Planned Gifts
A planned gift is a wonderful way to make a donation to MKA that is larger than you ever thought possible. Your gifts can come from your assets, not necessarily your current income - a different concept than most of us think of when we contemplate gifts to our alma mater - but a wise one. Planned gifts can provide you with immediate tax benefits, and then, income benefits to you and your spouse in your retirement years. Simply stated, a planned gift is any charitable gift, current or deferred, that is planned - usually with professional advice - to optimize a donor's financial, tax, and estate plans while helping to secure the long term financial strength of one or more recipient charities. A planned gift to MKA makes donors eligible for membership in The Heritage Society.
Benefits of Planned Giving:
- Income paid for life to you or another beneficiary (a spouse or other family member, or both).
- An immediate IRS income tax deduction (and tax savings) for a portion of the value of the gift...often a significant part.
- Capital gains tax can be reduced or avoided when appreciated securities or real property is used.
- Increased income when the gift is made through an arrangement that pays a higher yield than the normal dividend generated by the donated asset.
- And most important, in providing generous endowed support to MKA, you can create a lasting legacy for yourself, family, or a mentor.
The Heritage Society
The Heritage Society was established to recognize and honor those who have provided for The Montclair Kimberley Academy in their estate plans. Gift commitments may be made by bequest intention in a will or living trust, as well as in a variety of ways that provide tax benefits and income for life to the donor.
Bequests are the most common form of planned gift to MKA, and each individual legacy has contributed to MKA's financial stabilty over the years. A bequest can be a generous gift without reducing a donor's current income, and it is normally deducted in full for federal estate tax purposes, with no limit on the amount of the estate tax charitable deduction. Bequests are also not generally subject to state inheritance or estate taxes. Donors can give almost any kind of asset to MKA through a bequest, including cash, securities, an interest in real estate (such as a residence), tangible personal property, or the remainder of an IRA, Keogh, tax-sheltered annuity, qualified pension or profit-sharing plan. Bequests are easy to make. If you already have a will, the bequest is a simple inclusion of plain language; the additional language known as a codicil.
Samples of Bequest Language
The following examples can be tailored to your interests. Be sure to consult your attorney.
Unrestricted Bequest: 'I give (__dollars) (a specific asset) or (__percent of the rest, residue, and remainder of my estate) to The Montclair Kimberley Academy, Montclair, New Jersey, for its general purposes."
Bequest For A Specific Purpose: "I give (__dollars) (a specific asset) or (__percent of the rest, residue, and remainder of my estate) to The Montclair Kimberley Academy, Montclair, New Jersey, to be used for the following purpose: (state the purpose). If, in the future, it is the opinion of the Board of Trustees of The Montclair Kimberley Academy that all or part of the income of this fund cannot be usefully applied to such purpose, it may be used for any related purpose which in the opinion of the Board of Trustees will most nearly accomplish my wishes."
Membership in The Heritage Society is an important way to ensure the future of the school through a philanthropic gift, while receiving maximum tax and estate benefits that enhance your well being. Heritage Society members recognize the importance of growing MKA's Endowment in order to provide the highest level of support for all aspects of an MKA education. Also of great importance, and in need of critical funding, is MKA's Faculty Compensation Endowment - a resource providing for the continued hire and retention of a talented and dedicated faculty.
Membership is granted to those who have chosen to make a planned gift to MKA in one or more of the following ways:
A bequest intention of cash, securities, closely held stock, real estate, or tangible property.
Life income gifts such as:
- Charitable Gift Annuities
- Charitable Remainder Unitrusts of Annuity Trusts
- Charitable Lead Trusts
- Pooled Income Fund contributions
If you have already made a provision in your will for The Montclair
Kimberley Academy, we hope you will share those plans with us. We
welcome the opportunity to assist you in evaluating other options of
deferred giving which best suit your needs and intentions.
For more information on making a planned gift to MKA, please contact Geoff Branigan, Director of External Affairs at 973- 509-7940 (gbranigan@mka.org ) or write: The Montclair Kimberley Academy/External Affairs, 201 Valley Rd., Montclair, NJ 07042.
In all matters related to charitable giving, donors are advised to consult their own legal, tax, and financial advisors.
