How to Plan Your Giving
There are many creative and flexible giving options to achieve your unique charitable vision. By pledging your commitment, you join a community of supporters who believe in the library and are honored as members of the Legacy Circle. Here are some of the more popular planned giving options amongst donors today:
Bequest by Will or Trust
An easy way to make a lasting gift to the causes that are important to you during your life is to make a bequest through your will or trust. By simply including information in your estate planning documents, you can easily establish a charitable fund (or add to an existing fund) at the Foundation that speaks to your charitable intentions. The bequest can be for a specific dollar amount, a percentage of your estate or residue of the estate.
Following is an example of bequest language you may want to share with your attorney:
“I give and devise to the Grosse Pointe Library Foundation, located in Grosse Pointe Farms, MI, all (or state a dollar amount or percentage) of the rest, residue and remainder of my estate, both real and personal, to be used for its general support.”
Retirement Plan
Naming the Foundation as a beneficiary of your retirement plan – such as IRA, Keogh, 401(k) and 403(b) – is an opportunity to benefit your library and your heirs. These assets are the most heavily taxed; so it may be more effective for you to transfer assets to a tax-exempt organization, such as the Foundation, and leave assets not subject to income tax for your heirs.
Life Insurance
By naming the Foundation as a beneficiary of your life insurance policy, you can make a much larger gift than what you possibly could make during your lifetime. There are a number of different ways you can gift a life insurance policy. You can irrevocably name the Foundation as the owner of an existing policy, deduct a calculated value of the policy as a charitable gift or choose to name the Grosse Pointe Library Foundation as the beneficiary of a life insurance policy that you continue to own. Charitable gifts made to the Foundation to pay any future premiums are eligible for a tax deduction in the year the gifts are made.
Grosse Pointe Library Foundation’s Federal Tax ID Number: 81-0611048
Be sure to consult your legal or tax advisor on how specific rules may apply to your situation.
For more information, call 313-640-4683 and ask about planned giving.