Generosity is a matter of action, intentions and heart. Our way to describe it is the grateful outpouring of gifts to others, out of our love for God. II Corinthians 4:5-7 – Paul says, “We have the treasure in clay jars, so that it may be made clear that this extraordinary power belongs to God […]
Many people ask what is the deduction for people over 65. The new law says if you’re 65 or older, you may increase your standard deduction by $1550, if you file single or head of household. If you are married filing jointly and you or your spouse is 65 or older, you may increase your […]
This year’s Annual Conference was anything but routine for a number of reasons, one of which was the Development Company’s special 4% Reserve Certificate. After months of teases and finally the big announcement, Methodists who hadn’t planned to come to Conference changed their mind. This was an offer far too good to pass up, but […]
I’m new at the Foundation and it’s exciting to see the many programs we have. I found a brochure this week with the title: What Giving Plan Is Best For You?” (view here). I’m amazed at how many different things we offer. We have “Current Gifts”, Deferred Gifts” and “Charitable Life Income”. We can offer […]
My wife and I were fortunate to be able to celebrate our 35th anniversary in Paris at the end of June. We marveled at all the sites – the Eiffel Tower, the Luxembourg Gardens, Sacre Couer and Montmartre, the Louvre and Notre Dame – but the history buff in me kept intruding into my thoughts. As […]
We’re starting 2018 with sweeping tax laws that bring non-profits some good news and some news that’s not so good. Deductions have been changed. Standard deductions will be nearly doubled. This will soften the blow of the elimination of personal exemptions. The personal exemption of $4500 deduction for each taxpayer that could be taken – […]
The Foundation awards a limited number of grants to Virginia Methodist Churches and affiliated agencies of the VA United Methodist Conference. Through these awards of grant dollars, we seek to enhance and expand these ministries. The ultimate goal is to provide assistance, whether it be a one-time grant or a grant that will help a […]
Investors were treated to a wonderful morning of investment insights from our Merrill Lynch advisors on May 16th. The following are some key points from the presentations. First, and maybe most importantly, he encouraged us to remember that the fundamental economic backdrop is positive. The US economy continues to grow and strengthen. GDP is expected […]
During the past 2 months, we’ve looked specifically at what types of gifts people can make – to their church directly, to an endowment fund, or for another designated purpose. We talked about the simplest gifts – gifts of cash, gifts of securities and gifts of real estate. Then we talked about more complex gifts – […]
In last month’s newsletter, we began talking about what specific gifts people can make – to their church directly, to an endowment fund, or for another designated purpose. We talked about the simplest gifts – gifts of cash, gifts of securities and gifts of real estate. Today, we begin to discuss more complex gifts. These are not […]