A charitable bequest is one or two sentences in your will or living trust that leave to GRACE an amount of money, a specific item, a gift contingent upon certain events or a percentage of your estate.

Advantages of a Gift in Your Will: (1) Simplicity – One sentence in your will or living trust is all that is needed to complete your gift. (2) Flexibility – Until your will or trust goes into effect, you are free to alter your plans as needed to reflect life’s changes. (3) Versatility – You can give a specific item, an amount of money, a gift contingent upon certain events or a percentage of your estate.

Here’s How It Works: An estate planning attorney can help you structure a gift that will include special language in your will or living trust you create, or you can add it to existing documents through an amendment called a codicil. “I give to Godly Response To Abuse in the Christian Environment (GRACE), a nonprofit corporation currently located at 770 Windingway Road, Lynchburg, VA, 24502, [insert dollar amount, percentage of the estate, or exact description of property] for its unrestricted use and purpose.”

RETIREMENT PLAN ASSETS

Do you have funds saved in an employee retirement plan, IRA, or tax-sheltered annuity? Each of these plans contains income that has yet to be taxed. When a distribution is made from your retirement plan account, your beneficiaries will owe federal income tax. As a nonprofit organization, we are tax-exempt and will receive the full amount of what you designate to us from your plan. There are several ways you can take advantage of this gift opportunity:

Name GRACE a beneficiary of your plan. All this requires is updating your beneficiary designation form through your plan administrator. You can designate us as the primary beneficiary for a percentage or specific amount. You can also make us the contingent beneficiary so that we will receive the balance of your plan only if your primary beneficiary doesn’t survive you.

Make a direct gift from your IRA. If you are of eligible age, you can take advantage of a simple way to benefit GRACE and receive tax benefits in return. You can give up to $100,000 from your IRA directly to a qualified charity such as ours without having to pay income taxes on the money. Learn more here.

Fund a testamentary charitable remainder trust.  When you fund a charitable remainder trust with your heavily taxed retirement plan assets, the trust will receive the proceeds of your plan upon your death. The trust typically pays income to one or more named beneficiaries for life or for a set term of up to 20 years, after which the remaining assets in the trust would go to support GRACE. This gift provides excellent tax and income benefits for you while supporting your family and our work.

A donor-advised fund. When retirement plan assets pass to your heirs, distributions are taxed as ordinary income. This income tax burden can be substantial, greatly reducing the value of the intended gift. Instead, you can designate your donor-advised fund as the beneficiary of all or a portion of your retirement plan assets. Your fund receives the full amount of the gift and bypasses any federal taxes. Learn more here.

LIFE INSURANCE

You can use a life insurance policy in two different ways to benefit GRACE when the original purpose for the policy no longer applies. Your policy can become a powerful and simple way to support our mission. Not only is it an easy way to give, but it’s also flexible—you aren’t locked into the choices you make today. You can review and adjust beneficiary designations anytime you want.

Name GRACE a beneficiary or partial beneficiary of the policy. You can add the foundation as a beneficiary (or partial beneficiary) of a life insurance policy easily. Simply update your beneficiary designation form with the policyholder.

Make an outright gift of an existing policy. You can name GRACE as the owner and beneficiary of an existing paid‐up policy. You qualify for a federal income tax charitable deduction when you itemize your taxes. If you continue to pay premiums on the policy, each payment is tax deductible as a charitable gift when you itemize.

BANK ACCOUNTS, CERTIFICATES OF DEPOSIT OR BROKERAGE ACCOUNTS

Designating GRACE as the beneficiary of your bank accounts, certificates of deposit, or brokerage accounts is a simple and straightforward way to support our mission. There are two options you can use to make this gift to GRACE:

Payable on Death (POD)* By placing a POD designation on your bank account or certificate of deposit, you can name one or more persons or charities as the beneficiary of all funds once you, the account owner, pass away. The beneficiary you name has no rights to the funds until after your lifetime. Until that time, you remain in control and are free to use the money in the bank account, to change the beneficiary or to close the account.

By setting up your bank account or certificate of deposit in this way, the estate planning and administration process is simplified. The executor or administrator of your estate will not have to take any action to ensure that your account transfers to whomever you designated. Simply ask your bank representative about the one or two easy steps you need to take in order to place a POD designation on your bank account or certificate of deposit.

Transfer on Death (TOD)* By placing a TOD designation on your brokerage or investment account, that account will be paid over to one or more persons or charities after your lifetime. It is not necessary for the TOD designation to transfer all of the account solely to charity—you can designate a certain percentage of the account. Like a POD account, with a TOD account the beneficiary you name has no rights to the funds until after your lifetime. Until that time, you are free to use the money in the brokerage account, to change the beneficiary or to close the account.

A TOD designation also simplifies the estate planning and administration process. The executor or administrator of your estate will not have to take any action to ensure that your securities transfer to whomever you designated. To set up the TOD endorsement, simply contact your investment advisor and provide instructions regarding the change.

*State laws govern payable on death accounts and transfer on death accounts. Please consult with your bank representative or investment advisor if you are considering these gifts.