The generosity of a Beaufort County couple, now dead, will enable three entities to help Beaufort County residents.

Benefitting from the munificence of W. Albert Mish and Harriett H. Mish are the Beaufort County Community College Foundation, the Beaufort County Committee of 100 and Washington’s First United Methodist Church. W. Albert Mish died July 8, 2001. Harriett H. Mish died Jan. 6, 2012.

“They agreed that they wanted to provide for their spouse and heirs from the first estate and leave a substantial amount of the estate of the remaining spouse to charity. That decision has made a huge impact,” reads a news release concerning the Mishes’ philanthropy.

Harriett Mish, in memory of her husband and herself, left generous gifts to the Beaufort County Community College Foundation, the Beaufort County Committee of 100 and to her church, First United Methodist. With the balance of her estate, she directed her co-executors to distribute in their discretion to qualifying charitable organizations.

Judy Jennette, director of the Beaufort County Community College Foundation, said the Mishes’ gift to the college opens up some new doors for the foundation.

“We’re actually going to meet in April to decide that because she didn’t put any constraints on it. This provides us with an opportunity to do a little some thing different than we’ve done in the past,” Jennette said Monday during a brief telephone interview. “There’s a subcommittee of the foundation board meeting to discuss it. … It’s just opened up a whole new avenue of giving to the college.”

Dick  Barber, president of the Committee of 100, said the gift from the Mishes likely would be used in some way to carry out the committee’s mission of bringing economic-development opportunities to the county. How that money would be used has yet to be decided, as far as he knows, Barber said.

“Everything we’re supposed to be doing relates to economic activity, anything that might help create another new job,” Barber said Monday during a brief telephone interview. “I’m being honest with you when I say I haven’t heard anybody point to either a project, or an employer or any opportunity yet where that money would be wisely used.”