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Manatee UU Fellowship (Florida) contributors
to the UUA Pooled Income Fund. Front row, from left to
right: June Hall, Mary Ellen Lundelius, Peg Henderson,
Harold Van Winkle, Willa Lane, Jo Lassar, Shirley Crandall,
Don Crandall, Mary Kent, Jim Lane, Helen Redfern, Rich
Redfern, Carl and Ruth Warmington. Not shown: Fleta and
Herbert Boyd, Peg and Cloid Green, Clive and Ernest Winter,
and Rollo Barnes.
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Elements of a Successful
Planned Giving Program in Your Congregation
1. Form a Planned Giving Committee
The size of your congregation will determine how you approach planned
giving. One very committed volunteer can accomplish a great deal
in a group of 70-100, but a team is always more fun. Larger congregations
will need more volunteers who can help identify planned gift donor
prospects, develop marketing materials, visit individuals, and find
ways to keep the "elders" involved and feeling appreciated in the
life of the congregation. Stewardship of the UU movement is a responsibility
to be shared and passed on. Consider including young adults and
youth on the Planned Giving Committee. It will be an education for
them and for you.
The duties of a Planned Giving Committee include:
- To identify individuals who are candidates for a planned gift
- To take responsibility for making sure these prospects are actually
asked for a planned gift commitment
- To plan for and implement gift acceptance policies and procedures,
as well as marketing, cultivating, asking, and thanking donors.
- To manage volunteers effectively, to organize, train, motivate,
and reward them.
- To educate and motivate congregational leadership and general
membership to develop a theology of abundance and generosity.
2. Know why your congregation needs a Planned Giving program.
In 1993 the Investment Company Institute estimated that people
55 years or older will bequeath over $8 trillion of accumulated
wealth to non-charitable and charitable heirs in the next 15 years.
In 1996, Barlow T. Mann, writing for "Give & Take" estimates
the intergenerational transfer of wealth at $10 to $11 trillion
between 1990 and 2040. You need to be in a position to benefit from
this expected transfer of wealth.
Conventional wisdom holds that planned gifts are made by people
between 55 and 70 years in age. As of December 1995, the average
adult Unitarian Universalist was 53. By the year 2010 almost 14%
of the US population will be 65 or older. Have you asked your seniors
to make a charitable bequest to your congregation?
A 1992 National Committee on Planned Giving (NCPG) survey revealed
that planned gift donors are equally divided between those who are
over 60 years of age and those who are younger than 60. By any measure,
many Unitarian Universalists are at a point in their lives to make
a commitment to the future of our liberal faith.
At any age, in every economic circumstance, charitable bequests
are by far the most commonly used form of planned giving. Bequests
are relatively inexpensive to arrange, they save $1 in estate taxes
for every dollar given, they are "no risk" gifts, and they are easy
for congregations to promote. All a donor needs to do is complete
a legal Last Will and Testament. All you have to do is ask.
The 1992 NCPG study cited above found that only 8.1% of those who
have a charitable bequest provision in their estate plans have ever
changed the terms of their bequests, and only 8.8% have ever removed
a charitable organization from their Wills.
However, it is estimated that 70% of all Americans die without
a Will, and fewer than 10% of the people who are capable of making
a charitable estate gift have ever been asked.
It's not an issue of what it will cost your congregation to run
a planned giving program, rather, it's what it will cost if you
do not!
3. Learn what Planned Giving is (and isn't).
Planned Giving is a form of stewardship for the future. Individuals
generally contribute assets they have accumulated during their lifetimes
(savings, investments, real estate, retirement plan benefits, life
insurance policies, and tangible personal property) -- rather than
giving from annual income (check book or credit card philanthropy).
Planned gifts generally are meant to perpetuate something of great
value and meaning. A planned gift is the ultimate one a person can
make, both in size and finality. Most often, a planned gift is intended
for a permanent endowment fund. Rarely, if ever, do donors designate
their ultimate gift for spending in the annual operating budget
or a capital project.
Ultimate gifts take some planning. Donors may need to seek professional
counsel before they make a full commitment. Timing, valuation of
assets, overall estate and financial plan, and tax considerations
are added to the mix of generosity and commitment. Some take effect
at death; some during lifetime. Each charitable estate plan is unique,
but there are three basic groups or types of gifts that comprise
planned giving: bequests, life income arrangements (trusts, gift
annuities, and pooled income funds), and transfers of not readily
marketable assets.
While it is useful for planned gift fund-raisers to know their
way around the world of finance, the tax benefits of charitable
giving, and the life issues and concerns for people over 50, your
church can run a successful planned giving effort without hiring
a professional and without spending a great deal of money to train
a group of volunteers.
