Leave A Legacy
Of Love And Faith
Include the Church in Your Will or Trust
At its simplest level, having a will or trust is important to ensure your assets and possessions end up where you want them. A thoughtful bequest can protect your family, maintain your current lifestyle, allow you to retain control of your assets, and possibly even receive estate tax savings. And, equally important, having an intentional plan empowers you to define your legacy.
Including one of the Church’s ministries in your will or trust is a beautiful way to ensure your love never ends. Whether through a bequest, beneficiary designation, charitable remainder trust, or other giving option, all planned gifts will help ensure that our Church’s ministries remain strong and viable for the next generation.
The Catholic Foundation of West Michigan is a trusted partner to help facilitate legacy arrangements and honor the donor’s intent. As you consider your options, know that the Foundation staff would be honored to guide you through the process of creating your customized legacy plan.
"One generation passes and another comes,
but the world forever stays."
Ecclesiastes 1:4
Catholic Estate Planning
In planning our estates, we are called to be grateful for the material wealth we have accumulated and to be responsible with a plan for the disposition of that wealth at our death. In addition to the responsibility to provide for our loved ones, we, as Catholics, also have a responsibility to build a solid faith foundation for future generations.
Planned gifts from your estate can be an expression of faith, create a lasting legacy of giving to the Church, and other significant tax benefits. Multiple vehicles exist to make charitable gifts from your estate.
- Bequest – Designate a specific dollar amount of percentage of your estate as a restricted or unrestricted gift to a Catholic parish, school, or ministry. A bequest gift can include cash, real estate, stocks and bonds, business interests, and personal property.
- Beneficiary Designations – Name a charity as beneficiary of your trust, life insurance policy, or retirement plan asset. Unlike other beneficiaries, who would have to pay income taxes on these funds, your charitable beneficiary receives the funds tax-free.
- Charitable Remainder Trust – Gift is made to a type of trust whereby the beneficiary receives a payout for life or a term of years. Donor receives an income tax deduction for part of the gift’s value. Charity receives trust remainder.
- Life Estate – You retain the right to live in the home or use real estate for life while making a gift to charity of the remainder interest.
Sample Designation Language:
I/we hereby give, devise, and bequeath (dollars/percent) of my/our (IRA, life insurance policy, etc.), determined as of the date of my death, to (parish, school, or ministry) as a gift to their permanently-endowed fund at the Catholic Foundation of West Michigan, a nonprofit organization located at 360 Division Ave, Grand Rapids, MI, 49503, Federal Tax ID # 38-3298981.