Why leave a bequest to your community foundation?
Auckland Foundation Consultant, Joy Marslin recently updated her Will, ensuring her community's future families will be looked after.
My husband and I believe in ‘living giving’.
We enjoy the sense of contribution – but, while it helps that we receive some financial benefit in tax credits, our donations are limited to what we can afford today.
So we agreed it was time to update our Wills. We spent some time considering how our estate should be distributed and, like many, our default position had been to leave everything to our family.
But we don’t have children and our extended family are financially independent.
Our lives are fulfilled through our families, our work and our communities, and we wanted to recognise this by passing it forward. And through my involvement with Auckland Foundation as Executive Chair, I see the value and impact an endowment with our community foundation could make.
We decided to make Auckland Foundation our primary beneficiary.
Making a bequest is simple, and Auckland Foundation’s framework makes it easy, effective and efficient.
We have no worries about how the funds are managed or governed, and we have much more clarity about what is important to us and the impact we can make.
While leaving a gift has no impact on us, it will make a tangible difference to areas important to us in perpetuity.
My recommendation – do it! Even a small portion of your estate can make a difference to your community, and your family will be proud of your generosity.
Joy Marslin
Estate planning and bequests.
Auckland Foundation offers a number of options for clients who wish to leave a lasting legacy through a gift in their Will.
Some people aren’t able to give during their lifetime, because of carefully balanced priorities and demands on their income.
But in their Will, they can. It's a relatively simple act that anyone can do, and is one of the easiest ways to give.
We can work with you and your client to ensure that their philanthropic wishes are fulfilled, and their legacy is secured in a simple and efficient, yet meaningful manner.
Who can make a bequest?
Anyone with a desire to create a positive impact for Tāmaki Makaurau's communities today and for generations to come can make a bequest to Auckland Foundation.
Clients can establish a Fund in their or a loved one's name, or leave a gift to our Auckland Fund; an endowment fund set up for the long-term benefit of Tāmaki Makaurau.
For clients who already hold a fund with Auckland Foundation, they can choose to leave a gift to:
- their existing named Fund; and/or
- another existing Auckland Foundation named Fund; and/or
- to the Auckland Fund.
What type of gifts can be made?
Donors can leave a specific gift, be that money, property, or other assets and investments.
Some people choose to leave their whole estate to their community, while others may choose a specified portion.
Full details of the options available to anyone thinking about leaving a gift to Auckland Foundation can be found in our Bequest Pack. This also includes sample clauses that can be used when writing your client's Will.
Case Study 01
Retired Aucklander Malcolm Wade has always had philanthropic leanings.
As well as his community involvement, he’s donated to charities throughout his working life.
So when it came to think about his Will, and with no dependants, he naturally considered leaving some of his estate to charity.
A chance listening to the radio led to him hearing about Auckland Foundation and the community foundation model – and the idea of creating a fund in perpetuity strongly resonated with his wishes to leave a long-lasting legacy.
After talking to the team and knowing that his fund would be efficiently and professionally managed, he decided to create the Malcolm Wade Fund under Auckland Foundation.
Malcolm's goal in the short term is to add enough capital to the fund so he can start granting in his lifetime.
Longer term, the Malcolm Wade Fund will provide a reliable and sustainable source of income for his chosen beneficiary charities – helping Malcolm to achieve his desire to make a long-lasting difference to those causes.
Malcolm has this advice for anyone thinking about setting up a fund and leaving a bequest to Auckland Foundation:
"Do it! I found the process very simple and straightforward, and my contact with the Foundation to be personal yet efficient. The team's professionalism has left me feeling reassured and confident that my bequest will be managed effectively."
