Ways to Give

  • Cash
  • Stock
  • Life Insurance
  • In Your Will
  • From Your Retirement Plan
  • Real Estate
  • Charitable Trusts

Cash

Donations of cash are always welcome. Cash provides a benefit to the Foundation that can be put to work immediately.

Contributions can be made as a lump sum or as monthly or quarterly payments by check, Visa or Master Card. Click here to donate online.

Become a Sustaining Member by making recurring monthly, quarterly, or annual donation. All donors are recognized as members of the Worthen Society and the Cleborne Circle. Make your recurring gift safely online here.

Since the Foundation is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization, cash donations may provide a tax deduction in the current year, depending on your circumstances. Please consult your tax advisor.

Stock

Gifts of stock can be made to the Vanguard Group, Inc. indicating that the gift is for the South Hero Library Foundation. Before contacting Vanguard, please call the library, (802) 372-6209, for the account number.

Life Insurance 

There are several ways to make gifts of life insurance.

Designate the Foundation as Your Beneficiary 

In addition to family or friends as beneficiaries, you can designate the Foundation as a beneficiary of a lump sum or percentage of the proceeds from your life insurance policy. You can do this for a term life policy that may be offered by your employer, or for a life insurance policy that you have purchased.

This option may be appropriate if you want to retain the right to revoke the gift at a future date. You can make the designation by updating your choice of beneficiaries on your insurance company’s beneficiary designation form.

While naming the Foundation as beneficiary does not constitute a deductible charitable contribution, your estate may receive a charitable deduction for that portion of the benefit going to the Foundation. By letting the Library know of your generosity, you can earn recognition in the Jacoby Circle.

Transfer Ownership of Life Insurance

You can contribute a paid-up life insurance policy to the Foundation by transferring ownership of the policy to the Foundation. If you transfer ownership, you do not retain the right to revoke the gift. However, you may become eligible to receive a charitable income tax deduction, subject to AGI limits, equal to the policy’s fair market value or the net premiums you have paid, whichever is less. By letting the Library know of your generosity, you can earn recognition in the Jacoby Circle.

In Your Will

A gift to the South Hero Library Foundation in your will is the easiest and most common method of making a planned gift, and as a charitable bequest it may be deductible when calculating estate taxes. There is no limit on the amount of a charitable deduction. You can give a designated amount or percentage of your estate outright; you can leave a remainder of your estate after it has provided support to a spouse or other heirs; or you can leave a bequest as a contingency if other beneficiaries do not survive you. By letting the Library know of your generosity, you can earn recognition in the Jacoby Circle.

From Your Retirement Plan

Name the South Hero Library Foundation as the Beneficiary of Your IRA, 401k or 403B Plan

Unlike other inheritances that can be passed to heirs free of income tax, the distributions from inherited non-ROTH IRAs are generally taxable as ordinary income to the person who receives them. By designating the Foundation as a beneficiary, your heirs will not pay tax on the amount. The Foundation will receive the full benefit of your contribution, and while your estate will need to include the value of the assets as part of the gross estate, it will receive a tax deduction for the charitable contribution. By letting the Library know of your generosity, you can earn recognition in the Jacoby Circle.

Designate Your Retirement Plan’s Annual Required Minimum Distribution (RMD)

If you are over a certain age, the IRS requires you to take annual, taxable distributions (withdrawals) from your non-ROTH retirement account — a provision known as the Required Minimum Distribution (RMD). Up to a certain amount, these distributions may be made tax-free as long as you utilize the Qualified Charitable Distribution (QCD) feature and direct the distribution to a qualified 501(c) 3 such as the South Hero Library Foundation. You can designate your QCD for current Library use or to build the Sustainability Fund. Simply let us know your intentions. By making a gift this way, you will earn a spot in the Worthen Society and recognition in the Cleborne Circle.

Real Estate

There are several ways to give real estate to the Foundation:

Outright Gift of Real Estate

An outright gift made immediately can maximize the income tax charitable deduction and remove the property from the donor’s taxable estate. Your gift will earn you recognition in the Cleborne Circle.

Simple Bequest of Real Estate

By leaving real property to the Foundation in your will, you avoid the value of the property being included in your estate. By letting the Library know of your generosity, you can earn recognition in the Jacoby Circle.

Gift with Retained Life Estate

A gift of a remainder interest in a house or farm deeds the property to the Foundation now, and retains your right to live in the residence for your remaining lifetime. By letting the Library know of your generosity, you can earn recognition in the Jacoby Circle.

Charitable Trusts

Charitable Remainder Trust

You may donate cash or property during your lifetime, or upon death, to an irrevocable trust and direct that the trust makes a fixed payment (at least annually) to you and/or other beneficiaries for life or a specified term of not more than 20 years. The Foundation receives any remaining trust assets at end of the payment term. By letting the Library know of your generosity, you can earn recognition in the Jacoby Circle.

Charitable Lead Trust

You may donate cash or property to an irrevocable trust and direct that the trust makes a fixed payment (at least annually) to the Foundation for your lifetime or the lifetime of other beneficiaries, or for a fixed period. At the end of payment term, you or other beneficiaries receive any remaining trust property. By letting the Library know of your generosity, you can earn recognition in the Jacoby Circle.

Thi s site contains general information and does not constitute financial advice. The Foundation does not guarantee the accuracy of the information herein. Consult your attorney and/or tax advisor when developing your gift or estate plan.

The South Hero Library Foundation’s non-profit tax identification number is 81-1209787