National Estate Planning Awareness Week is October 19-25. Coming on the heels of August’s Make-A-Will Month, it’s a timely reminder that a thoughtful estate plan usually involves much more than a single document. And if charitable giving is important to you, making sure all the pieces work together can help ensure your generosity continues to reflect your values for years to come.
Think about the different ways your assets may eventually be distributed. Some may pass through a will or revocable trust. Others, including IRAs, retirement accounts, life insurance policies, and certain financial accounts, may pass according to beneficiary or transfer-on-death designations.
Creating the legacy you envision means thinking not only about who and what you want to support, but also how your charitable wishes will be carried out. If you’d like part of your estate to make a lasting difference through the Lenawee Community Foundation, you and your professional advisors might consider several approaches:
Name a fund at the Lenawee Community Foundation as a beneficiary of an IRA or other retirement account. You can generally designate a charitable beneficiary to receive all or a percentage of an IRA or retirement account while leaving other assets to family members or other beneficiaries. Retirement assets can be especially worthwhile to discuss with your professional advisors because of their potential tax advantages when left to a qualified charitable organization.
Leave a specific amount through your will or trust. You may choose to leave a particular dollar amount to establish or add to a fund at the Foundation. Your attorney can help incorporate the appropriate language into your estate planning documents.
Leave a percentage of your estate through your will or trust. Rather than specifying a dollar amount, you might direct a percentage of your estate to a charitable fund. Because the gift adjusts along with the value of your estate, this approach can offer flexibility as circumstances change over time.
Create a fund to support organizations or causes you love. Your estate gift could establish or add to a designated fund benefiting a favorite nonprofit or a field-of-interest fund supporting an area that has been especially meaningful to you.
Create a legacy that responds to Lenawee’s changing needs. An unrestricted gift to the Lenawee Community Foundation gives the Foundation flexibility to respond to the needs and opportunities of tomorrow, including those we cannot yet anticipate. It’s one way your generosity can continue bringing health, happiness, and hope to Lenawee County for generations to come.
These approaches don’t have to stand alone. Your charitable estate plan may include more than one asset, beneficiary designation, document, or type of fund. What matters most is that the pieces work together to reflect your wishes and the legacy you hope to leave.
National Estate Planning Awareness Week is about more than checking “make a will” off your to-do list. It’s an opportunity to look at your entire estate plan and consider whether your documents and beneficiary designations still reflect the people, causes, and community you care about most.
If charitable giving has been an important part of your life, we’d be honored to help you make it part of your legacy. Our team can work alongside your attorney, CPA, and financial advisor to explore charitable options and create a plan that carries your generosity forward, now and for generations to come.
Your legacy can tell the story of what mattered to you. We’re here to help you write the next chapter.