Planned Giving: Stewardship For the Future

​Planned giving is a process for making prayerful and considered choices about the wise use and ultimate disposition of your resources.  Planned giving usually involves establishing an estate plan to provide for family members while remembering Immanuel Church-on-the-Hill and other charities near to your heart.  An estate plan may be one of the most important acts of stewardship that you will undertake as a Christian. 
A number of giving strategies can enable you to provide more for your heirs while also enjoying tax advantages.  Planned gifts are generally made through:

• A Bequest in a Will;
• A Life Income Gift; or
• Gifts of Special Assets (e.g., real estate, stocks, life insurance, retirement accounts)

Your legal and financial advisors can help you assess which tools best meet your personal goals and circumstances.  This webpage offers an overview of planned giving tools that you can explore further with your advisors.

Bequest in a Will
A bequest in a will can take the form of a set amount of money, a percentage of an estate, a specific asset, a trust, or the naming of the church as a contingent beneficiary.  Sample language for including Immanuel in your will might be:
 “I give, devise and bequeath (state amount, asset, or percentage of the estate) to Immanuel Church-on-the-Hill, 3606 Seminary Road, Alexandria, Virginia  22304, to be used (describe use) or as the Immanuel Vestry deems appropriate.”

Gifts of Special Assets
Real estate, appreciated securities, even tangible personal property such as jewelry, coins, works of art, automobiles may be given to the church. You are responsible for setting the appraised value of tangible personal property gifts, and an independent appraisal is required on such gifts valued at greater than $5,000.  Gifts of appreciated real estate or securities allow you to avoid capital gains taxes if transferred to the church prior to selling it.  However, if the securities or real estate have decreased in value, you should sell them before making the gift, so that you can take advantage of the capital loss and tax deduction.  Naming Immanuel Church-on-the-Hill as a beneficiary of life insurance policies or retirement accounts is yet another type of special asset that can be given to the church.

Consider these potential gifts prayerfully and seek the advice of your legal or financial counsel to learn if they might be appropriate for you.

The Zabriskie Society was created in 2000 to recognize parishioners, current and past, who have made the Immanuel Church-on-the-Hill or one of its trust funds (see below) a beneficiary of their personal planned giving program.  The Society is named to honor the memory of Dean Alexander Zabriskie, founder of the parish and former Dean of Virginia Theological Seminary.  Since the Society was founded, the church has received over $500,000 in planned gifts and bequests.  These donations have significantly strengthened the financial future of the church. 
                                         Join us! 

For a brief period we are given time, talent and resources. What we do with these gifts defines the character of our life and the depth of our spiritual understanding.

Life Income Gifts
Life income gifts provide you or your designated beneficiary income for life in exchange for your gift.  The three most common types of life income gifts are a pooled income fund, a charitable gift annuity, and a charitable remainder trust.  All of these gift tools are administered by the Episcopal Church Foundation, which you can contact at 800-697-2858 or www.EpiscopalFoundation.org 

• Pooled income funds: gifts of a minimum of $2,500 are pooled with other gifts, and invested in a professionally managed investment portfolio.  The donor or designated beneficiary receives a guaranteed income for life.  The income amount depends on the investment fund’s rate of return.  An immediate federal income tax deduction, and possible capital gains and estate tax reductions are also benefits.
• Charitable gift annuities: the benefits are similar to pooled income funds with the following differences: the minimum gift is $5,000; the income for life is guaranteed at a fixed amount; a portion of the gift is tax deductible; and a portion of the income received is tax exempt. 
• Charitable remainder trust: these trusts are available to donors using $100,000 or more in assets such as cash, real estate, stocks, bonds or mutual funds.  Like a pooled income fund, a charitable remainder trust provides income for life based on performance of the portfolio, an income tax deduction, relief from capital gains tax if funded through appreciated property, and a possible reduction in estate taxes.

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Funds For the Future

The Immanuel Church-on-the-Hill Vestry established a handful of funds to be used to sustain Immanuel’s worship, mission and ministries now and for future generations.  These funds serve as the repositories of planned or designated gifts made by parishioners who want to use their resources to ensure Immanuel Church-on-the-Hill remains a vital part of the community for many generations.

Endowment Trust Fund
The Endowment Trust Fund serves as the repository of all undesignated or general-purpose bequests made to endow Immanuel Church-on-the-Hill by providing long-term income to support the parish and its ministries.  Only the annual appreciation and interest earned by the Fund is available for disbursement according to the Vestry’s direction.

Memorial Garden Trust Fund
This fund serves as a repository for gifts designated to support improvements to and maintenance of the Memorial Garden where the ashes of many deceased parishioners rest.

Patrick Henry Callaway Memorial Fund
This fund is named in memory of Patrick Callaway, one of our parish founders who remained active in Immanuel Church-on-the-Hill until his death in 1995.  His will provided a non-designated bequest to the parish of over $100,000.  The Callaway Fund serves as the repository of non-endowment gifts that either are designated for a particular purpose or are undesignated gifts.  The Vestry is able to disburse the entire amount of non-endowment gifts received.  Unless specifically designated, these funds may be used for capital improvements, maintenance, and repair of the primary assets of the parish.