Greetings from CFGC!
As the end of the year draws closer, we’re looking forward to working with so many of you to structure and fulfill your clients’ charitable giving goals for 2024. The community foundation is honored to be your very first call whenever the topic of charitable giving pops up during client conversations. What’s really exciting is to hear from attorneys, CPAs, and financial advisors that you’re no longer waiting for the topic to pop up because you’re bringing it up yourself!
Here’s what’s trending this month:
–Our hearts go out to the millions of people affected by Hurricane Helene. We here in Grundy County are all too familiar with disasters - both natural and manmade. Our peer community foundations in the affected areas and across the country are making it as easy as possible to donate to relief efforts. Please contact us to learn more about how you and your clients can donate quickly and effectively.
–We’re excited about the first ever DAF Day on October 10th, a national campaign to encourage giving from donor-advised funds. The community foundation is honored to work with so many individuals, families, and businesses to establish donor-advised funds to organize their giving. A donor-advised fund can be a key component of a client’s overall philanthropy plan. Other components often include field-of-interest funds and designated funds, as well as bequests in your clients’ estate plans through a will, trust, or IRA beneficiary designation.
–Make a note on your calendar of other key dates that may be relevant to your clients, including National Estate Planning Awareness Week the week of October 21 and National Philanthropy Day on November 14. These well-publicized events make it even easier to bring up charitable planning during client conversations.
This month, we’re diving deeper into three key topics:
Week 1 - Election year dynamics make it even harder to predict potential changes to tax laws that could impact your clients’ charitable giving plans. The community foundation offers high-level observations about the major areas of tax policy that could be impacted by election results. As always, we’re committed to keeping you up to date, even in the absence of a crystal ball.
Week 2 - Event season is ramping up, and that means your clients may have questions about the tax deductibility of buying tickets or purchasing a table. Indeed, supporting a charity event is not as straightforward as you might think. The community foundation is happy to help your clients support their favorite causes without running afoul of IRS rules.
Week 3 - Clients expect you to ask them about charitable giving. “Oh I do that,” you might say to yourself. But don’t be so sure! Clients may have a different impression. The community foundation offers simple tips and techniques to help you meet clients’ expectations for including philanthropy in the conversation.
Thank you so much for the opportunity to work with you and your charitable clients. It is our honor and pleasure! We look forward to your emails and phone calls as 2024 winds down, and we’re excited about continuing our conversations in 2025 and beyond.
Julianne Buck, CAP®
Executive Director
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