Akron Life November 2023

PHILANTHROPY

Bequests What the Gift is: One of the easiest ways to incor porate planned giving into your financial plan is through a bequest, which is a gift that can be given through a will, living trust or estate plan. You can name Akron Community Foundation as a beneficiary. “It’s always good to think of your charitable giving in terms of a percentage of your estate instead of a spe cific dollar amount because you don’t know how long you’re going to live and how much it’s going to cost,” Lederer says. An example is planning to give 50 per cent of your estate to Akron Community Foundation to start a fund that benefits three of your favorite charities. Why Choose It: Bequests can have a big impact. Lederer mentioned an example from this year of a longtime donor to Millennium Fund for Children who gave Akron Community Foundation a $7 mil lion bequest. No matter how much you leave, you can benefit both your kin and charity through your estate plan by designating portions for each. “You can take care of your family within those plans, but then also leave a percentage in there for your favorite charities,” Lederer says. “You’ll have peace of mind knowing that the organizations that you love during your lifetime will be taken care of.”

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NOVEMBER 2023 | akronlife.com