Asking for and securing planned gifts requires excellent interpersonal
skills, commitment to the cause, a marketing plan, considerable
patience, some technical knowledge, and the ability to recognize
when they need to consult a professional or retain counsel. As with
all successful fund-raising, the most effective "ask" for a planned
gift is made in person, face-to-face, by someone who has already
made a similar gift.
4. Develop a working knowledge of planned gift arrangements.
You need not become a professional charitable gift planner to ask
for and assist others in completing generous estate gifts. Bequests
are far and away the most common planned gift, and all you need
to provide prospective donors is suggested language for a charitable
bequest to your congregation. For the other kinds of gifts, the
UUA's planned giving staff for has experience, expertise, written
materials, and marketing brochures to help you learn the general
terrain.
To the degree possible, your congregation's planned gift committee
should take advantage of readily available resources. Review the
material in the planned giving church kit. Perhaps attend workshops
on personal finance and estate planning, fund-raising techniques
and the basics about charitable bequests, charitable remainder trusts,
pooled income funds, gift annuities, life insurance, retirement
plan benefits, and retained life estate of a personal residence
or farm.
5. Inform and re-inform lay and professional leadership of
the benefits of Planned Giving.
Most people have heard about planned giving in one way or another,
but you would be wise to begin with an assumption that they don't
see the whole picture, that they do not fully understand it or know
how it can make a difference in their lives and in the life of your
congregation. Consider making a presentation to your governing Board
and other key leaders explaining the "win-win" opportunities a Planned
Giving program creates.
Tell them about the UUA Pooled Income Gift Fund and our Charitable
Gift Annuity program. These gift arrangements make payments to one
or two people for the rest of their lives. Upon their deaths a significant
gift comes to your congregation and/or the Association as a whole.
Assets are invested in a socially responsible manner, and held in
trust at State Street Bank in Boston, Mass.
Repeat this exercise periodically. Follow up with handouts and
a personal visit to ask for the leadership to make a commitment
to provide a gift in their Wills or some other kind of planned gift.
When your professional and lay leaders know what Planned Giving
has to offer, they can both apply it in their giving and help identify
others who might enjoy giving to the future of Unitarian Universalism.
6. Adopt new guidelines (or revise existing ones) for a congregational
endowment fund.
If your congregation has no endowment fund or no guidelines for
an existing fund, we suggest you create guidelines now. The UUA
planned giving office has information to help you get organized
to do this, including sample language to adopt in your governing
by laws.
Having guidelines in place will help you deal with an unexpected
bequest, and it will help to assure people that you will act responsibly
in regard to estate gifts. This assurance will lead to more contributions.
Invite people who are likely to contribute to the endowment to get
involved in a review of its guidelines and/or the work of the planned
giving committee.
The enabling document for your endowment fund should describe how
the congregation would make decisions about investments, spending
and re-investing earnings, and under what conditions the corpus
may be invaded. You may want to develop gift acceptance guidelines,
too.
An endowment fund can help to ensure your congregation's long-term
financial security and extend your mission and outreach in the community.
Some congregations set up several permanent funds, and give each
a specific purpose, such as maintaining the building, funding a
homeless shelter, and the classic "don't spend the principal" endowment
fund.
7. Understand what motivates people to make Planned Gifts.
Of the donors surveyed by the NCPG, 94% made their planned gifts
because they sincerely believe in and want to support a worthy cause.
Seventy-nine percent said that knowing the ultimate use of the gift
was important, and 54% said estate and financial planning issues
motivated them to complete a planned gift. Only 43% cited avoidance
of taxes as a reason for their gift.
Your congregation's mission or "vision" statement should be compelling.
How contributions will actually be used should be common and public
knowledge. If gifts are going to your endowment fund, prospective
donors will want to know how their gifts will be invested and managed,
how endowment earnings will be allocated for spending or re-investment,
and under what circumstances, if ever, the principal might be invaded.
Tax savings are seldom the primary motivating forces for charitable
contributions. In some instances, however, the tax benefits of philanthropy
allow some individuals to give more than they initially thought
possible.
8. Structure your program carefully.
Your Planned Giving program should create momentum through marketing.
Include short testimonials during Sunday services, place announcements
and gift stories in the newsletter, publicize a list of people who
already have Unitarian Universalism in their Wills, write letters,
use brochures, make a permanent legacy display in the church building.
Include people of all ages. Create opportunities to recognize and
honor your elders and their service to our UU community. The elders
will feel appreciated, and they are living history, memories, and
resources
Cultivate your planned giving prospects. Discover what they really
like about your UU community, visit them regularly, and find ways
for them to get involved. When they give, thank them and recognize
their contribution publicly. This may be particularly important
for someone who does not get out very often.
9. Identify your planned gift prospects.
Review your current membership and friends of the congregation lists.
Ask a few people who know the congregation well to look over the
list and help you identify who is likely to make a charitable bequest
of some kind.
