For 82 years radio station WCAL comforted, informed, inspired and entertained listeners from the college, community and church. Listener support provided the basis for a broadcast service through years of peace, war, depression, prosperity and hope. That support created the entire value of WCAL. It built and equipped towers and studios, rewarded staff and enhanced St. Olaf College. St. Olaf was the steward for tens of thousands of donors, many now deceased, who sacrificed and invested their hard earned dollars believing that their station's trustee would never fail its duty to continue WCAL's missions.
A charitable trust is created when a gift is accepted with the commitment to continuously support a charitable purpose as intended by the donor. A trustee must prudently manage the gift. The intentions, the value and the duty are inseparable. Should circumstances so change that carrying out the purposes is no longer possible, the trustee remains obligated to as nearly as possible fulfill those purposes. A trustee that sells assets to use for unrelated purposes has breached the fiduciary duty required by Minnesota law, and may not benefit from the wrongdoing.
St. Olaf College failed its duty of trust and stewardship by liquidating WCAL trust assets with the intention to use them for its own unrelated purposes.
