'We're not the bad boy': Charity pushes back on claims made by 101-year-old widow in $40M will dispute

Centenarian Mary McEachern says she knew what her husband wanted when he died. The problem is, his will says otherwise.

The 101-year-old widow is embroiled in a court battle over which charities will benefit from her late-husband Steve McEachern's $40-million estate.

In his will, The Rotary Foundation Canada (TRFC) is named as the sole beneficiary to receive the estate, minus money for Mary's living expenses. 

TRFC is a corporation and registered charity that helps local rotary chapters with projects around the world, including disaster relief, clean water initiatives and vaccine programs.

Mary said giving back was important to the couple over their 75 years together.

"We worked together as a team," she said. "Everything he said to me about setting up this program for the needy (was) very real to me, because this is how we did our lives and we started many charities all through our lives."

Mary and Steve McEachern were long-time philanthropists. Mary said Steve changed his mind late in life about which charities he wanted to donate his fortune to, but he died before he could amend his will. (Supplied)

Steve's relationship with TRFC began around eight years ago when he made a $250,000 donation. In the years after, he became a well-loved Rotarian.

He died in September 2020, leaving his entire estate – minus money for Mary's care – to the Rotary in a will penned in 2019.

But she says it's not what he wanted.

According to Mary, Steve changed his mind late in his life after seeing local charities struggling during the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.

"He was very quiet (one) afternoon, and then all of sudden, he said to me, 'I don't want to give any more money to Rotary. I've given them enough, and there are so many needy people in our own part of the world,'" Mary recalls.

His health took a turn soon after, and he died before he could make those new wishes legally binding.

Now, Mary is fighting to honour her husband's legacy and she says the Rotary is refusing to negotiate. 

On a website set up for Mary, the family accuses the Rotary of trying to keep all the money by "deliberately" drawing out the legal process "hoping Mary will pass before her case is heard." 

'We have an obligation'

Dean Rohrs, previous TRFC chair and former vice-president of Rotary International, said that's not true. 

She said the organization had no idea it was the sole beneficiary of the McEachern estate until almost two years after Steve died and the case was already in court.

"We were absolutely taken aback," Rohrs said. "We were also advised that Mrs. McEachern was challenging the will, that there was already legal action being taken."

"We had no opportunity to sit down with Mrs. McEachern, with anybody, prior to any of these actions being taken," Rohrs added.

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The foundation denies it's fighting Mary over the money, saying the issue is between the widow and the courts – not the club.

"We are only just a recipient of that will, so she's not battling us," Rohrs said. "She's battling the intent of his will."

Steve McEachern stands next to Dean Rohrs, former chair of The Rotary Foundation Canada, in a photograph supplied by the McEachern family. (Supplied)

That said, Rohrs added the club does have a responsibility to Steve as his legal beneficiary.

"We have a fiduciary duty as the Rotary Foundation Canada. We have an obligation to McEachern," Rohrs said. "We need to honor his intent in that will."

Mary's website said the widow offered TRFC a $13 million donation instead, but it was rejected.

Rohrs confirmed the offer was made, but said the transaction was not as simple as it may appear.

"That (offer) came immediately after we had been notified that we were beneficiaries to this estate," Rohrs explained. "The offer was put to us, and we had no idea what was going on."

She said the foundation could not in due diligence accept any settlement without having more information on the estate's assets, or associated costs like taxes owed, or legal or administrative fees.

"We had to say to them, 'Sorry, we can't accept the settlement at this moment until we understand exactly what we're settling on,'" Rohrs said.

'We need to have clarity'

Mary's website urges the public to stand with her, and the family has actively sought out media coverage, saying the widow "wants people to be aware of Rotary's actions and to think critically about the charities they support."

In addition to claims that TRFC is "deliberately" stalling legal proceedings, Mary's website calls the foundation greedy and claims it has refused negotiations and forced the widow into litigation at her own expense.

Rohrs said the family's media coverage has sparked backlash against the foundation.

"It's killing us," she said. "I wish I could share with you the emails we're receiving."

"It's the saddest thing," she continued. "I have never in my life picked up a phone and had to put it down because there's somebody swearing and cursing at me on the other side."

Rohrs said the legal delays are not a tactic, but rather a result of a lack of financial transparency and multiple changes on Mary's legal team.

"We're not the bad boys in this picture," Rohrs said. "We are doing everything we can to resolve it, but we are also business people that need to honour the intent of the will and need to honour the Rotarians that we serve."

The family said it has always preferred to solve the issue amicably without litigation, and it's hopeful the Rotary will "come to the table and engage with Mary."

"I think that would be a good idea if we could meet and talk," Mary said. "We've never talked."

Mary McEachern, at 101-years-old, is fighting a legal battle to change which charities benefit from her late husband Steve McEachern's $40-million estate. (CTV News Edmonton)Rohrs said the Rotary feels the same.

"We are open to everything, but I keep going back to this one point – in fairness to SteveMcEachern, in fairness to the Rotary Clubs of Canada, we need to have clarity about what we are discussing.

"How much money is in there? Have the taxes been paid? … This can be resolved in a moment if that information is available."

Mary's family said – as far as they know – all "necessary documentation" has been given and time has been provided to review financials.

If the widow is unable to challenge the will successfully in court, Rohrs said the money from the estate will be put toward global water- and sanitation-based projects, as laid out in Steve's will.

If Mary succeeds, her website said she plans to split the estate between 17 local and national charities. 

With files from CTV News Edmonton's Nicole Lampa