Giving Alternatives: IRAs, Donor Advised Funds are Attractive Options for Some Donors

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The Council appreciates every gift we receive. Each gift helps someone understand and adjust to their experience with vision loss. As the end of 2022 approaches, here are some giving methods for supporting the Council’s work that might be a good fit in your year-end charitable giving plan.

A Gift from your IRA

If you are at least 72 years old and have an individual retirement account (IRA), Internal Revenue Service rules require that you withdraw or distribute a certain amount of that IRA each year. That amount is referred to as a Required Minimum Distribution.

If you do not need the entire required minimum distribution for your own expenses, consider donating some of it directly to the Council. A gift of any size, donated directly from your IRA, is not taxed, and that gift will have a significant impact for Council clients.

Joanne Delforge of Appleton chose to make a gift to the Council from her IRA last year. “I was pleased to learn from my advisor that if I made the donation directly to the Council, I wouldn’t have to pay taxes on that amount,” said Joanne, whose husband had macular degeneration. “When I donate, I usually designate the White Cane Fund.”

Donor Advised Funds

A donor advised fund (DAF) allows you to make a charitable contribution and receive an immediate tax benefit, and then you can recommend distributions from the fund over time.

You start the process by opening a donor advised fund with a financial institution or community foundation. You can add to that fund as often as you like. When you are ready to make a gift from your DAF, you speak with the fund holder—such as Fidelity, Schwab, Morgan Stanley or a community foundation—and request a donation of the amounts you specify be made to your favorite charities.

For example: Randy Jones sets up a DAF of $10,000 at his local community foundation and receives an immediate tax benefit. Sometime later, Randy decides he wants to donate to the Wisconsin Council of the Blind & Visually Impaired. He notifies the foundation of his desire to make a gift to the Council, and the foundation sends the check.

In both examples, your financial advisor or IRA administrator will need this information about the Council:

  • Employer Identification Number: 39-0977746
  • Legal Name: Wisconsin Council of the Blind & Visually Impaired, Inc.
  • Address: 754 Williamson Street, Madison, WI 53703

All gifts are used to support the Council’s mission to promote the dignity and empowerment of the people in Wisconsin who live with vision loss through advocacy, education and vision services.

We invite you to help us celebrate the Council’s 70th anniversary by becoming a donor! To learn more, contact Fund Development Director Lori Werbeckes at LWerbeckes@WCBlind.org or 608-237-8114. You can also donate directly via our website.

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