’s generosity is characteristic of the area.
“Oconomowoc and the Lake Country area have shown itself to really take care of their neighbors,” Reich said. “This is another demonstration of just that.”