Meet Our Clients
Stephanie
In late 2016, my two year old son P.D. picked up a guide to planned giving that my husband and I had received. I'd held onto the mailer, because I was in the process of designing a planned giving program for my organization.
At the time, my husband and I hadn't thought about our family's own planned giving. We were only in our 40s after all! Well, our perspective quickly changed a few months later, when I was diagnosed with a very aggressive cancer. My chemotherapy didn't work as planned and I changed protocols twice, all the time worried about leaving a two-year-old alone, without a mother.
Jumping forward to the present, I'm thrilled that the new chemo worked and I remain cancer free.
I share these details to tell you it is never too early or too late to think about your legacy. During those scary months, I learned that time is precious and we don't know what the future holds. At age 44, I had to seriously consider our planned giving. If I were to die, and something were to happen to my husband, what would happen to our assets. These were hard discussions — ones that I did not wish to face, but I'm so glad I did. I created a document with DonorsTrust, with the advice of my children will decide where my assets are distributed....both DonorsTrust and my children know what kind of lasting legacy my husband and I hope to contribute to beyond our lifetime. One of the priorities in our life has been working to spread the ideas of freedom in the U.S. and beyond, so we made plans for contributions to be made to our favorite charities in the field.
With four kids, including one in college and P.D. scheduled to join the Class of 2035, our family's annual charitable giving isn't very robust, but we realized we can make long-term plans to help the organizations we hold dear. That happens when you opt to leave a percentage of the estate you will build over a lifetime – a long one, fingers crossed! – to the organizations best positioned to contribute to the world according to your values.
Making those plans in 2017 was an important first step for us. We've subsequently taken an additional one. If I am blessed enough to see P.D. graduate high school and college and get married and go through all the changes that will come with growing up, who's to say that the organizations I love today will remain the same tomorrow?
Even the best charities are vulnerable to mission creep and inconsistent effectiveness that might come from changes in leadership. Is there a way to create a safeguard that my assets won't be used in ways that violate my principles and my sincere hope for impact?
When I joined DonorsTrust, I discovered all the reasons that it's wise to organize my planned giving through an organization that is specifically focused on preserving donor intent for a community that cherishes freedom. What a perfect match with my priorities!
