The Legacy Society
An Expression of Faith and Confidence
(Winter 2007 Newsletter)
The Legacy Society is an honorary association of men and women
whose planned gifts will sustain Thomas Aquinas College well into
the future. As the College continues to prosper well into its fourth
decade of existence, it is deeply grateful to all who have given
so generously from their hearts and their pocketbooks, especially
those who have exhibited their support in the form of a legacy gift.
Founded by the Board of Governors, the Legacy Society helps support
the College in its mission and responsibility to help form well
the minds and souls of young people so that they will uphold the
truth, maintain and protect their Catholic heritage, and live lives
of exemplary virtue. Evidence that the College is achieving its
mission is abundant and gratifying: 42 alumni are priests, and 40
are studying for the priesthood; more than 20 alumni serve the Church
as fully professed religious; and many more are raising strong families
faithful to Catholic moral teaching. Our lay graduates are becoming
leaders in a wide variety of fields including education, law, journalism,
business, public service, and medicine.
The Legacy Society offers a variety of financial services that
benefit both the College and the individual benefactor. As such,
it has become an association that not only provides funding for
the College, but also allows participants to express their faith
and confidence in the graduates of Thomas Aquinas College, so many
of whom go on to profoundly benefit the Church and our country.
Though the principal motive for a legacy gift is a desire to support
the College, there are also significant financial incentives and
benefits for donors. Legacy gifts may provide federal and state
charitable income tax deductions. They may reduce or eliminate capital
gains and estate tax liability. They may pay income for life: Charitable
Gift Annuities and Charitable Remainder Trusts can produce substantial
income streams. The College offers several planned gift options
through its Legacy Society that can be tailored to fit the individual
financial and personal needs of participants.
The most frequent planned gift is a bequest made to the College
through a will or family trust. A bequest may be for a specific
amount, for a specific percentage, or for the remainder of a donor’s
estate. The next most popular planned gift is the Charitable Gift
Annuity which is, in essence, a contract between a donor and the
College. It guarantees a fixed annual payment to the donor for his
lifetime, for his and his spouse’s lifetimes, or for the lifetime
of another beneficiary. When the last beneficiary passes away, the
College receives a substantial portion of the initial donation.
The Charitable Gift Annuity is backed by all the assets of the College
and provides an immediate charitable tax deduction for the participant.
Planned gifts may also be made through Charitable Remainder Trusts
(CRTs). Cash, appreciated securities, real property, and other resources
can fund CRTs. Like a Charitable Gift Annuity, benefits of a CRT
include tax relief for the donor and steady annual income for one
or more beneficiaries. Depending on the needs and financial parameters
of a given member of the Legacy Society, an “annuity trust”
(CRAT) makes a pre-determined set payment. In a “unitrust”
(CRUT), the annual payout is determined by the performance of the
investment made of the trust’s funds.
Regardless of what plan might be chosen, “planned givers”
to Thomas Aquinas College can count on their investments being carefully
monitored and augmented by financial experts. Resources that come
to the College in the form of Charitable Gift Annuities and CRTs
are diligently shepherded by an investment strategy team of well-established
and historically successful financial advisers. Mr. David Clark,
Vice President of the Los Angeles-based investment counsel firm
Everett Harris & Co., advises the College on what financial
opportunities to pursue and helps the College monitor these choices,
insuring that not a penny is placed in an investment that is in
conflict with Catholic social or moral teaching. John Privitelli,
a friend and benefactor of the College himself, is the College’s
representative with Morgan Stanley Co. which manages nearly $700
billion in personal and institutional assets. Mr. Privitelli lends
his financial expertise to the Legacy Society in the transactions
phase of the investment process.
A legacy gift is an investment in the future of young men and women—our
children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren—whose lives
will be blessed by the wisdom and virtues Thomas Aquinas College
will help them attain.
Mr. Tom Susanka, Director of Gift Planning for the College,
would be happy to answer any questions you might have and supply
you with information regarding the various options for investing
in the future of Thomas Aquinas College. You may call or email him
at 1-800-634-9797, ext. 350, tsusanka@thomasaquinas.edu.
-- Qtrly Newsletter, Winter 2007
|
