The Strength of Volunteerism and Donor Advised Funds

There are volunteers. And then, there is Bruce Morgenstern. Once described by the late local journalist, Wendi Winters, as an “uber volunteer,” Bruce kicked off his volunteer commitments after his retirement from ARINC in 2013.

Bruce’s first volunteer job was at Annapolis High School (AHS) after he met AHS’s signature program facilitator at Leadership Anne Arundel (LAA)’s Flagship Program in 2012. “I was at his doorstep the day after I retired,” said Bruce, who got involved in Change Engineering, the school’s Signature Program and is now working with the curriculum county-wide.

“Being busy in retirement makes me happy and if I can help people while I do it, that’s wonderful,” said Bruce who sits on the boards of LAA, Maryland Voluntary Organizations Active in Disasters, and Anne Arundel-Annapolis Community Emergency Response Team, and is also a City of Annapolis Commission on Aging volunteer, Medicare counselor, and a MIT educational counselor.

Jessica Morgenstern also volunteers her time. As a Master Gardener, she supports environmental causes and is the Vice President for Education for the Central Maryland Chapter of AFCEA, a professional non-profit organization that awards scholarships in a multi-county area to high school seniors who are interested in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) careers.

Through his volunteer work, Bruce gained a better understanding of nonprofits and needs throughout the county. “Nonprofits need to operate like a business so they can meet their mission goals,” he said. “After working with so many diverse, local nonprofits, I knew that we wanted to be more local with our giving.” 

To make that local impact, the couple established the Jessica and Bruce Morgenstern Local Community Impact Endowment Fund at the Community Foundation of Anne Arundel County (CFAAC).

Donor Advised Funds provide convenience and flexibility by allowing donors to support various charitable organizations over their lifetime and beyond ensuring that you are able provide for the causes you care about for generations to come. For many, this is an attractive alternative to a private foundation.

Through an endowment at CFAAC, donors are reassured knowing that their fund will be executed according to their wishes in perpetuity.

“We saw the value and decided to endow our legacy fund. “We’ve been very fortunate to have successful careers; we’ve been able to build wealth that can make us comfortable as we grow older and give us the ability to give back. Providing support to the community while we are alive and understanding how we would continue that support when we are no longer here was important to us. The Community Foundation was the perfect vehicle for doing both as well as helping from a tax perspective.”

A Community Foundation provides support, information, and can help its donors identify critical needs in the county.

“I think it’s important to guide philanthropy. Many people  have money, but they aren’t sure what organizations to support CFAAC ensures that our grants are used wisely and appropriately. When I talk to people about how we did retirement and estate planning, I tell them about the Community Foundation.”