Give a Gift of Love

Winston Churchill once said, “We make a living by what we get; we make a life by what we give.”

We as Americans seem to have this principle firmly imbedded in our collective consciousness. We have adopted “giving” as one of the things we value most as a society. This is demonstrated by the fact that each year, Americans give more than any other country.

Philanthropy has built remarkable institutions of education, has cured deadly diseases, continues to fund research dedicated to our health, and our generosity funds religious and social efforts that reach from sea to shining sea.

Giving is central to the building of strong neighborhoods and communities.

With very careful planning today, it will make it possible for all of us to do far more after we are gone than we realize. Planning today will make it possible for us to leave a legacy of love for family, loved ones and special causes.

“Deferred giving” is designating specific gifts after our death through a “Last Will and Testament.” The most frequent gifts by will include:

• A fixed bequest- the gift of a fixed dollar amount to a family member, friend or charity, such as the Panama City Rescue Mission.

• A specific percentage- Many people divide their estate by percentages, leaving a specific percentage such as 10% or 20% to be divided among a named list of their five favorite charities. Some people will include certain restricted purposes for those gifts; yet include language allowing the organization’s board to reallocate the resources if the restricted purposes are no longer appropriate.

• A gift of a specific asset- On some occasions, gifts of a parcel of real estate or a block of stock help fulfill a desired objective to give to family, friends or charitable organizations.

• Residual gift- Specific bequests are often given to family members, and the remainder is divided equally among a variety of charities.

• A gift in trust- There a re a number of appropriate ways to leave a gift in trust. For example, the appropriate trust can provide a surviving family with income for life, with the remainder going to charity after the death of the survivor. Or the process can be reversed . . .providing income to a charity for a prescribed number of years, with the remainder ultimately going to a family member.

Winston Churchill left us with an interesting perspective into the legacy of life that would bring enormous benefit to future generations. Your lawyer will be happy to discuss a plan that will meet your needs. All conversations are confidential and there is never any obligation.