Legacy Funds

Many people want to leave a portion of their estate to support one or more charitable organizations, to support certain charitable causes, or to create a scholarship for promising young students, but they want to ensure their wishes are honored and fulfilled. At The San Diego Foundation, our business is to receive, administer and provide ongoing stewardship of estate gifts for charitable purposes. We ensure our donor's intentions are honored and fulfilled, forever!

Gifts from your estate may be made to The San Diego Foundation via a gift by:

Will or living trust
Qualified retirement plan
Charitable gift annuity
Pooled income fund
Charitable trust
Life insurance policy

If you are considering using The San Diego Foundation to provide stewardship for your estate giving, the following things should be considered:

• What organizations or causes do you want to support?
  • Are the funds to go to specific organizations, e.g., your alma mater, a favorite arts organization, or research institution?
  • Are the funds to be used to support a specific cause, e.g., to support services for senior citizens or to support arts education in the schools?
  • Do you want to create a scholarship fund to help promising students continue their education?
  • Do you prefer our Board of Governors direct funding to address pressing community needs?

• What assets do you want to give?

  We are equipped to accept gifts of cash, stock and real estate through a will or living trust, as well as gifts via life insurance and qualified retirement plans. Additionally, we offer a great deal of flexibility as the charitable beneficiary of a charitable trust or pooled income fund. Since we are a 501(c)(3) public charity, assets that come to The San Diego Foundation are removed from your estate for tax purposes. This decision should be made in consultation with a professional advisor.

• Choose a name for your fund.

  You can use your family name or the name of a loved one. Many of our donors think of creative names that represent the causes they want to support. You can also choose to remain anonymous; we can arrange for the level of recognition you desire.

• Do you want the money to be in an endowment or in a non-endowment?

  In an endowment, the principal is invested and only a portion of the income is paid out. The remaining income is returned to principal to protect the value of the endowment over time. This option provides support for your chosen organizations and causes forever!

  In a non-endowment, the entire balance may be granted. (Most people choose an endowment for their estate gifts.)

Suggested Wording for Bequests and Trusts

Suggested Wording for Bequests and Trusts provides you with suggested wording for including an estate gift to The San Diego Foundation in your will or trust.

Anything else?

Yes, contact us; we will help you think through the above steps and open a "Legacy Fund" for you at the Foundation. There is a relatively simple form we will help you complete using the answers to the above questions. This "Fund Agreement" documents your wishes for us and allows us to clarify any questions we might have about your intentions.

Contact Adrienne Vargas at legacy@sdfoundation.org or 619-235-2300.

One last thing!

Once you have left an estate gift to The San Diego Foundation, we would like to welcome you into the Legacy League. By choosing The San Diego Foundation to provide stewardship of your estate giving through your estate, you join hundreds of others who are improving the quality of life in San Diego, forever!