The Blitz Newsletter - July, 2023

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LIVE LONG AND PROSPER

As a child growing up in the 60s, my favorite TV show was the original "Star Trek" series with William Shatner as Captain Kirk, Leonard Nimoy as Spock, DeForest Kelly as Dr. McCoy and James Doohan as Scotty.

One of my favorite lines from the series was Spock’s Vulcan salute, “Live long and prosper.”

on Tax and Estate Planning from the Masonic Charities of the Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania

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I find this as a fitting ending to my time with my readers over the years. My goal for this newsletter was simple: make estate, charitable and financial planning easy to understand by sharing short stories with a touch of humor.

If I accomplished this goal, hopefully I will have helped you prosper as you enjoy a long, fulfilling life.

Now that I am moving onto the next chapter, I hope to keep busy with part-time consulting, golfing and fishing, along with the occasional trips to sunny Florida to thaw out in the winter. My lovely wife, Diane, and I look forward to visiting our son, Paul, in Pittsburgh on a regular basis and seeing our other son, Thomas, in Denver for some good bike rides. We are also planning ahead by getting on the waiting list to move to Masonic Village at Sewickley in several years to be close to our son.

So, as I sign off for the last time, I can finally say, “Live long and prosper. Now, beam me up, Scotty!"

Reflections

Twenty-two years is a long time to travel to visit fellow Masons, their widows and friends of the fraternity, but it was well worth it. As I reflect on some of the events over those years that stand out,

I hope you will enjoy my walk down memory lane:

Presenting Brother Doug, who was 101 years old at the time, with his 75-year service award at a luncheon. When he called me the morning of the reception to ask if he could attend in his golf outfit since he would be arriving from the 18th green for his award, I replied, “Absolutely, yes!”

Visiting Masonic widows to deliver their Blue Slipper pins and reflecting upon the lives of their Masonic husbands. Priceless!

The many hours I spent in the homes of fellow Masons, listening to their life stories. Especially moving were the stories of the many veterans of the armed forces and the hardships they endured in their lifetimes.

The time the Grand Master arranged a luncheon for me with actor Brother Ernest Borgnine (think "McHale’s Navy" and "Airwolf") to host 30 Pennsylvania Masons. Ernest spent three hours meeting privately with each Mason in attendance.

One of my fondest memories is of Brother Gary from Pottstown. Gary retired and had a barbershop. He was a regular contributor to the Masonic Village at Elizabethtown, where his mother resided in the Masonic Health Care Center. When Gary saw me the first time, he insisted I needed a haircut. He was really good! It helped me understand why my wife would drive for an hour to get her hair done. Gary sadly passed away a few years ago, and my hair has never been the same since.

We spend the majority of our adult lives at work, so I would be remiss if I did not mention the wonderful team I had the pleasure of working with in the Office of Mission Advancement and Development. My dear friends, I leave you in very capable hands. Look for the team to continue sharing important information with our donors via an email newsletter.

Since I joined the Masonic Charities, our team has helped facilitate over $200 million in past, present and future gifts to further the vital missions of our philanthropic endeavors.

This is a testament to the generosity of our membership, widows and friends of the fraternity and their belief in the good our charities do every day. Considering last year alone, our Masonic Villages provided $48.5 million in charitable care and services across the state. Our missions simply could not be fulfilled without your selfless gifts.

Thank you for permitting me to be a small part of your life. God Bless!

Neither Masonic Charities of the Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania, nor Alvin H. Blitz, Esq., provide legal, financial or tax advice. None of the information in The Blitz should be deemed legal, financial or tax advice or acted upon by any person without prior consultation with appropriate professional advisors.

Special thanks to Charles & Joan Hazelwood for the photo

Items to Remember

FOR YOUR ESTATE PLAN

When Moses came down from the Temple Mount with the Ten Commandments, he provided God’s guide for conducting a moral life. As I wind down this final issue of The Blitz newsletter, I thought it would be appropriate to provide a top 10 list as a guide for estate and charitable planning. I don’t pretend to be any Moses or God, or even a great authority on this topic, but my hope is that this list will at least provide some simple recommendations for developing an estate plan. So, here we go.

1 Do yourself and your loved ones a great favor by making sure your Will, Financial Power of Attorney, Medical Power of Attorney and Living Will are up-to-date. If you don’t have all of these documents, put them on your to-do list.

Make sure your Will is easily accessible. Preferably, keep it with your attorney. A copy of a lost Will is difficult to probate and can lead to many estate problems.

Anyone age 70½ or older who owns a traditional IRA may consider giving to charity through a qualified charitable distribution (QCD) to avoid income taxes. If charity is included in your estate, leaving part of your traditional IRA to charity and other assets to your heirs can prevent your heirs from paying unnecessary income taxes.

Make sure there are enough assets in your estate to pay the executor fees, attorney fees, taxes and other costs. Distributing all your assets to heirs outside the estate could result in an insolvent estate, causing serious problems for its settlement.

Pennsylvania residents should be adept at understanding the PA Inheritance Tax Code in an attempt to avoid challenging scenarios. I offer two examples. One is the anticipation of death rule, which taxes any gift exceeding $3,000 that is made within one year of death. The other is adding someone to your account who passes away before you do, which results in a tax on the additional account owner, even if he or she never used any funds from the account. Ouch!

Understand not all assets are alike. For those giving to charity upon death, remember that it is usually better to give assets subject to income tax (such as a traditional IRA) to charity and assets (such as your house or brokerage account) that get a step up in basis and avoid income tax, to your heirs. This type of planning results in a win-win for the charity and heirs since charities never pay income tax. Also, Roth IRAs should always go to the heirs.

Remember my rule for establishing a revocable trust in PA. If the advisor says you always need a trust, then move on. If he or she says you never need a trust, then move on. The right answer should be that it depends upon your particular circumstance. One size does not fit all.

If you are leaving a traditional IRA to any heir other than your spouse, consider using a charitable remainder trust for the traditional IRA upon your passing. You can make payments for the life of each heir, and the remaining funds upon the death of the beneficiary goes to charity. This method avoids the 10-year rule requiring the beneficiary to cash out an IRA within 10 years after the death of the account owner, and over time, can result in the beneficiary heir receiving more money than if he or she received the IRA outright.

If you are even remotely considering moving to the Masonic Village at Elizabethtown during your lifetime and you are 60 or older, then get on the priority waiting list NOW! It is only a $1,000 refundable deposit and assures your spot in line in case you want to move there. The waiting period is over four years for cottages right now, and since we do not anticipate any new construction in the foreseeable future, it will only get longer. Signing up at the last minute is NOT an option.

When preparing your estate plan, consider a legacy gift to your favorite charities. For many charitable organizations, estate gifts are a lifeline to their future. You can make a difference!