Here's a profile of a planned gift prospect: Someone who is over
50; has met his or her family obligations, or is single; is deeply
committed to Unitarian Universalism; contributes to your congregation;
and has both the means and the inclination to make additional contributions.
Your best prospects often are people who already give generously
to your congregation. But do not overlook others. Simply because
someone gives a small amount to the canvass does not mean they have
nothing more to give. People on limited incomes would love to be
asked to make a bequest or sign over a life insurance policy they
no longer need. Every adult should be encouraged to remember your
society, fellowship, or church in their Wills.
10. Create a Bequest Recognition Society.
Every UU society, fellowship, and congregation should encourage
and promote gifts by Will. Find out who in your congregation already
has a charitable bequest for the church in their Wills. Invite them
to tell you why they have done this, and ask them to be charter
members of your congregation's Bequest Society-a society organized
to recognize and thank generous members who have arranged a charitable
estate gift that will benefit your congregation. Explain that their
good deed is the best way to convince others to do the same.
Ask the charter members if they would be willing to speak with others
about why they have provided for the future of the congregation.
Would they write something for the church newsletter? Do they know
others who should be invited to join?
Give the Society a catchy, meaningful name. Encourage participation
and imagination in naming it. Ask the artists in your congregation
to contribute, by writing poems, songs, painting, drawing, whatever
they can to make the bequest society as inviting as possible. Have
fun with it.
Create a brochure about the Society and include a mission statement
that will inspire others to join. Include suggested language for
designating a gift to your congregation. Offer anonymous membership,
but do ask people to share some information about their gift plan.
Publish a list of the Society members; or start a permanent recognition
wall or banner.
Identify a group of people who are likely to be interested in providing
support after they are gone. Send them formal invitations to join
the Society; enclose a reply card for them to return to request
more information or to signal that they do have a bequest in place.
Follow up with a phone call and a personal visit. Enlist the help
of others, including Society members and people under 30.
Offer special events and programs for Society members, and create
opportunities to say thank you and keep them involved. Ask the religious
education program to have the children write notes of thanks, or
interview Society members and write biographies of their lives.
Develop a list of reputable and reasonably priced legal and financial
planning services available to your community. It is best for a
congregation not to offer free or reduced legal services to its
members, nor to ask a member to do so. A contested estate could
come back to haunt you and cost a great deal of time and money.
Ask the professionals in your congregation to help prepare review
a list of legal and financial resources; their names may be included,
and what fees they arrange with their clients is up to their own
discretion and professional ethics.
11. Prepare to receive, record and administer gifts.
Your program also needs to be able to process and administer gifts.
Obtain the services of a broker to receive gifts of securities,
mutual funds and the like; some might do this for a reduced fee
or gratis. Work out an accounting system for gifts to the endowment.
Make sure all contributions are properly acknowledged. Consider
arranging for Board members to thank donors.
12. Hold an Estate Planning seminar.
On your own, or together with other community groups and religious
organizations, hold an Estate Planning seminar, open to the public.
This could be a series of discussions; you might want to have a
question and answer session with an informed panel. However you
do it, you will provide a welcome service, and you will learn who
is engaged in planning the ultimate use of their life estate.
Some people don't realize what comprises their accumulated life
estate, and what is taxable and what is not. A taxable estate generally
includes: residences and other real estate, securities and other
investments, undistributed retirement plan benefits, bank accounts,
business interests, airplanes, yachts, automobiles, recreational
vehicles, furniture, art and other tangible personal property, as
well as cash. Professional gift and estate planning counsel is recommended
for anyone whose estate exceeds $675,000, when federal estate taxes
kick in and may significantly erode someone's legacy. The threshold
is climbing and will reach $1 million in 2006.
Seminar topics should include issues people face in planning for
their senior years, such as the basics about probate and why everyone
needs a Will, what they need to know before they sit down with an
attorney to draft their Will, federal and state estate taxes, revocable
trusts, living wills, Medicaid, Medicare, Social Security benefits,
extended health care, powers of attorney.
Invite professionals to serve on a panel or to make presentations.
Tell them that they are invited to provide their expertise in service
to the community, and NOT to solicit business. Try to find an attorney
who specializes in estate planning, an insurance agent, a planned
giving officer from nearby University or public charity, and a representative
of your religious community and its planned giving program.
13. Ask for the gift. Ask for the gift. Ask for the gift.
Each congregation's resources for a Planned Giving program will
be different; for instance a congregation of 500 members has different
resources than does a congregation of 55. Whatever your circumstances,
the most important things to do are these:
- Identify at least 10 people you can visit and ask for a planned
gift this year.
- Identify 10 more people you will visit and ask for a planned gift
this year or next.
- Encourage everyone to complete a legal Will and include a gift
to our UU future
You may want to create a brochure outlining the purposes of your
endowment fund and highlighting ways to support it. The UUA planned
giving office has a selection of brochures that other congregations
have created. Just remember, people give to people and to something
they care about deeply. A brochure alone, no matter how well conceived,
will not bring in gifts. You will. It is always good practice to
make your own contribution before you ask someone else to give.
