LEGACY GIFTS TO VITALANT FOUNDATION
The Power of Legacy Gifts 5 Appreciated Securities 7 Beneficiary Designations 8 IRA Charitable Rollovers 9 Your Will or Living Trust 13 Income-Generating Gifts 15 Real Estate 17 Vitalant’s Future, Your Legacy 18 2
country’s largest independent nonprofit organization focused exclusively on providing blood services, Vitalant supplies our country’s hospitals with the essential blood products that make critical cancer care, organ transplants, blood disorder treatment, and trauma care possible for millions of patients every year. And, as the only blood services organization with its own dedicated research center, Vitalant also transforms lives—and the entire blood industry—through our advancements in blood science and transfusion medicine. We see this legacy in the daily blood drives we host that bring communities together to inspire blood donation, in our leading research that has made transfusions more effective, and in the patients whose lives are saved every day by the blood, plasma, and platelets we provide. Vitalant’s legacy is one of millions of lives saved—and you have a chance to continue that legacy and make it your own. When you make a legacy gift to Vitalant Foundation, the official fundraising arm of Vitalant, you not only give back to an essential healthcare services organization, but you also help secure the future of our country’s national blood supply and ensure that our lifesaving work continues for generations to come. 3
A Legacy Gift, also known as a planned gift, is a tax-exempt donation to a nonprofit organization that is realized at a later date, typically after the donor’s lifetime. Legacy giving is a powerful way to contribute to an organization’s long-term future while supporting the causes and values that have given shape and meaning to your life. The individuals and families that have helped build Vitalant through the power of legacy gifts are far more diverse than any “big donor” stereotype—professionals and community members who have steadily planned for retirement, small-business owners, and of course, patients and their families who have been impacted by lifesaving blood transfusions. Their generosity contributes to every dimension of Vitalant’s work, including: • Providing 2.1 million units of blood, plasma, and platelets to more than 900 hospitals and healthcare facilities annually. • Hosting more than 60,000 blood drives each year in partnership with local communities in the 28 states we serve. • Growing and diversifying the blood donor base to fill current and future needs for a sustainable and robust national blood supply that makes lifesaving care possible for anyone who needs it. • Training hundreds of blood bank technicians to fill critical gaps in the national healthcare workforce and increasing access to rewarding career opportunities for diverse communities across the country. • Advancing groundbreaking blood and transfusion science research through Vitalant Research Institute (VRI) and Vitalant Innovation Center (VIC). Legacy giving is a unique way of giving that empowers anyone to make an extraordinary gift in support of this vital work while also protecting their and their loved ones’ financial security. It also offers a variety of financial and tax advantages that allow you to plan for your future with confidence, provide for your family, and achieve your personal and philanthropic goals. 5
Vitalant Foundation offers a wide range of legacy giving opportunities—each with unique donor benefits, but all with transformative impacts. We are honored to share estate planning conversations with you to explore your options and consider how you might create a lifesaving legacy at Vitalant. Gifts of Appreciated Securities Gifts of appreciated securities are an especially exciting planned giving option at Vitalant—all you need are securities or mutual funds that have increased in value and been held for more than one year. Benefits • If you donate during your lifetime, you can avoid both income tax and reduce or eliminate capital gains taxes on the transfer. • You can also gift appreciated securities after your lifetime by placing a Transfer on Death (TOD) designation on your brokerage or investment account. • You can achieve impact and tax benefits without updating your living will or trust. Your Next Step • Contact your brokerage or financial advisor to transfer appreciated securities or establish a TOD designation. • Contact Vitalant Foundation (info on back cover) for additional information and assistance. 7
If you would rather not make a gift through your will or estate, you can make a legacy gift to Vitalant directly through designations on financial assets such as IRAs and retirement plans, life insurance policies, donor advised funds, commercial annuities, bank/brokerage accounts and certificates of deposit. It is easy and allows you to make simple changes with minimal costs due to working through an attorney. Benefits • Does not require committing to a gift in your will or living trust. • Avoids double taxation on retirement accounts and plans that can be subject to both income and estate taxes. • Some assets—such as whole life insurance policies—allow you to make Vitalant Foundation a joint or outright owner of the policy, with a potential tax benefit at the time of transfer. Your Next Steps • Contact your account/plan administrator and designate Vitalant Foundation as beneficiary for part or all of the value of the asset or policy. • Notify Vitalant Foundation of your gift so that we may recognize and celebrate your generosity. • Contact Vitalant Foundation (info on back cover) for additional information and assistance. 8
In recent years, IRA charitable rollovers have become one of the most popular ways for patients who are 70 1/2 years old or older and their families to make a significant impact while also enjoying unique tax advantages. Also known as a “qualified charitable distribution,” this option allows you to give up to $100,000 per year from your IRA directly to a qualified charity such as Vitalant Foundation without having to pay income taxes on the money. Benefits • Your gift makes an immediate impact on Vitalant’s lifesaving work. • Beginning in the year you turn 73, you can use your gift to satisfy all or part of your required minimum distribution (RMD). • You pay no income taxes on the gift. The direct transfer generates neither taxable income nor a tax deduction, so you benefit even if you do not itemize your deductions. • Since the gift does not count as income, it can reduce your annual income level. This may help lower your Medicare premiums and decrease the amount of Social Security that is subject to tax. Your Next Steps • Direct your IRA custodian to make a distribution directly to Vitalant Foundation. • Contact Vitalant Foundation (info on back cover) for additional information and assistance. 9
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