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Charitable Bequest

A charitable bequest is one of the easiest and most flexible ways that you can leave a gift to Western Seminary that will make a lasting impact.

Charitable Bequest
Property
Donor's Family
Charity image

Benefits of a bequest

  • Receive an estate tax charitable deduction
  • Reduce the burden of taxes on your family
  • Leave a lasting legacy to charity

How a bequest works

A bequest is one of the easiest gifts to make. With the help of an attorney, you can include language in your will or trust specifying a gift to be made to family, friends or Western Seminary as part of your estate plan, or you can make a bequest using a beneficiary designation form.

Here are some of the ways to leave a bequest to Western Seminary

A bequest may be made in several ways

  • Percentage bequest - make a gift of a percentage of your estate
  • Specific bequest - make a gift of a specific dollar amount or a specific asset
  • Residual bequest - make a gift from the balance or residue of your estate
Click here to review sample bequest language.

Contact us

If you have any questions about leaving a bequest to us, please contact us. We would be happy to assist you. If you have been so generous as to include a bequest to Western Seminary as part of your estate plan, please take the time to let us know. We would like to recognize you and your family for your generosity.

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Example Stories

Bequests

Joe and Anna have been faithful supporters of our organization. They believe it is important to help further our mission.

Joe: Anna and I believe Western Seminary is truly helping others. It is important to us to partner with them to make a difference. That is why we have made several gifts over the years.

Anna: But we wanted to do more than just make gifts. Joe and I have been careful and have been able to save enough for retirement. We plan to be generous with family, but we also have the ability to be generous with charity.

Joe: After talking it over, we decided to leave a bequest in each of our wills. Our attorney took the simple language available from the organization and included a nice bequest in my will as well as Anna's. We are delighted that we will be helping others through these gifts.

A Bequest to Further Good Work

Nancy and David were dedicated volunteers. Over the years, they had seen many individuals helped by the good work of their favorite charity. They wanted to create a legacy to provide future resources to continue its mission.

David: The work of our favorite charity was important to us. We regularly made cash gifts but wanted to do more. We received the charity's newsletter and noted that we could make a gift from our estate and join the legacy society. We saw a picture of smiling people just like us, and we wanted to be part of that group.

Nancy: We met with our lawyer to revise our wills, and we each included a provision for a bequest to charity. Our lawyer put language in the will that allows a percentage of our estate to go to our favorite charity. This was easy to arrange and permits us to still use our assets during our lives if we need them.

David: We told their gift planner about our decision and were excited when we were invited to a special event honoring us. We will continue to make gifts during our lives, but it feels good to know that our support will help in the future.

A Bequest to Save Taxes

Thomas was a widower who had a great love for our organization. As an individual who had directly benefited from our work, Thomas wanted to thank us with a gift from his estate.

Thomas told his attorney that he wished to leave a bequest to us as part of his estate plan. Thomas's estate included some stocks, real estate and an IRA. Thomas's attorney recommended that he give the appreciated stock and real estate to his children and leave his IRA to charity.

Thomas: My attorney told me that if I gave the stock and real estate to my children, these assets would receive a step up in basis at my death. My children could then sell them without paying tax. However, if I gave my children my IRA, the IRA would be subject to estate and income tax. After paying all of these taxes, very little would be left for my family. By giving the IRA to this organization, I could make a nice gift and avoid any additional tax for my estate and children.

Thomas contacted his IRA custodian to obtain a beneficiary designation form. He filled out the form and designated our organization as the 100% recipient of his IRA account. Thomas's attorney then specified in Thomas's will the bequest of his other assets to his children.

Thomas: I was so impressed with my attorney's advice that I named him executor of my will!

Thomas called and notified us of his bequest. He was pleased that because our organization was a tax exempt institution, it would receive the full amount of the IRA value when he passed away, creating a legacy for the future.

Is a charitable bequest right for you?

We have resources that will help you learn more about bequests. Click here to review sample bequest language. You will see how easy it is to include a bequest in your will or trust.

You might find it helpful to print this page and the bequest language. Please feel free to give this information to your attorney. If he or she has any questions, please contact us.

*Please note: The names and image above are representative of a typical donor and may or may not be an actual donor to our organization. Since your benefits may be different, you may want to click here to view an example of your benefits.

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