Planned Giving/ Legacy Giving 

Official Statement in a Will, Trust or Estate Plan

In the estate planning process, you can designate a beneficiary to receive some portion of your assets in your will. Charitable bequests are specifically made to a charitable organization, like Dolphin Research Center. This type of bequest can be a transfer of cash, securities, or other property made through your estate plans.

 Types of Bequests: 

• Specific: designated dollar amount or specific amount of an item or asset
• Residual: a gift made of the residue of the estate after all other wishes have been fulfilled or a percentage of the estate 
• Contingent: a gift made only if other parties are unable to accept their portion of the gift 
• Pertetual: a series of gifts over a period of time

Name Dolphin Research Center as Beneficiary on Your Life Insurance Policy

You can name DRC as the primary beneficiary of your life insurance policy or as a contingent beneficiary should your other beneficiaries not survive you.

• Provide now for a future gift by naming DRC as beneficiary of a life insurance policy.
• At death, the benefits pass to DRC free of federal estate tax and are applied to the program designated by the donor.

IRA Charitable Contributions 

If you are 70 1/2 or older, you can contribute from your IRA as a tax-free distribution to a qualified charity. An amount of $110,000 can be transferred annually from an IRA directly to a charity like DRC, which can count towards your IRA required minimum distribution without being considered taxable income. The donation then lowers your adjusted gross income (AGI). 

As a qualified Charitable IRA roller, the gift must be transferred directly from a traditional IRA to a public charity like DRC during the applicable tax year. (DRC must receive your gift by Dec 31st to qualify for that year)

How much can you donate with an IRA?

Eligible individuals can donate up to $110,000 from each individual IRA account each year. This can be designated to one or multiple charities.

401(K), 403(b) and Pension Assets

You can make charitable contributions from these accounts, but typically only by taking a taxable distribution first, or by rolling funds into an IRA to make a tax-free Qualified Charitable Distribution (QCD) if you are 70 1/2 or older.

With a charitable gift annuity, a tax-deductible gift is made to DRC, which, in turn, provides the donor with fixed annuity payments for a specified period or until the donor passes. 

Because of the complex tax laws and contractual arrangements associated with trusts and annuities, DRC can assist you in locating a professional to coordinate these transactions. Please contact our Development Department at 305-289-1121 ext.205 or email us at [email protected] or [email protected] if you have any questions.