Planned Giving to Support the Quilt

There are many ways you can support the Quilt both during your lifetime and through your estate plans. Some of these options are summarized below. It is a good idea, however, to consult an estate-planning professional who can evaluate your circumstances and create or update a plan that is appropriate for you.

We at The NAMES Project Foundation will be happy to discuss your planned giving options with you or guide you in selecting a qualified estate-planning advisor. For more information, contact our development department: development@aidsquilt.org or call (404) 688-5500.

Remembering The NAMES Project Foundation in Your Will

Many people have chosen to remember their loved ones lost to AIDS and to express their commitment to ending the AIDS pandemic by remembering The NAMES Project Foundation in their wills.

How can a bequest be left to The NAMES Project Foundation?

You may name The NAMES Project Foundation as the beneficiary of a percentage of your estate, of a set dollar amount, or of a particular asset. Your estate is entitled to an estate-tax deduction for the full value of your bequest to The NAMES Project Foundation. Another possibility is to name The NAMES Project Foundation as a contingent beneficiary of assets you have designated for a love one, should that person no longer be alive at the time of your death.

Please note: If you wish to benefit The NAMES Project Foundation through your will, your attorney will discuss with you the best way to realize your goal.

How is The NAMES Project Foundation designated for a bequest?

A detailed designation is preferred:
The NAMES Project Foundation , a not-for-profit tax-exempt organization incorporated by the laws of the State of California and domesticated in the State Of Georgia, having as its principal address 637 Hoke St, Atlanta, GA. 30318.

Planning Through Beneficiary Designations

Many estate assets are not transferred through your will. These include assets in your living trust, your qualified retirement plans at your death, and the proceeds from your life insurance policy. You may name The NAMES Project Foundation as a beneficiary of any of these assets or as a contingent beneficiary in the event that the loved one you named as primary beneficiary is no longer living.

Your Living Trust

Some people establish living trusts to provide for the current management of assets or for the future management of assets, should they become incapacitated.

The NAMES Project Foundation may be named as a beneficiary of your living trust. Your IRA, Keogh Plan, or Other Qualified Retirement Plan.

Naming The NAMES Project Foundation as a beneficiary of assets remaining in your qualified retirement plans after your lifetime is considered particularly wise tax planning. The reason is that retirement plans left to individuals, other than a spouse, are taxed more heavily than most other assets. However, estate taxes and income taxes are avoided if a non-profit organization, such as The NAMES Project Foundation, is named as the beneficiary. The NAMES Project Foundation generally will receive 100% of your plan assets.

Your Life Insurance Policy

Designating The NAMES Project Foundation as a life-insurance beneficiary is a simple and often used way to both support the Quilt and gain tax advantages.

• Individual Policies -
  You may irrevocably name The NAMES Project Foundation as owner and beneficiary of a long-standing life-insurance policy or you may retain ownership and merely name The NAMES Project Foundation as the beneficiary.
  If you choose to name The NAMES Project Foundation as both owner and beneficiary irrevocably, you will receive an immediate income-tax deduction for the lesser of your cost basis or the current value of the policy.
• Group Policies
  If you are employed, you may be receiving group term life insurance as an employee benefit. If so, The NAMES Project Foundation can be named as a beneficiary of either the entire policy or as the beneficiary only of the amount that exceeds $50,000.

Gifts that Pay Income

Charitable Remainder Trusts

These trusts allow you to make a gift to The NAMES Project Foundation that will enable you and/or others to enjoy enhanced income for your lifetimes(s) or a specified term of years. You choose the percentage payout you wish to receive (not less than 5%). When your trust terminates, The NAMES Project Foundation receives the remaining principal.

There are two types of charitable remainder trusts-

• Charitable remainder annuity trust
  You receive a set dollar amount each year, equal to your chosen percentage of the trust's original fair-market value.
• Charitable remainder unitrust
  Each year, you receive a variable amount, equal to your chosen percentage of the changing yearly value of the trust. Over time, a unitrust may allow some hedge against inflation.

Many types of assets can be used to fund charitable remainder trusts. These include:

• Cash
• Appreciated securities, real estate, or collectibles
• Life insurance policies you plan to sell (viaticate)
• Municipal bonds

What are the benefits to you?

Substantial tax advantages are available through the use of charitable remainder trusts-

A charitable remainder trust can sell appreciated assets that you donate, without incurring the capital gains tax or income tax that would ordinarily be due on a sale.

In other words, the full proceeds from the sale can be reinvested for your benefit. If you were to sell the assets yourself, the tax that would be payable on the sale could substantially reduce the principal available for reinvestment.

Your gift also generally entitles you to an immediate income tax deduction. For gifts of cash or of stock or real estate you have owned more than a year, your deduction is equal to a percentage of your gift's fair-market value.

The NAMES Project Foundation - AIDS Memorial Quilt
637 Hoke Street N.W. :: Atlanta, GA 30318
404/688-5500 :: 404/688-5552 f :: info@aidsquilt.org

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