
Creating a Legacy:
Planned Giving & Estate Planning
Is St. Matthew in your will or trust? If not, contact Barney Hartley ([email protected]) for more information on how to make a Legacy Gift to the parish while creating tax benefits for your heirs. You’ll be surprised how a little planning can make a HUGE DIFFERENCE!
Real Estate Donations
If you are interested in donating land, a house, or some commercial property (where ever it may be) to St. Matthew to endow our ministries for generations to come, please contact Barney Hartley ([email protected]). Discover the many ways such a donation can benefit you and your family while ensuring St. Matthew remains a vital presence for love in our neighborhood!
Planned Giving & Estate Planning
Is St. Matthew in your will or trust? If not, contact Barney Hartley ([email protected]) for more information on how to make a Legacy Gift to the parish while creating tax benefits for your heirs. You’ll be surprised how a little planning can make a HUGE DIFFERENCE!
Real Estate Donations
If you are interested in donating land, a house, or some commercial property (where ever it may be) to St. Matthew to endow our ministries for generations to come, please contact Barney Hartley ([email protected]). Discover the many ways such a donation can benefit you and your family while ensuring St. Matthew remains a vital presence for love in our neighborhood!
How do you want to be remembered?
What you say in your will or other estate plans attests to what was meaningful to you during your lifetime. Through your advance planning, you have the opportunity to leave such a legacy as a role model to your children, grandchildren and others.
A legacy gift through a bequest in your will or other planned gift is a way to offer thanks to God for the gifts and blessings given to you, to affirm the value you attach to your faith community, and to provide for St. Matthew’s future mission, ministries, or facilities. In the absence of a will, the Probate Court will decide how to distribute your assets. To be certain that your wishes are carried out, it’s important that you make a will or other estate plan, and update it every five years or whenever your life situation changes significantly (e.g., move to another state, have a new child or grandchild, divorce or remarry).
Types of Legacy Gifts
Bequests through your will are the most common form of legacy gift. You may specify a dollar amount, a piece of property, or a percentage or the residual of your estate to St. Matthew. The wording of a bequest provision will vary depending upon the type of gift you wish to make and whether your gift is restricted to a specific purpose. Examples of appropriate language are found below in the document St. Matthew Legacy Society Sample Bequest Language. In all cases, you should consult with a qualified attorney who can review your goals in light of applicable federal and state laws and draft your will to reflect your specific wishes.
Beneficiary designations. Some parts of your estate can pass directly to a recipient outside of probate, simply by designating the beneficiary. You can name St. Matthew as the beneficiary of a life insurance policy, pension, retirement fund, commercial annuity contract, bank account, or brokerage account. When you set up or modify your will, talk with your attorney about possible tax benefits from these arrangements.
Planned giving. Legacy gifts also include making current gifts (such as charitable gift annuities or trusts) that can provide donors with current tax benefits, pay income to donors during their lifetimes, and leave the remainder to St. Matthew. You can learn more about such life income gifts or set up such a fund through the Diocese of Olympia Stewardship Office or the Episcopal Church Foundation, banks, community foundations, or other donor-advised funds (see resources below).
How your gift will be used
St. Matthew will honor the donor’s expressed intent. In the absence of expressed donor intent, however, the parish Vestry may direct the use of the funds as they determine. During a capital campaign, the Vestry may direct realized bequests it receives during the campaign toward capital projects. At other times, realized bequests may be added to the general endowment or other special project.
When you donate to St. Matthew and become a member of the St. Matthew Legacy Society, you will be continuing your stewardship of St. Matthew and helping to assure the long-term financial health of the parish.
At your request, a planned giving specialist from the diocesan office can meet with you individually to discuss your personal situation and wishes, and recommend the types of legacy gifts that may be best for you to consider. Because some planned gifts can be technical and each person’s circumstances are different, it is best to consult with your own financial advisor and legal counsel as well.
Resources to Assist You
What you say in your will or other estate plans attests to what was meaningful to you during your lifetime. Through your advance planning, you have the opportunity to leave such a legacy as a role model to your children, grandchildren and others.
A legacy gift through a bequest in your will or other planned gift is a way to offer thanks to God for the gifts and blessings given to you, to affirm the value you attach to your faith community, and to provide for St. Matthew’s future mission, ministries, or facilities. In the absence of a will, the Probate Court will decide how to distribute your assets. To be certain that your wishes are carried out, it’s important that you make a will or other estate plan, and update it every five years or whenever your life situation changes significantly (e.g., move to another state, have a new child or grandchild, divorce or remarry).
Types of Legacy Gifts
Bequests through your will are the most common form of legacy gift. You may specify a dollar amount, a piece of property, or a percentage or the residual of your estate to St. Matthew. The wording of a bequest provision will vary depending upon the type of gift you wish to make and whether your gift is restricted to a specific purpose. Examples of appropriate language are found below in the document St. Matthew Legacy Society Sample Bequest Language. In all cases, you should consult with a qualified attorney who can review your goals in light of applicable federal and state laws and draft your will to reflect your specific wishes.
Beneficiary designations. Some parts of your estate can pass directly to a recipient outside of probate, simply by designating the beneficiary. You can name St. Matthew as the beneficiary of a life insurance policy, pension, retirement fund, commercial annuity contract, bank account, or brokerage account. When you set up or modify your will, talk with your attorney about possible tax benefits from these arrangements.
Planned giving. Legacy gifts also include making current gifts (such as charitable gift annuities or trusts) that can provide donors with current tax benefits, pay income to donors during their lifetimes, and leave the remainder to St. Matthew. You can learn more about such life income gifts or set up such a fund through the Diocese of Olympia Stewardship Office or the Episcopal Church Foundation, banks, community foundations, or other donor-advised funds (see resources below).
How your gift will be used
St. Matthew will honor the donor’s expressed intent. In the absence of expressed donor intent, however, the parish Vestry may direct the use of the funds as they determine. During a capital campaign, the Vestry may direct realized bequests it receives during the campaign toward capital projects. At other times, realized bequests may be added to the general endowment or other special project.
When you donate to St. Matthew and become a member of the St. Matthew Legacy Society, you will be continuing your stewardship of St. Matthew and helping to assure the long-term financial health of the parish.
At your request, a planned giving specialist from the diocesan office can meet with you individually to discuss your personal situation and wishes, and recommend the types of legacy gifts that may be best for you to consider. Because some planned gifts can be technical and each person’s circumstances are different, it is best to consult with your own financial advisor and legal counsel as well.
Resources to Assist You
- Barney Hartley, Chairperson, St. Matthew Planned Giving - 253-942-8222 or [email protected]
- Episcopal Church Foundation in New York City: 1-800-697-2858. Helps establish and manages many types of income-generating planned gifts which the donor may direct to any Episcopal entity or program. Affiliated with the wider Episcopal Church.
- Washington State Bar Association: Includes information regarding wills and estate planning, including an attorney referral list.
- St. Matthew Legacy Society Sample Bequest Language
- St. Matthew Legacy Society Registration Form
Additionally, the Diocese of Olympia has invested in a partnership with FreeWill to help you create your own legally valid will, at zero cost to you, and establish a legacy of faith at the same time. You can begin the process by going to this special link: https://www.freewill.com/dioceseofolympia?utm_source=partner&utm_medium=enewsletter&utm_campaign=202201_dioceseofolympia_resolution_smartstart_launch. You’ll be surprised how a little planning can make a HUGE DIFFERENCE!