What is Leave A Legacy®?

What is LEAVE A LEGACY®?

LEAVE A LEGACY® is an ongoing program of the National Committee on Planned Giving that encourages people from all walks of life to make gifts from their estates to the nonprofit organizations of their choice.

LEAVE A LEGACY® is part of a nationwide initiative that involves over 150 other communities across the United States and in Canada.

Working in collaboration with local nonprofit organizations, bar associations and other estate planning professionals, community foundations, corporate funders, a variety of media outlets and dedicated volunteers, LEAVE A LEGACY® San Antonio, South Texas, The Hill Country and Guadalupe Valley employs a community-wide marketing effort, the goal of which is to increase the awareness of gift planning opportunities among our fellow citizens.

What can a legacy do for our community?

Legacies can do a lot of things - they can help educate, heal, befriend, feed, shelter, clothe and counsel. A legacy can support the arts, preserve the environment, strengthen families and empower people with disabilities. It can also help support your place of worship, protect animals and nurture older adults. Simply put, a legacy allows the person who left it to continue making a difference long after he/she is gone.

What are the goals of LEAVE A LEGACY®?

We will conduct an awareness campaign in the local media that will help educate and inform the public about the benefits of remembering the local nonprofit organizations of their choice in their wills, codicils and through other estate planning vehicles.

We will provide a variety of support, education and materials to local nonprofit organizations to help them encourage their current and potential donors to leave a legacy.

We will work with the professional advisors in our community to help them advise their clients about the benefits of leaving a legacy.

LEAVE A LEGACY® Encourages Individuals To:

  • Prepare a will, a codicil or estate plan.
  • Leave a specific dollar amount or percentage of their assets through a bequest in their will or other planned gift to charitable organizations that have made a difference in their lives.
  • Consider making a planned gift during life to charities of their choice.

13 Ways To LEAVE A LEGACY®


Only 6 to 8 percent of American households have included a nonprofit organization in their estate plans. Imagine the positive impact on San Antonio, South Texas, The Hill Country and Guadalupe Valley if everyone made a donation to a favorite nonprofit. Here are some ways to do that:

  1. Prepare a will. Only 40% of those who pass away in the San Antonio area have one. Without one, neither you nor your loved ones will have any control over your estate – the possessions you’ve worked a lifetime to acquire – after your death.

  2. Research the organizations that have been meaningful to you so that you understand their mission. Ask them about the planned giving opportunities available to you.

  3. Consult with a professional advisor or the charity itself about the various ways to make tax-wise gifts.
  4. Leave a gift in your will, either a specific amount or a percentage, or some other asset like stocks, bonds, CDs, real estate, vehicles, art or jewelry, to the organizations of your choice.

  5. Name a charity as the beneficiary of your pension plan or IRA or as a percentage beneficiary, for example, 10% or more. Your estate and/or heirs will not have to pay income taxes on that portion that benefits a charitable organization. It’s easy to do. Just request a change of beneficiary form from the financial institution that is the custodian of your IRA.

  6. Purchase a new life insurance policy and name a charity as the beneficiary, or name the charity as the beneficiary of an existing policy.

  7. Honor loved ones with a memorial gift to a nonprofit organization.

  8. Lead by example, encouraging family and friends to leave gifts in their wills to the nonprofit organizations of their choice.

  9. If you use a professional advisor to help you, ask them to talk to their other clients about the benefits of leaving a legacy.

  10. Consider making gifts during your lifetime with appreciated assets such as stocks or real estate. You can receive a current tax deduction for the current value of the gift. By transferring ownership to the charitable organization, you avoid paying the capital gain tax. The organization can sell the asset without paying the tax and so receive the full amount for its use.

  11. Supplement your income by getting a check from a charity! Invest in a Charitable Gift Annuity by transferring an asset irrevocably to a nonprofit organization in exchange for tax benefits and an annual income for your lifetime, jointly for you and your spouse or to benefit another family member, friend or employee.

  12. Create a “life estate” with real estate you currently own by giving ownership to the charity but retaining the right to live in the home for your lifetime. This can generate a current income tax deduction. No cash is required.

  13. You can also make a charitable gift to set up a charitable trust. You donate the asset to the charitable trust. This works particularly well with appreciated assets such as stocks or real estate. The asset can then be sold inside the trust without capital gains to you and repositioned into income-generating assets. You can receive income from the trust for your lifetime and also receive current income tax deductions. At your death (or that of your spouse), the remaining principle goes to the charity, avoiding any potential estate tax. If you also want to remember family members, you can use part of the income generated by trust (or a portion of the tax savings) to replace the asset using life insurance in a wealth replacement trust.