Legacy Giving

Planned Giving

The monastery has received several requests from friends of the monastery regarding planned giving.  A planned gift is any major gift made during your lifetime or after death as part of your overall financial and estate planning.  This may also be called charitable gift planning or legacy giving.



Above are mentioned some of the main ways that people make these types of gifts. If this interests you please continue reading for a more descriptive explanation of how each form of giving works.  If you have any questions or if you want to explore how the monastery can work with you or your accountant, attorney or financial advisor to facilitate these types of gifts, please call, email or write to the Economos, Father Seoirse.

(920) 881-4009  -  [email protected]   -  P.O. BOX 276, St. Nazianz, WI. 54232


Outright Gift: You can have your Family Foundation, Trust Fund or Donor-advised fund make an outright grant to Holy Resurrection Monastery.  

Will/ Living Trust: The deed to a personal residence (house, condominium, vacation house, farm) can be given to the monastery while retaining your right (and the right of your spouse) to continue living in the home for life. At your death (or your spouse's death if later), the monastery receives the property outright.

Real Estate: Real estate that is owned outright and which has appreciated in value can be given to the monastery. The donor can generally deduct the fair market value of the property (up to the AGI percentage limitation). When a charity sells donated appreciated property, the capital gain then escapes taxation, up to the AGI percentage limits.

Securities: The best securities to donate tend to be those that have increased substantially in value. As with real estate, the donor can generally deduct the fair market value of the security and the capital gain escapes taxation when the security is sold by the charity.

Life Insurance: If the monastery is made the owner and beneficiary of an existing life insurance policy, the donor can deduct the value of the policy as of the date of the transfer of ownership. The donor may then deduct all future amounts given to the charity to pay the premiums. If a charity is named just the beneficiary of an insurance policy on the donor's life, no current income tax deduction is available. At the donor's death, however, the donor's estate receives an estate tax charitable deduction for the full amount of the policy death benefit.

Retirement Plan Assets/ IRA rollover: The monastery can be named as beneficiary of the funds in an IRA or employer-sponsored retirement plan, providing a double tax benefit. At the owner's death, the gift will be eligible for the estate tax charitable deduction and the charity will pay no income tax on the value of the retirement plan assets it receives. Through 2012, taxpayers who are at least age 70-1/2 can make tax-free distributions of up to $100,000 from traditional or Roth IRAs directly to charities. This provision is currently scheduled to expire at the end of 2012.

Charitable Remainder Trusts: A beneficiary (the monastery) named by the donor receives the income interest for life or for a stated number of years, after which the charity receives the remainder interest. The beneficiary can be the donor, spouse or other family member. The donor receives an immediate charitable income tax deduction based on the present value of the charity's remainder interest. A charitable remainder trust is especially advantageous for donors with highly-appreciated assets, such as growth stocks and mutual funds or raw land, that need to be sold and converted to income-producing assets. In a charitable remainder annuity trust, the yearly income stream is a fixed amount determined at inception of the trust, while a charitable remainder unitrust pays a yearly income stream based on a percentage of the current value of trust assets, which are revalued each year.

Charitable Lead Trusts: The charity receives the income interest for a stated period of time, with the remainder interest then going to a beneficiary named by the donor. The donor receives a current charitable income tax deduction for the present value of the charity's income interest

Charitable Gift Annuity: A charitable gift annuity is a simple, contractual agreement between a donor and the monastery, through which assets are transferred to the charity (the monastery) in return for the charity's promise to pay the donor an annual income. There is no trust involved. Instead, through a contractual agreement, in return for the donated property, the charity pays a fixed amount to one or two annuitants (e.g., the donor alone or the donor and spouse) for life. The annuity payments from the charity may begin immediately or be deferred until a future point in time. The amount of the annuity payment is higher for older annuitants and lower for younger annuitants, based on life expectancy. The donor receives an income tax deduction equal to the difference between the fair market value of the donated property and the present value of the income payments. A charitable gift annuity is an attractive way to turn appreciated property into income without the donor being liable for capital gains tax on the appreciation. One potential disadvantage, however, is that unlike a charitable remainder trust, where the property is held in a separate trust, the charity's promise to pay the income from a charitable gift annuity is a general claim against the charity's assets.