LEGACY GIVING Huntsville Botanical Garden
Creating a Lasting Legacy Leaving a legacy is a final statement of what you have held close to your heart during your lifetime.
Where you direct your lifetime of earnings and savings says a great deal about you: what you have held dear, what has touched you and enriched your life, and what you want to ensure for the next generation. Volunteers and philanthropy founded the Huntsville Botanical Garden. Our founders envisioned a beautiful place for our community to enjoy, and they planted a seed that continues to grow into the thriving Garden we know today. You can have the same meaningful impact on the future of our Garden by making or leaving a legacy gift. The Garden exists to connect people to plants to support a healthier quality of life for the region. Our vision is to inspire, encourage, and catalyze our community, and through your philanthropy, you can help ensure that we can continue pursuing this purpose. By supporting the Garden through thoughtful financial and estate planning, your gift will have a long-term impact that will make a difference for generations to come. You can choose to leave a legacy in two ways: through an immediate gift to the endowment fund or a planned gift.
Huntsville Botanical Garden Foundation The Huntsville Botanical Garden Foundation was formed in 1997 to support, promote, and assist with the activities of the Huntsville Botanical Garden. The Foundation is a separately incorporated 501(c)3 tax-exempt organization that receives, invests, maintains, and distributes gifts for the benefit and growth of the Garden. A Board of Directors, whose members are approved by the Garden’s Board of Directors, governs the Foundation’s activities. The Foundation’s primary financial support to the Garden is provided through careful management of the endowment fund.
Gifts to the Endowment Fund A gift to the endowment fund ensures the upkeep, growth, and long-term care of the Garden so that future generations can enjoy it. The Huntsville Botanical Garden Foundation manages the endowment fund to ensure longterm financial resources for the Garden. The Foundation invests the endowment fund principal to generate a steady and reliable income stream. Each year, the Garden receives a disbursement of funds from the endowment fund while the principal is kept intact so that it may grow in value over time, creating a perpetual source of support for the Garden’s future. Gifts to the endowment fund help increase the amount of this annual disbursement. In this way, gifts
to the endowment fund provide the Garden with a reliable and permanent revenue stream that provides additional support for programs and special projects. The Garden welcomes contributions of any amount to the endowment fund. Gifts are fully eligible for a charitable income tax deduction. By making a gift to the endowment fund, donors can help strengthen the Garden, ensure its longterm financial health, and leave a legacy that will give in perpetuity.
Planned Gifts A planned gift is a thoughtful investment in the future growth of the Huntsville Botanical Garden. By including the Garden in your estate plans, you can meet your own financial needs while also supporting the long-term mission of the Garden. No matter how you leave your gift – whether you use cash, appreciated securities or stock, real estate, personal property, life insurance, a retirement plan, or a charitable trust – the benefits of funding a planned gift can make this type of philanthropic giving beneficial both for you and for the Garden.
With planned giving, any gift is meaningful. Planned gifts may enable you to make a larger gift than you could make from your annual disposable income. Most planned gifts also have the potential to reduce taxes on your estate, income, and capital gains. A planned gift allows you to enjoy these tax benefits while making a more significant gift than you may have been able to make during your lifetime.
Don’t keep your gift a secret! If you have already remembered the Garden through your estate, please let us know so that we can formally recognize you and your gift.
There are a variety of ways to reach your financial and charitable goals while supporting the Garden through a planned gift: Bequest Intention - Include a provision in your will directing that a gift be paid to the Garden upon your death or the death of your survivors. Appreciated Assets - Transfer appreciated securities (stocks, bonds, mutual funds) you have owned for one year or more to the Garden. Charitable Remainder Trust Transfer cash, securities, or other appreciated property into a trust.
Charitable Lead Trust - Transfer cash, securities, or other appreciated property in a charitable lead trust. Life Insurance - Pay death proceeds of a life insurance policy to the Garden as a charitable gift. Retirement Plans - Name the Garden the successor beneficiary of all or a portion of your IRA, 401(k), or another qualified retirement account.
Planned gifts help sustain the Garden’s work for years to come. Just as a perennial flower adds perpetual beauty to the Garden by returning and multiplying each year, your planned gift will support the Garden for future generations to enjoy. Planned gifts are made to the endowment fund unless otherwise directed by the donor. The Foundation manages these funds to ensure their growth and serve as a reliable, long-term financial resource for the Garden.
The Legacy You Leave, Recognized Now
The Perennial Gift Society is comprised of donors like you who believe in the positive and powerful impact of the Garden on our community and region. The Perennial Gift Society recognizes those who have made or pledged legacy gifts to the Huntsville Botanical Garden. These remarkable individuals are planting seeds for the future, seeds that will sustain the Garden for generations to come and ensure that the work of our mission continues.
As a member of the Perennial Gift Society, you will allow us to thank and recognize you today, even though it may be years before your gift is realized. Becoming a member of the Perennial Gift Society is an honor with special privileges reserved for those who make a legacy gift:
Recognition in the Garden’s annual report Recognition on the Perennial Gift Society wall in the
Garden’s Guest Center Invitation to the annual Perennial Gift Society dinner Invitations to special events throughout the year
Create Your Lasting Legacy at the Garden Thank you for your interest in leaving a legacy to help sustain the mission and impact of the Huntsville Botanical Garden. We would be pleased to work with you and your financial or tax advisor to establish the legacy gift(s) that are most appropriate to achieve your philanthropic and financial goals. Our communication with you about legacy giving is strictly confidential and comes without obligation to give.
development@hsvbg.org
256-830-4447
www.hsvbg.org/planned-giving
The Huntsville Botanical Garden Foundation, a 501(c)3 non-profit organization, is the supporting entity for the Huntsville Botanical Garden. Tax-deductible contributions to the Foundation are for the sole purpose of advancing the mission of the Huntsville Botanical Garden.
4747 Bob Wallace Avenue | Huntsville, Alabama 35805 www.hsvbg.org/donate Tax Identification # 63-1210114
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