John adds, "Usually by 6 A.M. on weekday mornings we have six radios in our house tuned to VPR so we can hear it from the bedroom to the garage and in my office."

The Kueffners said that they don’t watch television news because "we get all the news we need from VPR. The depth of the reporting is phenomenal. VPR's own reporting has improved dramatically over the past several years, and the Vermont coverage is now excellent."

Carolyn, 51, is Staff Assistant to the University of Vermont's Rubenstein School of Environment and Natural Resources graduate program. She also served on the board of Revitalizing Waterbury, a non-profit organization that renovated the old train depot in town.

"For me, the entertainment value of VPR is enormous!" said Carolyn. "I make sure that I'm listening on Saturdays to Wait, Wait...Don't Tell Me! and Car Talk, and I never thought we would listen to a sports program like Only A Game, but we love it!"

John, 58, works for and is President of the Waterbury Ambulance Service, Inc., a private, all-volunteer ambulance service based in Waterbury Center.

"I'm always quoting things I've heard on VPR, and I'm always surprised when I encounter someone who’s not a listener," said John. "Being a listener makes you part of a bigger community of listeners who have a shared experience, and I value that immensely."

Because VPR plays such an important part in their lives, both Carolyn and John have included Vermont Public Radio and the Vermont Chapter of the Nature Conservancy as beneficiaries of their retirement funds.

"I'd much rather have 100% of the money that I worked for go somewhere that I care about, rather than to taxes, and it was so easy to do," said Carolyn.

To do this, just request a "change of beneficiary" form from your investment company or employer, sign it and send it back. If you leave your traditional IRA, 401(k), or 403 (b) to anyone other than your spouse, the individual beneficiary will have to pay income tax on the funds received. In some instances, if the estate is subject to estate tax, the combination of income tax and estate tax can amount to over 70% of the decedent’s retirement account. By naming VPR as the beneficiary of your retirement plan, the full amount of your retirement assets will benefit Vermont Public Radio; then, you can leave other assets to your loved ones.

For more information about how to give through a retirement plan, please contact David Warren at 1-800-639-2192, ext. 188 or via e-mail.