IN THIS ISSUE
FOUNDATION NEWS
A Message from our President & CEO
Celebration of Philanthropy Nominations Now Open
MAKING A DIFFERENCE
Welcome to CFAAC
Common Planned Giving Terms and What They Mean
COMMUNITY IMPACT
How our County’s Crisis Intervention Teams Can Help Lessen Trauma, Reduce Arrest, and Improve Officer and Community Safety
Fund Holders Learn About CFAAC Investment Strategies and More at Investment Briefing
STRENGTHENING NONPROFITS
ALICE COVID-19 Impact Report Now Available
AMC Scholarship for Nonprofit Board Training
NEWS FOR PROFESSIONAL ADVISORS
Case Study: How to Spot a Charitable Remainder Trust Opportunity
Planned Giving Starts Now: Tips and Talking Points for Lifetime Charitable Gifts
An Eye on the Law: Recent Updates and Rulings
FOUNDATION NEWS
Summer at CFAAC is beginning with excitement!
First, we are excited to announce that CFAAC has been awarded a generous $500,000 grant from Deerbrook Charitable Trust to support our Fund for Anne Arundel. This year, Fund for Anne Arundel grants were focused on supporting programs to address the mental, physical, and behavioral health of children in Anne Arundel County. This significant grant, combined with the support of other community members, will help to ensure CFAAC’s grantmaking continues to address critical needs in our community and improve the quality of life for all county residents, now and in the future. We are so grateful to Deerbrook Charitable Trust for believing in this initiative and for the impact this funding will have in our community.
Second, we are excited to share that our 2021 Celebration of Philanthropy will take place “in-person” on Friday, November 5th. We are planning the event, and we will post details in the coming weeks. You won’t want to miss this great opportunity to recognize and honor community members who share their time, resources, and talents to make an impact in our county. Read more about the nomination details in this newsletter.
And finally, we have received terrific feedback from donors and fundholders about our 2020 Annual Report, which is now available online. It feels so good to be able to highlight and share all that we have accomplished together for our community! Let us know what you think; we’d love to hear from you.
I know that many of you share the same excitement we do in caring for our county. It shows in so many ways through your commitment to making our community a wonderful place to live, work, and play. Every day our team works hard to ensure that CFAAC can remain steadfast in our mission to connect people who care with causes that matter. Donating to our Community Leadership Circle Annual Campaign will help us continue to play an active leadership role in Anne Arundel County, and your contribution will impact our work in all corners of the county. For example, your support will ensure that we can research, assess, and publish our next Community Needs Assessment report, offer programs such as our Trauma Informed County webinar series, pull together our community resources, act as a catalyst for new ideas, and most importantly, be an advocate and champion for local nonprofits. Please consider making a gift to support CFAAC. Your gift can be made securely online here. Many thanks!
Until next time,
Mary Spencer
President & CEO
Celebration of Philanthropy Award Nominations Now Open
Do you know someone you would like to thank for making a difference in Anne Arundel County? Nominate them for a 2021 Celebration of Philanthropy Award!
On November 05, 2021, CFAAC’s Celebration of Philanthropy Awards will highlight and honor eight generous and committed community members who represent the depth and breadth of philanthropy in Anne Arundel County. If you know an individual, family, or business making an impact on our community by donating their time, talent, or financial resources, consider nominating them for a 2021 Celebration of Philanthropy Award. You can recognize outstanding philanthropic work in eight different categories this year.
If you have questions, need assistance, or want to discuss your nomination, call Amy Francis at 410.280.1102 ext. 102.
Nominations must be received by C.O.B Friday, July 23. Don’t miss this chance to honor and celebrate a community difference maker! Email completed nomination forms, written statements, and supporting documents to amy@cfaac.org.
MAKING A DIFFERENCE
Welcome to CFAAC
The Community Foundation of Anne Arundel County is thrilled to welcome the following to our family of funds:
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Galen’s Gift Fund: A Donor Advised Fund established in memory of Gregory “Galen” Meehan to provide support to organizations and programs that provide essential human services, related to poverty, homelessness, addiction, and legal aid.
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John Starr Memorial Musician’s Fund: A Designated Fund, established in memory of John Starr Jr., a local jazz flutist and gifted musician, will provide an annual grant to the Annapolis Musicians Fund for Musicians (AMFM) for a named scholarship. The scholarship will be awarded to an Anne Arundel County student, high school age and above, who is pursuing an education in the field of music (composition, instrumental or vocal).
Common Planned Giving Terms and What They Mean
Planned giving or legacy giving describes any major gift made in lifetime or at death as part of a donor’s overall financial and/or estate planning. Planned giving can include bequests, gifts of appreciated stock, real estate/property, artwork, life insurance, or a retirement plan. Legacy gifts are typically more substantial than those made during a donor’s lifetime.
Using a planned gift, donors can establish a Legacy Fund at CFAAC that becomes active upon their death. Donors may designate one or more nonprofits as the beneficiary, and they have the ability to name successor advisors to the fund.
For example, CFAAC Board Member, Kate Caldwell, has taken the important step of including CFAAC in her estate plans. While providing for her husband and three adult children, she also believes strongly in supporting her local community. Her planned gift, designated as a percentage from one of her IRAs, will be used to establish the Caldwell Family Endowment Fund, a Donor Advised Fund.
Kate says, “At the time of my eventual realized gift, I have full confidence that CFAAC will invest my gift wisely to provide a stream of income which will support the Foundation’s operations and its work in the community in perpetuity. I encourage others to take this simple and tax-wise step.”
