When Paul Butler and Chris Black got married, they discovered that their previous wills were now invalid. As they started updating them, they quickly realized how much their philanthropic values and goals had shifted since they first created them a decade earlier.
They enlisted Toronto Foundation to help create a legacy that would grow with them, while supporting the causes that matter to them most. Below, Paul discusses what drives their philanthropic values, how their relationship with Toronto Foundation brings flexibility and ease to their legacy planning and how they are using the knowledge they’ve gained to embark on an exciting new direction in their philanthropy.
What drives your philanthropic goals?
Giving back has always been instilled in me by my family. In university I received scholarship money which helped me a great deal. As soon as my student loans were paid off, I started giving back to other university kids. I recognized that somebody had created an opportunity for me once and now it’s my turn to create an opportunity for others.
How has Toronto Foundation helped you to create your legacy?
Working with Toronto Foundation is the best of both worlds: we have articulated wishes through our bequest, but we can always make changes without it being costly or difficult. Our relationship with the Foundation is very dynamic.
We like that as the organizations we want to support evolve, we get to be part of that evolution. This dynamism makes me feel so much more secure. When I think of the year 2050, the organizations we support right now may have changed or disappeared, but we know that the Foundation will stay connected to the causes important to us. That high confidence in the Foundation really gives us peace of mind.
We are donating to organizations now that we only learned of through Toronto Foundation. Staff will reach out and say: “We noticed you're giving to x. Here are some other organizations that we think you might be interested in.” It gives us a sense of security that Foundation staff know the kind of change we want to see.
What are you most excited about for the future of your philanthropy?
We want to put more into investments that are working towards our legacy while we're alive, which will pay out afterwards as well.
We attended a Toronto Foundation seminar during the pandemic about expanding our philanthropy to include impact investments. That led us to invest in a green bond, which is going to become part of our legacy. Toronto Foundation taught us about impact investing, how to access it and now we're moving into a whole new world of philanthropy. That makes me feel very good about my legacy.
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