Four Green Bay charities recently received a total of nearly $2.5 million. The catch was, they had to wait 25 years to cash the checks.

The estate of Angus and Norma Beaton is finally able to distribute $1.7 million to the Salvation Army and three other groups.

Mr. Beaton was 79 when he died in 1987. The will decreed the estate would be held for twenty-five years to provide for his surviving wife. Mrs. Beaton died just a few months later, so the recipients had to wait.

Rebecca Lesperance is the development director for the Salvation Army. That group is getting the lion's share of the estate--$685,000. The money will go into an interest bearing fund, and will not be used for the day to day needs of its clients.

So Lesperance says the group still needs its red-kettle donations, "People think, 'oh they don't need my pennies.' We absolutely still need to pay a lot of attention to our Christmas campaign. We have a very large goal and the pennies that go into those campaign kettles, that allows us to provide very necessary social services in our county."

It's a similar situation at the Bay Area Humane Society.  Executive Director Steve Heaven says the group is getting $342,000, which will go into a reserve fund.  Still, Heaven says individual donors often see such large gifts as an endorsement of a quality non-profit, "I hope this will just encourage other people to give. Once an organization has some money and is successful people like to be associated with successful ventures."

The local Red Cross and YMCA are each receiving $342,000.