Gift Acceptance Policy

What Types of Gifts Can Be Made?

 

Gifts come in all shapes and sizes and are often made from accumulated assets, which may include cash, securities, life insurance and retirement fund assets, annuities, trusts, or tangible property such as real estate. These alternatives can be classified as direct gifts, life income gifts, gifts of tax-deferred assets and bequests. Below are some examples of the more common types of gifts and what the advantages may be to you.

Outright gifts of Cash, Stock, Property

Cash is most commonly used to make lifetime charitable gifts, and tax benefits are available when you itemize deductions on your tax return. You can also make a gift of securities or real estate to support the Wisdom Culture Legacy Circle Fund and avoid paying capital gains tax on the appreciation.

Bequest in Will or Living Trust

You can make gifts of a specific asset, a specific dollar amount, or a percentage of your estate to the Wisdom Culture Legacy Circle Fund through a bequest in your Will, or provision in your Living Trust. A Will is a legal document which contains specific instructions to the Probate Court as to how your property is to be administered and distributed after your death. A Living Trust is similar to a will except that with a living trust, you place all of your assets into the Trust with instructions for the management and distribution of the assets upon your incapacity or death. A Living Trust avoids the potentially time-consuming and costly public Probate Court process. The Wall Street Journal has called the Living Trust the most flexible planning device available.

Gift of Life Insurance

The gift of life insurance is a leveraged gift, meaning that for a relatively small sum of money (the premium), you can provide the charity with a large gift (the policy proceeds payable at death). The policy can be set up so that after a period of time (normally 10 years), the dividends earned will offset the need for future premium payments, while retaining the gift to the charity. When you name Vajrapani Institute as the irrevocable owner and beneficiary on the policy, your premium payments are a charitable income tax deduction. No amount of the policy proceeds received by the charity are included in your Estate for estate tax purposes. Your gift of life insurance may be a newly issued policy or an existing policy on your life.

Retirement Plan Beneficiary Designation

Did you know your retirement plan can be subject to multiple taxes that can reduce by 70% what you plan to leave your family? There is a charitable alternative that can benefit both your family and Vajrapani Institute. Make us your beneficiary of all or part of your retirement plan. any remaining balance will come to us tax-free. Whether it’s a company retirement plan, a private fund such as an IRA, or a combination of the two, you can designate the Wisdom Culture Legacy Circle Fund as the final beneficiary of any remaining funds that you or your loved ones do not use.

Charity Gift Annuity

Through a charitable gift annuity, you can make a charitable gift that will provide you or a loved one with fixed payments for life. The frequency and amount of payments are determined at the time the gift annuity is funded, and you are entitled to an income tax deduction in the year of your gift. The amount remaining at your death will go to the Wisdom Culture Legacy Circle Fund.

Charitable Remainder Trust (CRT)

You can transfer substantial assets into a trust that will provide income to you and/or others for life, or for a period of time up to 20 years; at the end of the trust, the assets remaining in the trust will go to the Wisdom Culture Legacy Circle Fund. The IRS allows a large deduction in the year the assets are donated to the trust. The tax savings are sometimes used to buy life insurance payable to family members. This way you can make a gift to Vajrapani Institute, receive income from the trust and still make a large gift at death to family members.

Upcoming Retreats

“All Into One”: An experiential retreat on Calm Abiding and Emptiness based on Guru Yoga and the 3 Principal Aspects of the Path

Venerable René Feusi

April 25 - May 5, 2024
About the Retreat We are so pleased and honored that one of our most precious teachers is returning again to Vajrapani.   This retreat is a rare opportunity to meditate with Venerable Rene more deeply on the teachings he gave last year in the Bay Area on Guru Yoga as a basis for realizing Mahamudra or realizing "mind as it is."   Utilizing once again the Guru Yoga practice, The Hundred Deities of the Land of Joy, as the life force for collecting merit and clearing obstacles on our spiritual path, Venerable Rene will also offer experiential teachings and meditations…

Online Book Club – Vol 4: Following in the Buddha’s Footsteps

Venerable Gyalten Chimé

May 1 - June 19, 2024
When On Zoom Every Wednesday for 8 weeks 6:30 - 8:30pm Pacific Time Zoom Link will be sent a day before the Wednesday night class.     Prerequisites: None – Open to all students   It is recommended that participants read the first few chapters prior to the first Book Club session on May 1st.   About the Book This weekly online book gathering will feature facilitated conversation, discussion and meditation sessions with Buddhist monastic Venerable Chimé.   Delve into the substance of spiritual practice in this fourth volume of the Dalai Lama’s definitive series on the path to awakening,…

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