At some point during your adult life, you’ve likely realized that it would be wise to put in place a will, trust, and powers of attorney, as well as undertake at least a basic level of financial planning to stay on track with retirement and other wealth-related goals for yourself and for your family. Perhaps you’re also among the many people who have thoughtfully incorporated charitable giving strategies into a comprehensive financial and estate plan.
The Winona Community Foundation is happy to work with you and your legal, tax, and wealth advisors to set up charitable giving structures and processes that align with your intentions to support favorite charities and causes. By incorporating charitable giving into your estate plan, your values and philanthropic commitments can continue beyond your lifetime. What’s more, lifetime charitable giving can be part of a strategic wealth management plan, allowing you to optimize your financial resources while supporting causes you care about.
As you consider whether the time might be right for you to formalize your charitable giving, here are three tips to consider–all of which we can help you achieve:
Give to what you know. Most people experience the greatest joy from giving to causes that are personally familiar. Personal experience makes it easier to understand how the charity is using your dollars. So, for example, if you’ve had experience with helping foster children, you are likely to understand how the organization is using your donation to support training for foster parents. Please ask our staff for insights! It’s our job to keep up with the good work of charities that are meeting local needs.
Give where you are. Even with the increasing number of community challenges across the country and the globe, sometimes the greatest needs are right here at home. We can help you identify opportunities to support local charities by gathering information about the overall need and how a particular charity addresses that need. When you give to local organizations, you are in a strong position to have confidence in your gift.
Give to the causes you love. Donations to charities that are aligned with your own passions make you feel the best and ultimately make the most difference because you’re likely to continue giving. And that feels great!
If you’ve already established a donor-advised fund or other type of fund with the Winona Community Foundation, or if you are considering getting started this year, we are here for you! The Foundation is honored to serve as your home for charitable giving.
