Although it requires some time and consideration to include a gift to charity in your will, working with a community foundation can help streamline and enhance the process. Community foundations offer deep and evolving insights into the charitable sector and the resources and expertise to support you and your family from the initial bequest creation through to execution.
Co-creating their legacies with Toronto Foundation has helped Lars Boggild, Beverley Burke, Paul Butler, Emma Lewzey, and Samantha Luc turn a daunting task into a rewarding experience. They discuss the value of working with a community foundation to establish a legacy gift, the tools and structures they found helpful, and how Toronto Foundation gave them peace of mind for the future.
What did you value about working with Toronto Foundation to create your bequest?
Beverley: The process was very easy. When I told my financial planner about the structure and support Toronto Foundation provides those wanting to leave a gift to charity in their will, she was very impressed. Now we both recommend the Foundation to others.
Emma: One of the reasons why we chose to work with Toronto Foundation is that it enables us to centralize our giving, while still supporting the causes we care about. We can decide generally where we want to direct the funds, but we don't have to make choices between specific charities. It’s a huge load off.
Paul: Working with Toronto Foundation gives you the best of both worlds: We have articulated wishes, but we can make changes as we go without it being a costly or difficult process. Our relationship with the Foundation is very dynamic.
What tools or structures do you find most helpful in this process?
Samantha: It was helpful to get advice from everyone at Toronto Foundation on what was possible in terms of legal structure and fund structure. It took a lot of stress out of the planning.
Paul: The Foundation has made all my giving easy. During the year I make my grants online. My accountant appreciates the one tax receipt instead of the 42 I used to bring him. With our bequest, I have the same flexibility to evolve our final wishes.
I also love the tools like the Good to Give Guide. We really enjoy going through it every year and looking for organizations that pique our interest.
Emma: Toronto Foundation’s work around philanthropy and equity has been really helpful. I've always known the impact that unrestricted giving can have as somebody being on the receiving side, but it’s helpful to be reminded as a donor. We trust Toronto Foundation’s expertise.
How does working with Toronto Foundation give you peace of mind for the future?
Samantha: Although we are making decisions now, the charities we support may not exist in 50 years. Trusting that the Foundation is going to continue to have insight into the issues that we're interested in giving to was important for us. We feel that that long term relationship that we’ve started will be maintained into the future.
Lars: The organizations we have given to are almost exclusively ones that we've had interactions with – often intermediated by Toronto Foundation. We trust that the Foundation will have long-term visibility into what leadership looks like within the sectors we care about and will be able to honour our wishes.
Paul: Working with Toronto Foundation means 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.
LEGACY LEADERS
YOUR LEGACY IS AS UNIQUE AS YOU ARE. LET US HELP YOU MAKE YOUR MARK.
Together we'll customize your legacy gift to the charitable sector. Learn more about our bequest program here or connect now with director, growth strategy Nicola Hives.