VOA新闻杂志2023--‘Poor’ New Hampshire Man Leaves Millions to Small Town

‘Poor’ New Hampshire Man Leaves Millions to Small Town

When Geoffrey Holt of Hinsdale, New Hampshire died earlier this year at 82, not many people knew he had over $1 million.

He wore worn-out clothes. He did not do jobs that paid a lot of money. He rode a bicycle instead of owning a car, and he had a small home.

But when he had extra money, he invested it well. One friend said he put money into a mutual¹ fund that held stock in communications companies. This was in the days before mobile phones.

Holt told one friend, Edwin Smith, that the money had grown more than he expected.

Holt died with $3.8 million.

He left all the money to the town of Hinsdale.

The town has about 4,200 people and is about 160 kilometers northwest of Boston, Massachusetts.

In Holt's will, the document he left when he died, he said the money should be used for education, health, recreation and culture.

Steve Diorio is one of the town leaders. He called the money "a tremendous gift."

No determination has been made yet about how the town will use the money. However, it seems as if the money will go into a special fund, and organizations can submit their ideas for approval.

Some have suggested upgrading the town hall clock, others have talked about repairing civic² buildings or buying a vote-counting machine.

Kathryn Lynch is another town leader. She said Hinsdale will use the money carefully, or "frugally³," which is how Holt lived.

Smith, Holt's friend, said "he seemed to have what he wanted, but he didn't have much."

Holt would ride his bicycle or his lawn mower⁴ around town. He would go to a small store to buy a newspaper and he would sit on the lawn mower reading it or watching cars pass.

When he was younger, he worked as a manager for a grain production center. After the center closed, he did small jobs around town - helping⁵ people fix things in their homes or teaching teenagers how to drive. He did not have a television, and his friend said his home was not in perfect condition - the legs of his bed made holes in the floor.

But Smith said Holt studied financial magazines and carefully decided⁶ how to invest his money. He also liked reading about history - some of his favorite topics included World War II and learning about the auto⁷ manufacturer Henry Ford⁸. He also enjoyed listening to classical music and had a record collection that included works by Handel and Mozart.

Holt's sister, Alison, is 81. She lives in California. She said she knew her brother invested his money and did not like to spend wastefully⁹. She said their father passed the ideas along to his children.

Alison said her brother had a learning disability called dyslexia, so he had trouble reading and writing. "But he was very smart in certain ways."

She thought that Geoffrey was disappointed he could not succeed in education, so "maybe socking away all that money was a way to compete."

The Holts grew up nearby in Springfield, Massachusetts. Geoffrey Holt went to Marlboro College in Vermont and also served in the U.S. Navy.

Neither Geoffrey nor his sister had any children. Alison said her brother did not need a lot to be happy. But she is sad he never used the money to "indulge himself a little bit."

Words in This Story

tremendous -adj. very large or great

fund -n. an amount of money that is meant to be used for or serves a specific purpose

civic -adj. related to a city or town

frugally -adv. being careful not to spend money when it is not necessary; the careful use of money

sock away -v. (phrasal, informal) to save a supply of something, often money, by putting it in a safe place

indulge -v. to permit yourself or someone else to do something purely for the pleasure of it

1 mutual   

adj.相互的，彼此的；共同的，共有的

参考例句：

• We must pull together for mutual interest.我们必须为相互的利益而通力合作。
• Mutual interests tied us together.相互的利害关系把我们联系在一起。

2 civic   

adj.城市的，都市的，市民的，公民的

参考例句：

• I feel it is my civic duty to vote.我认为投票选举是我作为公民的义务。
• The civic leaders helped to forward the project.市政府领导者协助促进工程的进展。

3 frugally   

adv. 节约地, 节省地

参考例句：

• They lived frugally off a diet of porridge and lentils. 他们生活节俭，只吃燕麦粥和小扁豆。
• The enterprise is in live frugally, common people criterion enclasp pocket. 企业在节衣缩食，老百姓则握紧了口袋。

4 mower   

n.割草机

参考例句：

• We need a lawn mower to cut the grass.我们需要一台草坪修剪机来割草。
• Your big lawn mower is just the job for the high grass.割高草时正需要你的大割草机。

5 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

6 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

7 auto   

n.(=automobile)(口语)汽车

参考例句：

• Don't park your auto here.别把你的汽车停在这儿。
• The auto industry has brought many people to Detroit.汽车工业把许多人吸引到了底特律。

8 Ford   

n.浅滩，水浅可涉处；v.涉水，涉过

参考例句：

• They were guarding the bridge,so we forded the river.他们驻守在那座桥上，所以我们只能涉水过河。
• If you decide to ford a stream,be extremely careful.如果已决定要涉过小溪，必须极度小心。

9 wastefully   

浪费地，挥霍地，耗费地

参考例句：

• He soon consumed his fortune, ie spent the money wastefully. 他很快就把财产挥霍殆尽。
• Small Q is one flies upwards the bracelet youth, likes enjoying noisily, spends wastefully. 小Q则是一个飞扬跳脱的青年，爱玩爱闹，花钱大手大脚。