CommunityGiving's Bequest Language

Leaving a bequest to a fund at CommunityGiving or one of our partner community foundations is a great way to continue supporting the organizations that you care most about long after you are gone. One significant benefit of making a gift by bequest is that it allows you to continue to use the property you will leave to charity during your life. Another benefit is that you are able to leave a lasting legacy.

Types of Bequests

There are a number of ways you can make a bequest.

Specific Bequest. A specific bequest involves making a gift of a specific asset such as real estate, other property or a gift for a specific dollar amount. For example, you may wish to leave your home or $10,000 to a fund at CommunityGiving or one of our partner community foundations.

Percentage Bequest. Another kind of specific bequest involves leaving a specific percentage of your overall estate to charity. For example, you may wish to leave 10% of your estate to a fund at CommunityGiving or one of our partner community foundations.

Residual Bequest. A residual bequest is made from the balance of an estate after the will or trust has given away each of the specific bequests. A common residual bequest involves leaving a percentage of the residue of the estate to charity. For example, you may wish to leave 30% of the residue of your estate to a fund to a fund at CommunityGiving or one of our partner community foundations.

Contingent Bequest. A contingent bequest is made to charity only if the purpose of the primary bequest cannot be met. For example, you could leave specific property, such as a vacation home, to a relative, but the bequest language could provide that if the relative is not alive at the time of your death, the vacation home will go to CommunityGiving or one of our partner community foundations.

Bequest Benefits

A bequest is generally a revocable gift, which means it can be changed or modified at any time. You can choose to designate that a bequest be used for a general or specific purpose so you have the peace of mind knowing that your gift will be used as intended. Bequests are exempt from federal estate taxes. If you have a taxable estate, the estate tax charitable deduction may offset or eliminate estate taxes, resulting in a larger inheritance for your heirs.

Suggested Language for Gifts to a Fund at CommunityGiving or a Partner Foundation of CommunityGiving

In order to make a bequest, you should speak with your attorney. Your attorney can help you include a bequest in your estate plan. We have provided some basic bequest language to assist you and your attorney.

The sample language below may be used for a gift of a sum of money but may also be used for gifts of specific assets such as real estate, securities or tangible personal property. A donor may prefer to make a gift of their residuary estate or a fraction of the donor's residuary estate or trust (or retirement asset or life insurance policy) rather than a specific sum of money or specific property. In making a residuary gift, the donor will have the same opportunity in making gifts, adding to an existing fund or choosing to create a new fund as described below.

UNRESTRICTED GIFT
A gift to the Foundation under the following form may be used by the Foundation for any of its charitable purposes.

Not Endowed: I/we give the (sum/securities/description of property) to CommunityGiving, located in St. Cloud, Minnesota, for the charitable purposes of its [Name of Foundation] division.

Endowed: I/we give the (sum/securities/description of property) to CommunityGiving, located in St. Cloud, Minnesota, for the charitable purposes of its [Name of Foundation] division, to be endowed. The endowed fund shall be known as the "(Name of Donor/Family/Organization) Fund."

ADDITION TO ESTABLISHED FUND
A gift may be added to an established fund of the Foundation, such as an existing donor advised fund, a field of interest fund (e.g., Good Samaritan Fund, Women's Fund), a nonprofit agency fund, a scholarship fund, or a designated fund. A listing of funds is available at www.communitygiving.org .

I/we give the (sum/securities/description of property) to CommunityGiving, located in St. Cloud, Minnesota, for the charitable purposes of its [Name of Foundation] Foundation division, to be added to the (Name of Established) Fund.

CREATION OF A NEW FUND WITH A SPECIFIED PURPOSE
In order to create a new fund with a gift, the donor should meet with staff from CommunityGiving or the partner foundation to draw up a fund agreement. That agreement will reflect the decisions of the donors as to whether the fund should be endowed or not and what the type and purpose of the fund will be. The agreement is a simple document, usually one page in length. Because this fund agreement establishes the fund, the language for "Addition to Established Fund" can be used in the donor's estate plan or beneficiary designation.

Restricted Bequests

If you are considering a bequest but would like to ensure that your bequest will be used for a specific purpose, please let us know. We would be happy to work with you and your attorney to help you identify ways to give and meet your charitable objectives. We will also work with you and your attorney to craft language to accomplish your goals.

If you are making a restricted bequest, we recommend that your attorney include the following provision to give CommunityGiving flexibility should it no longer be possible for CommunityGiving to use your gift as you originally intended:

If, in the judgment of the Board of Directors of CommunityGiving, it shall become impossible for CommunityGiving to use this bequest to accomplish the specific purposes of this bequest, CommunityGiving may use the income and principal of this gift for such purpose or purposes as the Board determines is most closely related to the restricted purpose of my bequest.

Contact Us

Please contact us if you have any questions about how to make a bequest to a fund at CommunityGiving or one of our partner community foundations or to request any additional information that might be helpful to you and your attorney as you consider making a bequest to us.

If you have included a bequest to a fund at CommunityGiving or one of our partner community foundations in your estate plan, please contact us to let us know. We would like to thank you and recognize you for your gift.