Planned giving offers a variety of ways to support your current and future needs, provide for loved ones, and support Vermont Humanities in the future. Vermont Humanities works in partnership with the Vermont Community Foundation to offer a full range of planned giving services for donors interested in supporting Vermont’s cultural institutions now and in perpetuity.
Some suggestions for planned gifts are below, please contact Vermont Humanities, Vermont Community Foundation, or your financial advisor to learn more about these options and others.
Gifts from Your Retirement Plan
Perhaps the easiest way to make a planned gift is to name Vermont Humanities as a beneficiary of your IRA, 401(k), 403(b) or other retirement plan. Simply get a change of beneficiary form from your plan provider and make the change! This can often be done online at your provider’s website or on their mobile app. There’s no need for a lawyer, it’s easy and revocable, and there’s no income tax on the distribution that comes ultimately to Vermont Humanities.
Bequests
Including Vermont Humanities in your will or estate plan is as simple as inserting this language in your will: “I give________ [specific dollar amount or percent of your estate] to the Vermont Humanities Council, having its principal offices at 11 Loomis Street, Montpelier, Vermont 05602, for its general purposes.”
Gifts of Life Insurance
If you give Vermont Humanities a life insurance policy, the cash surrender value of the policy or the cost of a replacement policy is deductible as a charitable contribution. If you continue to pay premiums after making your gift, the premiums are also tax-deductible.
Gifts of Real Estate
You could deed your home, farm, or other real property to Vermont Humanities, but retain the right to live in it for the rest of your life, a term of years, or a combination of the two. (You could, of course, donate your house to Vermont Humanities in your will, but you would not receive an income tax deduction, as you would if you made the gift during your lifetime.)
Gifts that Provide Income
These include charitable remainder trusts, deferred gift annuities, and more. Visit our Gifts that Provide Income page to learn more about these options offered in partnership with the Vermont Community Foundation.