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Bequests, Major Gifts and Planned Giving Fund the Future of the West Sound Wildlife Shelter Through Planned Gifts and Bequests What is Planned Giving? Planned giving makes your charitable dollar go farther. To maximize your charitable giving, as well as fulfill your own financial needs, you can fund the on-going activities of the West Sound Wildlife Shelter through your planned giving and estate planning. Making a gift to the West Sound Wildlife Shelter through your estate is one of the most effective ways to ensure that our Shelter continues to save the lives of wild animals now and far into the future. Planned gifts include bequests through your will, gifts that provide income to you and others for life, gifts of life insurance, charitable lead trusts, and gifts of retirement plans. These gifts can be made in cash, stocks, bonds, personal property, life insurance and real estate.
A bequest in your will or estate to the West Sound Wildlife Shelter is a very personal and important way to ensure the gift of life for orphaned, sick and injured wild animals that live right here in your local environment. Before including the Shelter in your planned giving, be sure to explore your options so that you and the animals receive the full benefit of any gift. We thank you for including the work of the West Sound Wildlife Shelter in your will or estate. For more information on becoming a member of our Blue Heron Club, click here. Some Planned Giving Options Include: - Bequests through your will or living trust: Help the animals in any way you designate. - Life Insurance Gifts: Make West Sound Wildlife Shelter the owner and beneficiary of a life insurance policy. - Gifts of Retirement Assets: Donate your interest in an IRA or other qualified savings plan. - Gifts of Real Estate: Donate a residence, vacation home, acreage, farm or unimproved parcel of land. - Charitable Gift Annuities: Provides numerous tax benefits to you, and you are guaranteed income for the rest of your life. - Charitable Remainder Trusts: Numerous benefits and a gift that provides income. More Information/Personal Consultation If you are considering a gift or would like more information, please use this confidential form to submit your request or e-mail our Executive Director, Kol Medina, at kol@westsoundwildlife.org. To contact Kol by phone, please call 206-855-9057. Let us know if you'd like a house call! The West Sound Wildlife Shelter can help you in your planned giving and bequests, but we strongly encourage you to consult with an attorney or other expert of your choice. (back to top) SIMPLE WAYS TO GIVE THROUGH WILLS AND TRUSTS: A gift to the West Sound Wildlife Shelter through your will or living trust is a powerful statement of your support for the Shelter's mission: to rescue, treat and rehabilitate injured and abandoned wildlife. It may also provide a reduction in your taxable estate. The most common planned gift is a bequest through your will or living trust. You can arrange a gift of a specific amount, a percentage of your estate, or even all or part of the residuary of your estate. You may: - Leave a specific dollar amount. - Designate that a percentage of your estate be given through your will or living trust. - Give only the remainder, or residue, of your estate -- that which remains after bequests to loved ones have been made. - Provide for a gift of specific property -- real estate, stocks or other items. An individual may designate that a bequest be used for the general purposes of the West Sound Wildlife Shelter or go to support a specific program. The following is a suggested form for such a bequest: "I give and bequeath to the West Sound Wildlife Shelter, a not-for-profit corporation, with principal offices presently located at 7501 NE Dolphin Drive, Bainbridge Island, WA 98110, (206.855.9057) the sum of $______, to be used for the accomplishment of its general purposes (or for a specific purpose, as indicated)." Federal Tax ID #91-1481441. Contact Us (back to top) LIFE INSURANCE GIFTS Life insurance policies are an easy and often overlooked way to make a meaningful charitable gift. There are a number of ways to support the Shelter's many programs with an insurance-related gift: Beneficiary designation: It is relatively simple to make a change to the beneficiary/beneficiaries of your insurance policy without changing your will or other aspects of your estate plan. Just ask your insurance company for a form that will allow you to make the West Sound Wildlife Shelter a beneficiary of your insurance policy. Gift of a paid-up policy: Do you have a policy that has outlived its intended purpose? The ownership of such policies can be transferred to the West Sound Wildlife Shelter; the Shelter would then surrender the policy for its cash value. You receive an immediate income tax deduction for the gift of the policy up to the cash basis, or what you paid for it. Making the West Sound Wildlife Shelter the owner and beneficiary: You can take out a policy and make the Shelter the owner and beneficiary of the policy. Premium payments can be made by you directly to the insurance company or indirectly by way of an annual donation that you give to the West Sound Wildlife Shelter and the Shelter uses to pay your premiums. Whichever way the premiums are paid, you can take an income tax deduction. The information that should be included about the West Sound Wildlife Shelter is as follows: West Sound Wildlife Shelter 7501 NE Dolphin Drive Bainbridge Island, WA 98110 206-855-9057 Federal Tax ID #91-1481441 Contact Us (back to top) GIFTS OF RETIREMENT ASSETS Retirement assets are one of the most beneficial gifts you can give to the West Sound Wildlife Shelter. Contributions that have been made over the years to an IRA or other qualified plan have been growing tax-free within the plan. If left to an individual, these funds may be subject to