Whatever written materials, bulletin boards, announcements during
Sunday services you do manage to pull off, don't forget to ask for
the gift. If you ask, you will receive.
14. Say thank you!
Always say thank you. When someone joins the Bequest Society, thank
him or her for their generosity and foresight. Ask members of the
governing Board to say thank you, too.
15. Honor, recognize, and involve donors in the life of your
congregation.
Treat your Bequest Society members and other planned gift donors
well, and many of them will give again. Someone who has provided
a bequest to the church is deeply committed and may be moved to
do something special during their lifetime. Similarly, someone who
can afford to make a $5,000 contribution to the UUA Pooled Income
Gift Fund may one day provide a considerably larger charitable bequest.
An occasional note or visit, a community service project, an annual
dinner or monthly forum, a trip to the art museum, botanical garden
or the symphony, and a simple telephone call are all ways to express
appreciation to those who care enough about the congregation to
give to its future. Some of your planned gift donors may be housebound
or otherwise restricted from social activities; they will particularly
enjoy opportunities to be with others.
16. Avoid the temptation to over-emphasize the technical or
to provide legal counsel.
It's easy to get lost in the technicalities of planned giving (tax
deductions, tax rulings, and complex gift vehicles). Your most successful
efforts will be "people-centered" and "value-centered." Your planned
giving program exists to help individual Unitarian Universalists
give to something in which they find great value, Unitarian Universalism.
Your purpose is to make it possible for people to fulfill a desire
to help our liberal religion, to help our values survive the centuries
and serve future generations.
When you meet with someone, when you write a letter or something
for the church newsletter, or when you create a brochure emphasize
the human story, the spiritual satisfaction giving has to offer.
When we commit financial resources to our religious values, great
things radiate, inward and outward, strengthening our connection
to the community we cherish.
One caution: In your enthusiasm to assist individuals in completing
their gift plans, beware of becoming a personal advisor, offering
legal or financial advice. It is inappropriate, even unethical,
for a fund-raiser to exercise undue influence or direct a donor's
personal affairs. It is always prudent to be mindful that your role
is as a fund-raiser securing contributions for the church. That
doesn't mean you are mercenary or that you cannot be of some help,
but it does meant that you need to guard the boundary between providing
information and becoming a donor's personal representative or certified
financial planner nor attorney. Indeed, it would be a conflict of
interest if you were.
To help people to find a qualified professional who can review
their gift plans and advise them on their options, develop a list
of reputable professionals in your community and make it readily
available. Always encourage donors to seek independent qualified
counsel before they commit to a gift plan of any significance or
complexity.
The UUA planned giving staff can guide you through general rules
on the tax considerations and some of the technical aspects of gift
and estate planning. This is by no means a replacement for individual
counsel.
17. Cultivate and consult financial and estate planning professionals.
Attorneys, real estate brokers, bankers, accountants, stock brokers,
financial planners, and life insurance agents who are members of
your congregation can be a tremendous help to your program. These
people can give you referrals to excellent professional advice (helping
you to create a list of local attorneys your members might contact
for estate planning and wills preparation, for instance), present
workshops, and join the team to ask for gifts.
Most people realize that estate planning is a vital part of preparing
for the future. However, few people understand that charitable gift
planning offers significant benefits to an individual estate plan.
Planned gifts, for example, often reduce the amount subject to estate
taxes, preserving more to go to heirs. You can inform individuals
and professional planners on ways to improve an estate plan by including
charitable gifts.
18. Use outside consultants periodically.
Professionals who are not members of your congregation may be able
to offer new ideas and valuable insights about your Planned Giving
program. Don't forget to consult other church groups in your community;
they are asking for bequests and other planned gifts, too.
Avoid the temptation to use professionals within your congregation
as legal counsel to donors or to your planned giving program. Donors
need independent counsel to look after their interests. Professionals
who are members of your congregation will do a great service if
they join the planned giving committee and help the church to obtain
its own independent counsel at modest fees, if not for free.
19. Evaluate and revise your program frequently.
Every 3-5 years, review the work of your committee. Review policies
and procedures. Study the gifts you have received, looking for patterns
that might guide your work for the next few years. Contact the UUA
Office of Planned Giving for a telephone consultation on what to
consider in your evaluation, what new trends or gift arrangements
are recommended, and what services (print material, gift analysis,
tips) the UUA offers to our member congregations.
20. Develop a working partnership with the charitable gift and
estate planning staff at the Unitarian Universalist Association:
UUA Charitable Gift and Estate Planning Toll free: 1-888-792-5885
Development Department Fax: (617) 725-4979
E-mail: giftplans@uua.org
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