Ways to Give

It is not necessary to be wealthy to establish a planned gift. The Community Hospice has drawn strength from and flourished through an exceptionally broad base of support from people of all income levels.

The generous donations of community members who understand the value of these important services make it possible for The Community Hospice to serve every one of our neighbors in need, regardless of their financial circumstances.

Revocable Planned Gifts—A Flexible Way to Provide Future Support

If you want to provide a future benefit to The Community Hospice but are not completely sure what assets you may need in the future, you might consider including a bequest to the Community Hospice Inc. in your will or trust, or naming the Community Hospice Inc. as a beneficiary of your retirement plan or life insurance policy.

While providing a future benefit to The Community Hospice, you will retain maximum lifetime flexibility to respond to changing family needs and other circumstances and can adjust your beneficiary designation accordingly. The assets you designate for The Community Hospice (Foundation) will be eliminated from your taxable estate at your death, and you will also eliminate income taxes owed on designated retirement plan assets. The designated amount can be applied for the purposes you choose at The Community Hospice.

Irrevocable “Life Income” Planned Gifts — Payments for Life; Remainder to Support The Community Hospice

If you are comfortable making a current donation of assets now but would like to receive a regular payment stream for the rest of your life, a “life income” gift plan might be perfect for you.

Bequests

A gift made in your will can be an excellent way of ensuring the future of local hospice care. By including a bequest to Hospice in a new will, adding a codicil to your existing will, or naming The Community Hospice as a beneficiary of your revocable trust, you can make a meaningful contribution to the future of quality care in our community. Here is sample language you might use for a bequest:

"I give, devise and bequeath (_____ dollars/specific assets/___ percent of the residue of my estate) to The Community Hospice Inc., 295 Valley View Boulevard, Rensselaer, NY 12144, for its general purposes."

In case your legal advisor requests it, The Community Hospice Foundation’s federal tax identification number is 22-2692940.

Life Income Gifts

Life Income Gifts offer the benefits of an income stream as well as an income tax deduction in the year of the gift and capital gains tax savings when appreciated assets are used to fund the plan.

A Charitable Gift Annuity

A Charitable Gift Annuity is a simple contract with The Community Hospice Foundation to pay you and/or your designated beneficiary a fixed and predictable annuity for life. At the end of the contract term, the remainder will be distributed to The Community Hospice Foundation to be used for the purposes you designate. The plan can be funded with cash, publicly traded securities, or a combination of the two.

A Charitable Remainder Trust

A Charitable Remainder Trust provides an income stream that can be structured and customized to meet the specific needs of donors and their families. The trust can be arranged to yield a fixed, completely predictable annuity, or else a variable income with potential for growth over time. In addition to cash or securities, other special assets, such as real estate or valuable tangibles, can be used to fund the plan.

A Charitable Lead Trust

In contrast to “life income” gifts that provide you with a current payment stream and The Community Hospice Foundation with a future remainder interest, a Charitable Lead Trust (CLT) provides a current payment stream to The Community Hospice Foundation and a remainder interest to you or a designated beneficiary. A CLT can be an ideal way to meet The Community Hospice’s current needs or to satisfy an existing pledge. Income producing assets that are also appreciating in value can be especially effective for funding a charitable lead trust, since growth in the value of the assets during the term of the trust escapes the gift or estate taxes completely.

Real Estate

You can use real estate to fund a life income gift, or you can leave real estate to The Community Hospice Foundation through your will or living trust. And if you want to receive a current income tax deduction for the gift of your home, but would like to continue living there for the rest of your life, you can donate a “remainder interest” in your home and retain a “life estate” for yourself.

Retirement Plan

Retirement Plan funds can be used for both lifetime giving to The Community Hospice and to provide future support, with savings on income and/or estate taxes. A creative option for a parent can be to direct in his/her will that remaining retirement plan funds be placed in a charitable remainder trust that will provide an income stream for his/her children and, subsequently, a gift for The Community Hospice.

Life Insurance

Life Insurance no longer needed for your family's protection can be used to provide a generous future gift to Hospice by naming The Community Hospice as future beneficiary. Alternatively, if you transfer ownership of the policy irrevocably to The Community Hospice, you are entitled to a charitable income tax deduction for the approximate cash surrender value. Subsequently, gifts to The Community Hospice sufficient to cover any premiums that may be due are fully tax deductible.

Through planned giving, you can ensure that the Community Hospice will always be here in the future to help your family and members of the community for generations, in the same way that those today have been helped because of the planned giving donations from others in the past.

As with any aspect of financial and estate planning, these gift ideas should be discussed with your own legal and financial advisers. The Community Hospice Foundation staff would be pleased to confer with you and your advisers, in confidence and without any obligation, to help determine which plans might be best suited to your circumstances and objectives.

The Community Hospice Foundation does not provide legal or tax advice. We recommend that you seek your own legal and tax advice in connection with gift and planning matters. To ensure compliance with certain IRS requirements, we disclose to you that this communication (including any attachments) is not intended or written to be used, and cannot be used, for the purpose of avoiding tax-related penalties.

For more information, please contact smanny@communityhospice.org or call 518-285-8135.

Your inquiry is confidential and implies no obligation.