both estate tax and income tax, which greatly reduces the value of the asset. If left to a charity, such taxes are usually avoided. Retirement plan assets are among the best assets to use for charitable gifts. You can create a legacy by naming the West Sound Wildlife Shelter as beneficiary or contingent beneficiary of an IRA, 401 (k), 403 (b), Keogh account, or other qualified retirement plan. Upon your death, all or a portion of the unused balance in your account is transferred to the Shelter as a charitable gift. When a retirement account is left to a charity, the organization does not pay the income tax otherwise due if left to a friend or non-spouse family member. To make such a gift requires merely completing a change of beneficiary form, which may be obtained from the plan administrator. Your retirement plan's administrator can provide a beneficiary form for you to name the West Sound Wildlife Shelter as your sole or partial beneficiary. The information you'll need to include about the Shelter is as follows: The West Sound Wildlife Shelter 7501 NE Dolphin Drive Bainbridge Island, WA 98110 206-855-9057 Federal Tax ID #91-1481441 Contact Us (back to top) GIFTS OF REAL ESTATE A residence, a vacation home, acreage (even a farm), or an unimproved parcel of land may have appreciated so significantly in value that its sale by you would generate a substantial income tax burden. By making a gift of a full or partial interest in real estate to the West Sound Wildlife Shelter, you will avoid tax on the long-term capital gain and generate an income tax charitable deduction for the full fair-market value of the property. It is also possible to make a gift of your primary residence or second home while retaining an exclusive life estate so that you (and your spouse) can continue to use it for the rest of your lives while obtaining significant tax and estate planning benefits. Contact Us (back to top) CHARITABLE GIFT ANNUITIES -- Gifts That Provide Income A charitable gift annuity is a special giving arrangement in which, in return for a gift of at least $10,000 (or $20,000 for two annuitants), the Shelter provides guaranteed, fixed payments to you and/or another person for the rest of your lives. The rate of your payments is based on your age when the gift is made and will not change. A portion of your annuity payments may be tax-free, depending on the specifics of the gift. A charitable gift annuity also entitles you to a partial income tax charitable deduction and may provide capital gains and estate tax benefits. After your lifetime, the remainder of your gift will support the work of the West Sound Wildlife Shelter. A West Sound Wildlife Shelter Charitable Gift Annuity is a contract between you and the Shelter that enables you to make a gift of at least $10,000 to the West Sound Wildlife Shelter that guarantees payments to you and/or a loved one for life. The gift can be in cash or marketable securities. The amount of the annuity income depends on your age and the size of the gift. The minimum age for an annuitant is 50 years. All inquiries are held in strict confidence. Payments can be deposited directly to your bank account on a monthly, quarterly, semi-annual or annual basis. Life income gifts allow you to leave a legacy to the Shelter while still receiving an income for your life and that of a spouse or other loved one. Some of the benefits of a life income gift are: - an immediate federal and state income tax deduction for a portion of the value of your gift. - increased retirement income; - the ability to designate payments and provide life income for others, for example, your parents or children; - increased income from low-yielding stocks or bonds that may have appreciated, while reducing tax on the appreciation; and helping injured and abandoned wildlife. Contact Us (back to top) CHARITABLE REMAINDER TRUSTS To set up a trust that will ultimately benefit the West Sound Wildlife Shelter, while providing you with continuing income, you would make an irrevocable gift of $100,000 or more to establish a distinct trust fund in your name. All donors qualify for an income tax charitable deduction. If you make your gift with appreciated securities, you avoid the capital gains tax on long-term appreciation. With a charitable remainder unitrust, your payment rate is fixed at 5% or more, but the amount fluctuates based on the value of the trust each year. With a charitable remainder annuity trust, your payment amount is fixed at 5% or more and does not fluctuate through time. In both trusts, the income is taxed as ordinary income to you. But most importantly, you have established a legacy for the West Sound Wildlife Shelter. Contact Us (back to top) INFORMATION FOR ATTORNEYS, EXECUTORS & ADVISORS If you are an attorney or advisor working on a client's estate plans or if you are an executor working on an estate in probate, please contact: Kol Medina, Executive Director, at 206-855-9057 or by email at kol@westsoundwildlife.orgs suggested that the following information be included in all bequests or beneficiary designations: Name: West Sound Wildlife Shelter Principal Address: 7501 NE Dolphin Drive, Bainbridge Island, WA 98110 Telephone: (206) 855-9057 Federal Tax ID #91-1481441 The West Sound Wildlife Shelter is recognized as a 501(c)(3) charitable organization by the Internal Revenue Service. Contact Us: Our staff can prepare personalized, confidential gift examples for you. If you would like more information or would like to let us know that you have already included the West Sound Wildlife shelter in your estate plans, please contact our Executive Director, Kol Medina, at 206-855-9057 or by email at at kol@westsoundwildlife.org. We look forward to speaking with you! We encourage you to consult with your legal and financial advisors when considering a planned gift. Inquiries are held in strict confidence. |
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