Why Do We Have a World-Class Hospital in a Small City Like New Haven? Because of People Like Nancy and Daniel Kops

Nancy Kops

Nancy Kops and her late husband Daniel moved to New Haven in 1949, and Nancy says they always believed that high-quality, convenient health care was a community priority—which is why they were regular supporters of Yale New Haven Hospital, including a charitable trust established as part of their estate planning.

“We’d been interested in supporting the hospital for many years, so we wanted to make sure that we left a legacy for the future,” Nancy says.

The charitable remainder trust for YNHH was a terrific option for them—as it is for so many donors—because it generates an income stream during the donors’ lifetimes, with the remainder of the donated assets eventually going to support the hospital.

Nancy and Daniel moved to New Haven when Daniel and a business partner bought the New Haven radio station, WAVZ. Before long he was well-known as a principled radio editorialist, advocating for strengthening the community—everything from water fluoridation to public housing to freedom of information. Although Daniel passed away in 2009, Nancy continues the tradition.

The Kopses began giving to the hospital regularly in the late 1960s, including support for additional facilities such as Smilow Cancer Hospital and the Shoreline Medical Center in Guilford.

“We both felt how important it was to the community to have an outstanding hospital,” Nancy says. “Although New Haven is not a large city, we are lucky to have a world-class medical center here—equivalent to those in the country’s biggest cities.”

Actually, luck doesn’t have anything to do with it. It’s the generosity of donors like Daniel and Nancy—and so many other involved citizens—that has made Yale New Haven Hospital grow into the medical powerhouse it has become over the years.

“This is where we lived and brought up our children,” Nancy says. “We were active in the community, and we felt that we should give back. So we did what we could.”