Why We Give & Foundation Donor Highlight: Ken ’61N and Barbara Woltz

Ken Woltz ‘61N and his wife Barbara share many loves. For each other, certainly — they’ve been married for 53 years — but they also share a love for their three children and four grandchildren, their homes in Illinois and Florida, their faith, West Point Prep school Academy, and Admiral Farragut Academy.

They also share a desire to encourage young people to pursue a Farragut diploma while not having to worry about the cost. To that end, they have given back to Farragut over the years and, in particular, to the Admiral Farragut Academy Foundation in support of student financial assistance.

When Ken was a young boy, his parents divorced and his mother struggled with illness. Ken found himself in a Catholic orphanage for a period of time. His mother recovered, remarried, and they started a new life. When it was time to choose a school, his mother and step-father decided they would send Ken to Admiral Farragut Academy.

With the generous financial assistance from the Academy, Ken flourished in academics and athletics. “That financial assistance made a big difference,” he said. It also made a lasting impression.

Ken graduated in 1961 and received an appointment to West Point. While there, he never lost touch with his high school sweetheart Barbara, whom he married in 1966. Nine months to the day after their wedding Ken and Barbara welcomed the first of their three children. Meanwhile, the Army introduced Ken to skills in the emerging computer field.

Upon his discharge, these skills led to management positions with Raytheon, General Electric, Xerox, McGraw-Edison, and Peat Marwick Mitchell. Eventually, Ken founded his own strategic planning consulting company, Woltz & Associates. Later, Ken turned Woltz & Associates into a successful hedge fund firm.

Now, they hope their giving will make a big difference each year to students following a similar academic path.

“We believe this is a way for our annual gifts to have an impact on students who otherwise may not be able to afford the Farragut experience,” Ken said. “During my career, I remembered what Farragut had done for me and I promised myself that, if I was blessed in life, I would be generous in return.”

Ken and Barbara are able to give back to Farragut and other nonprofit organizations because early on they set up a charitable trust and as their income grew so did their contributions to the trust. Additionally, at age 70½, when Ken began receiving IRA required minimum disbursements, he was able to avoid paying income tax by directing those disbursements to charitable causes including Farragut. For the Woltz’s, giving back is a way to express gratitude for their own blessings and to help make a difference in the lives of others.

For more information on making a gift to Farragut, contact Tony Sloan, Chief Development Officer, at 813-416-7202 or tsloan@farragut.org.