Planned Gifts

The Carle Development Foundation enlists the expertise of a select group of professionals who have demonstrated a supportive commitment to The Carle Foundation and whose expertise and experience are suited to assist our staff and donors in an advisory capacity. Planned Giving Committee members offer insight on the impact of trends in economics, taxation and estate planning on charitable giving and serve as advocates for The Carle Development Foundation’s philanthropic mission. Members include Curt Anderson, Todd Black, Phil Blankenburg, R. Michael Brown, Elizabeth Czys, Donna Greene, Tom Harrington Sr., Phil Knox, Greg Lykins (Chair), Stu Mamer, Al Mitchell, Sam Schneider, Lott Thomas, Melissa Thomas, Jim Vermette and Mark Wisniewski.

Bequests & Wills
Two-thirds majority of people do not have an enforceable will in place. Without a current will, the state decides the dispensation of personal assets. Many people who do have wills use them effectively as an extension of their values. They may direct that their assets go to their family, friends or charitable organizations.

Fortunately, our society benefits greatly when a charity or charities are will beneficiaries. A will allows you to choose and name who will act as the executor to implement the wishes and direction stated in your will. An executor may be an individual or an institution, or a combination of both. Likewise, you can decide and specify who you want to be guardian of any minor children or other persons you may be responsible for. A will is your customized estate plan that offers you the opportunity to make tax-savings arrangements for your beneficiaries as a charitable bequest will reduce the taxes due on your estate.

Your will might include a charitable bequest to Carle. A gift by will can support research, medical education or patient care. Your bequest can establish an endowment in your name to pay income forever benefiting your interest. Or, your bequest can be an unrestricted gift, allowing the Carle Board of Trustees to apply it to urgent needs that may exist when the gift is received or sometime in the future.

Your legacy can be created very easily. It can be a dollar amount, a specific asset, or it can be a percentage of the remainder estate. Your attorney can draft an appropriate bequest when you have a new will prepared, or a codicil may be added to your existing will.
 

Gifts of Real Estate
When you give a gift of your home or real property, you may claim an income-tax charitable deduction based on the full market value of the gift, avoid capital gains taxes, and eliminate certain costs associated with the transfer of real property. Gifts of real estate can also provide income to you.
 

Deferred Gift Annuity
A deferred gift annuity is similar to a straight annuity in concept, but with two important exceptions: the annuity is issued by a charitable institution and the annuity payments start at a future date selected by the donor. In return for a gift of cash or marketable securities, The Carle Development Foundation agrees to pay one or two beneficiaries a fixed dollar amount for their lifetimes, to commence at a future date at least one year after the date of the gift. The Carle Development Foundation’s obligation to pay the annuity is secured by it assets.
 

Charitable Gift Annuities
Charitable Gift Annuities make it possible to provide a lasting contribution to Carle and provide a simple and proven technique for securing a lifetime income and minimizing taxes. Though gift annuities, many donors enjoy fixed income from the gifts for their lifetimes.

A Charitable gift annuity is issued by a charitable institution, which receives the remainder as a gift. When a donor enters into a gift annuity agreement with The Carle Development Foundation, he or she receives a lifetime income and at the same time makes a charitable gift to Carle. Carle uses the gift as the donor specifies after the lifetime of the annuitant(s).

How Does it Work?
In return for a gift of cash or property, The Carle Development Foundation agrees to pay one or two beneficiaries selected by the donor a fixed, life-time dollar amount. The Carle Development Foundation’s obligation to pay the annuity is secured by its assets. The donor is entitled to an immediate income tax charitable deduction in the year the gift is made. That deduction is based on the difference between the current value of the lifetime annuity and the amount transferred to The Carle Development Foundation.

Annuity payments can begin immediately or can be deferred for a specified period of time, which is at least one year after the date of the gift. The donor’s age and the age of any additional beneficiary determines the amount, or annuity rate, a donor receives. When an annuity is established to provide for two beneficiaries rather than one, the annuity rate is lower.

What Can be Used to Fund a Gift Annuity?
Cash and marketable securities are the most common sources of funding for a gift annuity. Gift annuities also may be funded via a transfer of a remainder interest in a donor’s personal residence or farm.

With a charitable gift annuity, any assets remaining after the lives or the designated beneficiaries are used for the purposed specified by the donor. Each gift annuity agreement is unique and reflects the interests of the individual donor.
 

Charitable Remainder Trust and Unitrust 
Charitable remainder annuity trusts can be created to provide individuals with financial security for themselves while benefiting The Carle Development Foundation. A gift through a charitable remainder trust is accomplished by the creation of an irrevocable trust, established by a donor with the assistance of his or her attorney.

Assets such as cash, appreciated stock, bonds or real estate are contributed to the trust, which is managed by a trustee. The trustee may sell the assets and reinvest the sale proceeds. The trust makes regular payments to beneficiaries named by the donor at the time the trust was established. These payments can be made for the lifetime(s) of the beneficiary (ies) or for a specified term of up to twenty years. After the lifetime of the last surviving beneficiary, or at the end of the specified term, the trust terminates. The trust principal or "remainder" interest is then distributed to The Carle Development Foundation for the purpose designated by the donor.

There are two types of charitable remainder trusts: the annuity trust and the unitrust. The charitable remainder annuity trust provides a fixed annual payment stated as an amount, or as a percentage of the value of the initial trust assets. The annual payment amount will not change over the term of the trust. The charitable remainder unitrust provides a variable annual payment based on a percentage of the trusts assets as revalued annually. Donors who prefer certainty in the annual payment amount might prefer the annuity trust. Those who prefer more flexibility might select the unitrust.