Farmer left $10.9m for cancer centre; Mayo could get it if hospital lost independence

Iowa farmer Herman Carl Stille died in September 2020 at 94, leaving an estate worth about $10.9 million. His 2017 will directed the remainder to Floyd County Medical Center (FCMC) in Charles City to establish a cancer centre for local residents. It also named the Mayo Foundation as the alternative recipient, for Alzheimer's research, if the hospital lost its independence and became part of a major healthcare corporation. Mayo went to court after the hospital found it could not provide radiation treatment. On May 1, 2026, the Iowa Supreme Court ruled in favour of the medical centre.A farmer's $10.9 million will with two conditionsStille was a cattle farmer and factory worker before he retired. He never married, had no children and left no living siblings or other identified heirs. He received care at FCMC for more than a decade and was the largest donor to the hospital's charitable foundation.He was also a Mayo patient in Rochester, Minnesota, and had given to its charitable foundation. His last gift there came in January 2017. He stopped donating because he was dissatisfied with the care he received, and his later gifts went to FCMC alone.The $10.9 million estate was mostly farmla...