Making a legacy gift reflects your ongoing commitment to support the Tsoknyi Nuns beyond your lifetime.
Legacy giving is a way to provide a gift or bequest from your estate to the Tsoknyi Humanitarian Foundation (THF) by including a specific provision in your will or living trust, or by naming Tsoknyi Humanitarian Foundation as a beneficiary of a retirement plan or life insurance policy.
The virtue of a bequest is that it costs nothing now yet provides future resources for the Tsoknyi Nuns, supporting them for decades and centuries to come; you retain control of your assets during your lifetime; and you can modify the bequest if circumstances change.
There are four major types of bequests or gifts to consider:
- General Bequest. A general bequest allows Rinpoche to determine how to use the funds based on the most pressing need.
- Tsoknyi Nuns Fund. A gift to this Endowment will provide income every year in perpetuity to care for the everyday needs of the nuns.
- Retirement Plan Beneficiary Designation. Consider listing THF as a beneficiary of an Individual Retirement Account (IRA), workplace-sponsored retirement plan or other retirement account.
- Life Insurance Policy Beneficiary Designation
Please get advice on estate planning by finding a qualified estate planning attorney at www.actec.org or www.naepc.org. Learn more about Legacy Giving HERE. For more information on Legacy Giving to the Tsoknyi Humanitarian Foundation, email our Legacy Giving Director, Michael Kunkel, Michael@tsoknyinuns.org or call (719) 239-1516.
NOTE – None of this information should be construed as legal advice. In making a charitable gift, it is always important to seek the advice of your attorney and professional financial advisors.
FAQ’s
If you have realized you can change people’s lives through your charitable giving, you are a philanthropist who can leave a legacy with the Tsoknyi Humanitarian Foundation (THF).
Legacy gifts come in different sizes and forms and no amount is too small.
Together, with your financial professional, begin collecting information to determine the best approach for leaving your legacy. Making bequests is actually quite simple. It can be as easy as including a bequest in your will or changing the name of the beneficiary on your life insurance policy or an IRA. It is important, however, that you always consult your financial professional when making decisions to leave a charitable gift through your will or from your estate.
Gifts may come in the form of money, property*, life insurance, an investment or percentage of an estate. Tax benefits often accompany a gift from a will or estate.
*real estate gifts upon approval of THF Governing Board
A bequest can be made for a specific amount, for a percentage of your estate, or for all or a portion of what is left after you have made bequests to your family. To make a gift to the Tsoknyi Humanitarian Foundation from your estate, you must sign a new will or trust instrument, add a codicil to your present will, or make an amendment to your present trust instrument.
“I [name], of [city, state ZIP], give, devise and bequeath the sum of $_________ or _________ percent of my estate to the Tsoknyi Humanitarian Foundation, a nonprofit institution incorporated in the State of Colorado with a business address of 39575 County Road 33, Steamboat Springs, CO 80487 and a tax identification number 20-1419753 for its unrestricted use and purpose.”
You must designate Tsoknyi Humanitarian Foundation as a beneficiary of your Individual Retirement Account (IRA). Contact the administrator of your IRA to ensure appropriate documentation of your desire.
IRA owners must be age 70 ½ or older to make a tax-free charitable contribution. Those who meet the age requirement can transfer up to $100,000 per year directly from an IRA to an eligible charity without paying income tax on the transaction. Due to taxes, the balance of your retirement account may be worth much more to THF than to your heirs.
An estate is simply a word used to describe any property, money or personal belongings that you may have at the time of your death. Most people leave an estate at their time of death, even though they may not have a great deal of wealth. Anyone can arrange to leave a charitable gift from their estate.
To do so, you must contact your retirement plan administrator or life insurance company and complete the appropriate beneficiary designation form they require.
Some companies provide employees with a small life insurance policy. If your dependents are already covered by another, more generous life insurance policy, consider making the THF beneficiary of the workplace life insurance policy.
It is critical to seek the advice of your attorney and other advisers including accountants, insurance agents, investments planners, professional trust officers and financial planners.
