What Is Planned Giving?

Volunteers "renest" an osprey on Lake Norman by building a human pyramid on a power boat! Photo by Michele Miller Houck.

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It is up to us to live up to the legacy that was left for us, and to leave a legacy that is worthy of our children and of future generations. – Christine Gregoire

How can I leave a legacy?

Planned giving, sometimes referred to as gift planning, may be defined as a method of supporting non-profits and charities that enables philanthropic individuals or donors to make larger gifts than they could make from their income. While some planned gifts provide a life-long income to the donor, others use estate and tax planning techniques to provide for charity and other heirs in ways that maximize the gift and/or minimize its impact on the donor's estate.

Thus, by definition, a planned gift is any major gift, made in lifetime or at death as part of a donor’s overall financial and/or estate planning.

By contrast, gifts to the annual fund or for membership dues are made from a donor’s discretionary income, and while they may be budgeted for, they are not planned.

Whether a donor uses cash, appreciated securities/stock, real estate, artwork, partnership interests, personal property, life insurance, a retirement plan, etc., the benefits of funding a planned gift can make this type of charitable giving very attractive to both donor and charity.

Learn more about your options for planned giving.
Join the Golden Eagle Society at Carolina Raptor Center.

Please contact Kris Cole, Director of Marketing & Development, at 704-875-6521 x204 for more information about planned giving at CRC.