Help select a vehicle to celebrate and support a family’s culture of philanthropy.
For many donors, the importance of a multi-generational family philanthropy plan is high on the radar, especially in the wake of 2020’s eye-opening events highlighting the importance of rallying around important social and community priorities.
How do you know when a client’s family is a strong candidate for more formal philanthropic planning, beyond simply budgeting for annual gifts to charity? Watch for these candidates among your client base:
A comprehensive philanthropy plan often starts with establishing a structure, typically in the form of either a donor-advised fund or a private foundation. Although there are benefits and advantages of each, the donor-advised fund option has become increasingly popular because of its favorable tax treatment, simplicity of administration, and flexibility. By contrast, private foundations typically appeal to families who want to engage directly in charitable activities, hire family members as employees to operate the foundation’s day-to-day business and receive salaries, run their own grant programs to support individuals, and grant directly to international efforts.
A common myth, however, is that families who wish to collaborate across generations on grant making and impact are better suited for a private foundation. The reality is that families can work together to determine and execute a philanthropic vision, mission, and grants from the family’s charitable structures, whether a donor-advised fund, private foundation, or both. When a family establishes a donor-advised fund at the community foundation, for example, the community foundation’s professional staff can support the family in areas of expertise well beyond the administrative duties that are built into donor-advised fund services provided through the community foundation.
Here are examples of comments you may hear from families who may be excellent candidates to work with the community foundation alongside you as their key advisor:
If you’re hearing these and similar expressions of interest from your clients, please don’t hesitate to reach out. The team at the community foundation is your partner to serve your clients’ philanthropic endeavors.