The new Planned Giving and Endowment Committee has been formed to help educate the congregation about tax efficient charitable giving and to facilitate planned giving and the creation of a TIC endowment.

Current tax and other laws create many significant incentives and other benefits that minimize the true financial cost of giving to charity. Using properly structured charitable giving techniques, giving a dollar to charity does not necessarily mean taking a dollar from your pocket.

Excellent synagogue financial management by our very competent professional and lay leadership, has consistently enabled the synagogue to meet the ordinary ongoing needs of our diverse community of members within the financial constraints of the synagogue’s annual operating budget. However, living year to year is not the best way for a synagogue of our size and scope to comfortably continue to meet the needs of its members.

It would be highly beneficial to begin to establish an endowment that would ensure TIC’s strength and vitality for generations to come. Establishing an institutional endowment is not something that we could (or should) expect to accomplish overnight. In addition, it is not something that should require financial hardship, sacrifice or pain.

Charitable Lead and Charitable Remainder Trusts, Charitable Gift Annuities, gifts of appreciated securities, bequests of certain types of tax deferred retirement plans and numerous other techniques can enable TIC members to leverage their charitable dollars while minimizing any financial hardship. We are even exploring how TIC members could donate their used cars for the benefit of the synagogue. With the proper thought and planning, together we can build an endowment incrementally over many years.

Please contact Steve Galowitz Stephen@galowitz.com
for more information about charitable giving opportunities or if you are interested in joining the committee.