Q & A
Bob Livingston, co-chair of the Planned Giving Team, outlines an important way to provide long-term support for FPCA and leave a legacy of ministry
What is planned giving?
It is a way for a church member to make a meaningful, lasting gift to the church through FPCA’s Endowment Fund. It’s called a planned gift because people make a thoughtful decision to make a gift, and they get to pick when they would like that gift to occur.
How is this different from making a pledge?
Te annual pledge is an important spiritual discipline that each member should make; it is a gift of cash that provides for the ongoing support of the church’s day-to-day operations and mission. By comparison, a planned gift has a long-term impact. It is an additional gift that can be given from a wide variety of sources (so as not to reduce personal income or cash reserves), and it can offer some distinct tax advantages. In many cases, a member’s planned gift can actually increase their income. In addition, when given through First Presbyterian’s Endowment Fund, it becomes a gift that will continue to annually support the mission and ministry of the church well beyond the member’s life expectancy. Te gift becomes part of the member’s legacy to the church.
What is an Endowment Fund?
It’s a pool of investments created from gifts by donors. At FPCA, an investment team manages the investment of those gifts with the intent of protecting and growing the principal. Each year, a portion of the fund’s
earnings is paid out to support the mission of the church. Any earnings in excess of what is paid out are reinvested to continue to grow the fund. So a gift to FPCA’s Endowment Fund becomes a perpetual gift that keeps on giving each and every year. Last year the church received over $45,000 from the endowment and individual trusts, much of which went to support the church’s budget in the area of worship, spiritual formation and discipleship, mission and outreach, and pastoral care.
What’s new with planned giving at FPCA?
What’s new actually has a lot to do with what’s old. Past senior pastor Rev. Dr. Bill Barker and his wife, Jean, envisioned a future of our church beyond themselves. Tey knew the church would benefit from a strong financial foundation to continue its mission. With royalties from his work on the Mr. Rogers’ Neighborhood television program, they founded FPCA’s Endowment Fund. Tis year, in honor of their foresight, we’ve established the Barker Society to recognize donors who have made a similar commitment to strengthen the church. Each member who has made or proceeds to make a gift to the Endowment Fund will become a member of the Society. Each Society member will be invited to a special recognition event this spring.
How can I make a gift?
Tere are a number of great ways to make a planned gift—more ways than we can describe here. Te beauty of a
planned gift is that almost everyone can make one. It can be as simple as adding “First Presbyterian Church of Allentown Endowment Fund” as a beneficiary of an IRA, a life insurance policy, or a trust. A gift through a will is also very common. Yet there are also many other ways to give future gifts of homes, property, investments, collections, etc. that can provide a tax benefit and a lifetime of income to the donor. If you have even a slight interest in learning more about planned giving, I would encourage you to have a simple conversation with a member of the FPCA Planned Giving Team.
Te team has a talented group of individuals who can help you determine if a planned gift is right for you. Te team can be reached through the church’s business office (610-395- 3781) or by email at plannedgiving@
fpcallentown.org.
15
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16