Stock gifts popular way to donate

By AMY HOAK - H&R Staff Writer, Decatur Herald & Review

DECATUR - People have been taking stock of their financial assets over the past couple weeks and donating, well, their stock to charities.

Improvements in the market have brought life back into peaked portfolios, and more people are giving them to charity in return for an income tax write-off, said Lucy Murphy, executive director of The Community Foundation of Decatur/ Macon County.

Wally Sparks, first vice president of Morgan Stanley in Decatur, said he advises clients to take this route of giving because they can avoid a capital gains tax on their earnings yet can write off the full value of the stock while filing income taxes. "Giving away appreciated assets is more efficient than writing a check," he said.

Those who have owned the stock for more than a year also qualify for a deduction of up to 30 percent of their adjusted gross income, Murphy said. The charity doesn't pay the capital gains tax when it cashes out the stock.

Lately, local contributors have been taking the advice.
One man recently gave stock valued at $13,000 (which he purchased for a fraction of that 20 years ago), Murphy said. A $50,000 donation given in the same fashion will start an endowment fund for Theatre 7. The organization collected more than $300,000 in funds in December alone, tripling the collection amount of a typical month, she said.

But large financial gifts aren't the only way the community is showing its heart.
Organizations such as Homeward Bound Pet Shelter sent out Christmas cards asking for donations but heard responses from those not on the mailing list, said Betti Ground, assistant manager for the shelter. Toys, bones, food, blankets and cash gifts are all tax deductible with a receipt.

Last-minute 2004 donations can be accepted through today.
"People will still be doing these gifts until the market closes on the 31st," Murphy said. "It's not too late."

Amy Hoak can be reached at ahoak@;herald-review.com or 421-7972.

Schmalz family launches Theater 7 Endowment

(Decatur) – Theater 7 has announced that Doug and Peg Schmalz of Decatur have contributed $50,000 to initiate the Theater 7 Endowment Fund at The Community Foundation. The Schmalz family also provided a Matching Fund of $25,000, challenging Theater 7 supporters to raise an additional $25,000 for the endowment in 2005.

Theater 7 board president Jerry Johnson stated, “The enormous generosity of these kind donors means so much to us. We will have a permanent source of income to pay our fixed costs, and so our efforts can all go into making our seasons’ productions the very best they can be.”

The Schmalz family has created similar endowments for Boys and Girls Club of Decatur, United Way of Decatur and Mid-Illinois, and the Mt. Zion School Foundation. Their actions demonstrate commitment to building the community’s charitable trust fund, which is the purpose of The Community Foundation.

Lead gift made to Communityworks Endowment

Donation from the Darrell Beck Charitable Fund

(Decatur, December 3, 2004) – The Community Foundation of Decatur/Macon County announced today that Mr. Darrell Beck of Decatur has contributed $25,000 to initiate the Communityworks Endowment Fund at The Community Foundation. This gift and a matching grant from the Grand Victoria Foundation will be known as the Darrell Beck Communityworks Endowment.

Mr. Beck’s gift begins a planned $1,000,000 endowment to provide support for projects in the areas of childcare, workforce development, and land use and preservation in Decatur and Macon County. The Grand Victoria Foundation of Elgin, Illinois, will match all local donations to the Communityworks Endowment up to $225,000.

Darrell Beck and his late wife Ursula are well known for their generous donations to many local and statewide organizations. The Beck Charitable Fund, established ten years ago, has distributed over $500,000 of earnings to local causes.

Beck’s leadership in launching the Communityworks Endowment demonstrates support for The Community Foundation’s purpose, which is to establish a permanent charitable trust fund for the Decatur community. According to Mr. Beck, “If we work together and pool our resources, we will continually improve the quality of life in Decatur. We all have the power to invest in our community’s future.”

The Community Foundation of Decatur/Macon County was founded in 1998 by a group of community and non-profit leaders. Working to increase local philanthropy and build the community's permanent charitable capital, the foundation has accumulated approximately $3,000,000 in permanent assets and made $377,480 in grants to local nonprofits.

Grand Victoria Foundation, matching grants to the Communityworks Endowment, is a private foundation created by Hyatt Development Corporation and Mandalay Resort Group, owners and operators of the Grand Victoria Casino in Elgin, Illinois. Grand Victoria Foundation’s grant making program focuses on education, economic development and the environment with special emphasis on child care, workforce development, and land use and protection.

For more information contact Lucy Murphy at The Community Foundation of Decatur/Macon County, 125 N. Water Street, Suite 200, Decatur, Illinois, 429-3000; www.endowdecatur.org.

High administrative cost of private foundations

From Crain's Chicago Business - Tuesday, November 30, 2004

A new study by the Donors Forum of Chicago suggests that foundations with assets of $5 million to $9.9 million make the least efficient funding organizations. According to the survey, administrative costs at Chicago foundations in that asset range amounted to 22.2% of their grants in 2002, well above the 13.5% average of the city's foundations.

Executives at these small foundations attribute their inefficiency to being just big enough to need offices and employees that smaller trusts don't. "That's exactly it," says Jim Bartell, executive director of the $9.3-million Barrington-based Oberweiler FOUNDATION, which was included in the study. "We're paying the same heat, rent and power costs as somebody with $50 million."

So why not dispense with all of that overhead and band together with other rich and generous people?

"It really comes down to control," says Cheryl McRoberts, administrator of the $7.3 million C. Lewis Meyer Family FOUNDATION in Westchester, which is currently being broken up as part of a dispute among family members. "It's not so easy to find people who want to spend their money the same way you do."

where to turn

Community foundations think they have a solution. Donor-advised funds — available through the Chicago Community Trust, the Jewish Federation and others — enable philanthropists to donate money to community foundations, who spend it in accordance with the donor's wishes, and in the donor's name.

And even though community foundations are staffed with experts in various program areas, their money gets delivered with fewer overhead costs taken out than at small foundations.
You don't have to wrangle with the IRS for months before establishing a donor fund, either.
"You can start a fund in a single day, assuming you have the means," says a Chicago Community Trust spokeswoman. "If you've got less than $10 million, it makes a lot more sense to do it this way."

©2004 by Crain Communications Inc.