There any many benefits to planned giving:

• Your gift will help the U.S. Province fulfill its mission
• You will enjoy a wide variety of tax benefits
• You can give back to the causes that mean the most to you
• Your gift will generate a long lasting spiritual legacy of prayers and masses offered in your memory by the congregation for its benefactors

To learn more about the best way for you to benefit through a planned gift, please contact your estate planner.
 

Donating appreciated securities, including stocks or bonds, is an easy and tax-effective way for you to make a gift to the U.S. Province.

Qualified Charitable Distributions (QCD)

A QCD is a direct transfer of funds from your IRA custodian, payable to a qualified charity. QCDs can be counted toward satisfying your required minimum distributions (RMDs) for the year, as long as certain rules are met.

In addition to the benefits of giving to charity, a QCD excludes the amount donated from taxable income, which is unlike regular withdrawals from an IRA. Keeping your taxable income lower may reduce the impact to certain tax credits and deductions, including Social Security and Medicare.

Also, QCDs don't require that you itemize, which due to the recent tax law changes, means you may decide to take advantage of the higher standard deduction, but still use a QCD for charitable giving.

Learn more...

Gifts of Real Estate
Donating appreciated securities, including stocks or bonds, is an easy and tax-effective way for you to make a gift to the U.S. Province.

Gifts of Retirement Assets
Donating part or all of your unused retirement assets such as a gift from your IRA, 401(k), 403(b), pension or other tax-deferred plan is an excellent way to make a gift to the U.S. Province.

Gifts of Cash 
A gift of cash is a simple and easy way for you to make a gift.

Gifts of Insurance 
A gift of your life insurance policy is an excellent way to make a gift to charity. If you have a life insurance policy that has outlasted its original purpose, consider making a gift of your insurance policy. For example, you may have purchased a policy to provide for minor children and they are now financially independent adults.
 

One way for you to support the U.S. Province of the Congregation of the Holy Spirit is to make a bequest. A bequest is a gift made to charity in your will or trust. One significant benefit of making a gift by bequest is that it allows you to continue to use the property you will leave to charity during your life. Another benefit is that by making a bequest you are able to leave a lasting legacy.

Types of Bequests

There are a number of ways you can make a bequest to the U.S. Province of the Congregation of the Holy Spirit. You can leave what is called a specific bequest. A specific bequest involves making a gift of a specific asset such as real estate, a car, other property or a gift for a specific dollar amount. For example, you may wish to leave your home or $10,000 to the U.S. Province of the Congregation of the Holy Spirit. Another kind of specific bequest involves leaving a specific percentage of your overall estate to charity. For example, you may wish to leave 10% of your estate to the U.S. Province of the Congregation of the Holy Spirit.

Another kind of bequest is called a residual bequest. A residual bequest is a bequest that is made from the balance of an estate after the will or trust has given away each of the specific bequests. A common residual bequest involves leaving of a percentage of the residue of the estate to charity. For example, you may wish to leave 30% of the residue of your estate to the U.S. Province of the Congregation of the Holy Spirit.

Bequest Benefits

There are no limitations on bequest gifts. Bequests may be made for a general or specific purpose. All bequests are exempt from federal estate taxes. If you have a taxable estate, the estate tax charitable deduction may offset or eliminate estate taxes resulting in a larger inheritance for your heirs.

Bequest Language / Advice of Your Attorney

In order to make a bequest, you should speak with your attorney. Your attorney can help you include a bequest to the U.S. Province of the Congregation of the Holy Spirit in your estate plan. We have provided some basic bequest language to assist you and your attorney.

1. Outright Bequest
If you are considering making an outright bequest to the U.S. Province of the Congregation of the Holy Spirit, we recommend the following language:

Bequest of a Specific Dollar Amount

I hereby give, devise and bequeath $ AMOUNT to the U.S. Province of the Congregation of the Holy Spirit, a non-profit organization located at 1700 West Alabama St., Houston, TX 77098, Federal Tax ID #27-0213864 for U.S. Spiritans general use and purposes.

Bequest of Specific Personal Property

I hereby give, devise and bequeath DESCRIPTION OF PROPERTY to the U.S. Province of the Congregation of the Holy Spirit, a non-profit organization located at 1700 West Alabama St., Houston, TX 77098, Federal Tax ID #27-0213864, for U.S. Spiritans general use and purposes.

Bequest of Specific Real Estate

I hereby give, devise and bequeath all of the right, title and interest in and to the real estate located at ADDRESS OR DESCRIPTION OF PROPERTY to the U.S. Province of the Congregation of the Holy Spirit, a non-profit organization located at 1700 West Alabama St., Houston, TX 77098, Federal Tax ID #27-0213864 for U.S. Spiritans general use and purposes.

2. Restricted Bequest
If you are considering a bequest but would like to ensure that your bequest will be used only for a specific purpose, please let us know. We would be happy to work with you and your attorney to help you identify ways to give that will ensure your charitable objectives can be met. We will also work with you and your attorney to craft language to accomplish your objectives.

In cases where donors are making a restricted bequest, we recommend that your attorney include the following provision to give the U.S. Spiritans flexibility should it no longer be possible for the U.S. Province to use your gift as you originally intended:

If, in the judgment of the Director of the Spiritan Office for Mission Advancement and his advisors of the U.S. Province of the Congregation of the Holy Spirit, it shall become impossible for the U.S. Province of the Congregation of the Holy Spirit to use this bequest to accomplish the specific purposes of this bequest, the U.S. Province of the Congregation of the Holy Spirit may use the income and principal of this gift for such purpose or purposes as the Provincial determines is most closely related to the restricted purpose of my bequest.

Please contact us at (713) 522-2882 if you have any questions about how to make a bequest to the U.S. Spiritans or to request any additional information that might be helpful to you and your attorney as you consider making a bequest to us. Our mailing address is 1700 West Alabama St. Houston, TX 77098.