Some people might wonder what the terms mean when hearing someone speak about planned giving. Click here to take a closer look.
COMMUNITY IMPACT
Community Impact Speaker Series Presents: How our County’s Crisis Intervention Teams Can Help Lessen Trauma, Reduce Arrest, and Improve Officer and Community Safety
July 15, 10:00 am via Zoom
Anne Arundel County residents should be proud of the services now being offered to our community members who are suffering from mental health or addiction issues. Join us as we get an inside look into our county’s award-winning Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) Unit.
The Unit, formed in 2014, is a partnership of specially trained police officers and the Crisis Response System, the county’s health services and mental health and addiction professionals. The partnership was formed to assist individuals with mental illnesses and/or addictions access treatment in lieu of the typical criminal justice response.
Lieutenant Steven Thomas, Anne Arundel County Police Department and Jen Corbin, Director of Crisis Response, Anne Arundel County Mental Health Agency, will explain the evolution of the police department and crisis response integration as well as how the partnership helps individuals and the community in their time of need. The unit assists after traumatic incidents, when someone seeks recovery from addiction, and when someone with mental health challenges is involved in the criminal justice system or has suicidal ideation. In 2020, the County’s CIT Unit was recognized by CIT International as their CIT Unit of the Year.
This one-hour virtual interaction is open to the public and free to registered participants. The webinar is part of a year-long CFAAC Community Impact Speaker’s Series on Becoming a Trauma Informed County.
Fund Holders Learn About CFAAC Investment Strategies and More at Investment Briefing
On June 15, thirty-two fund holders joined CFAAC’s Investment Briefing, which provided participants with information about the organization’s fiduciary responsibilities, including management, oversight, and performance of the foundation’s assets. Allison Gormier of Mason Investment Advisory Services explained CFAAC’s four investment pools, reported on the current state of the market, how investments are faring, and CFAAC’s investment strategies.
“We are very pleased with our partnership with Mason Advisory as they track and maintain best practices for investing community foundation funds, including follow our board approved Investment Policy Statement to ensure that resources are available to support our community, now and in the future,” said CFAAC President and CEO Mary Spencer. “Our mission to protect and prudently grow charitable gifts through strategic investment strategies is at the heart of our work to safeguard our donor’s investments. Unlike individual investment strategies that employ a variety of risk criteria and tolerance, our organization’s investment policy was established to ensure stability in funding, particularly for those nonprofits who rely on support from the funds established to support them annually.” Read more on our website.
STRENGTHENING NONPROFITS
ALICE COVID-19 Impact Report Now Available
Have you heard the term, ALICE? ALICE stands for Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed. ALICE households are above Federal Poverty Level but earn too much to qualify for most public assistance programs, making them unable to cover basic living expenses (housing, transportation, childcare, food, healthcare, and technology). When COVID-19 hit, approximately 35% of all households in Anne Arundel County (approximately 212,687 households) were already struggling to make ends meet, setting the stage for the unprecedented economic impact of the pandemic. This includes households below the Federal Poverty Level (FPL) and households who are ALICE. The results of this survey provide important insights into the issues households in the state faced during this time of profound uncertainty.
As we begin to prepare data for CFAAC’s 2021 Community Needs Assessment, Poverty Amidst Plenty, we use studies like this one, to help identify the critical needs in the county. To learn more about ALICE in Maryland, visit UnitedForALICE.org/
AMC Scholarship for Nonprofit Board Training
The Ardath M. Cade (AMC) Scholarship Fund awards up to $1,000 per applicant and can pay for conference fees, seminars, training, and some travel costs for professional development. Awards may be made to board members working in the following nonprofit sectors: Community Arts, Youth Development, Community Associations in Neighborhood Revitalization Areas, Fair Housing & Civil Rights, Emergency Food Assistance, Health & Wellness, Diversion & Re-Entry, and more!
To download the application and read more about the AMC Scholarship click here.
AMC invites nonprofits to find trainings that meet their needs, but a great place to start is with the listing of nonprofit training resources provided by Maryland Nonprofits. In addition, the Community Law Center lists trainings for nonprofits and community associations, while the Community Association Institute provides resources and trainings for Community Associations and Homeowners Associations.
NEWS FOR PROFESSIONAL ADVISORS
Case Study: How to Spot a Charitable Remainder Trust Opportunity
Imagine that a client sits down at your conference room table and begins the meeting something like this:
“I’ve got a prime tract of land I bought for $200,000 just 10 years ago, and now I am sure I could sell it for $2 million because the market is so hot for new residential development in the area. I need to act fast because I am not sure how much longer this real estate boom will last.”
What’s your response? Before you suggest that your client put the property up for sale as soon as possible, consider asking a few more questions that could save your client a lot of money and help satisfy the client’s income and charitable giving goals at the same time. After listening to your client’s responses, suggesting a Charitable Remainder Trust (CRT) could be the way to go. A CRT is a “split interest” charitable planning tool that allows your client to transfer an asset (in this case, real estate) to an irrevocable trust, retain an income stream, and earmark what’s left (the remainder) to pass to a charity or charities of the client’s choice. Click here to imagine the rest of the conversation…
Planned Giving Starts Now: Tips and Talking Points for Lifetime Charitable Gifts
According to 2020 statistics released in June 2021 as part of the Giving USA report, Americans’ bequests to charity totaled nearly $42 billion last year. That’s a tremendous amount of charitable giving flowing to community organizations from donors after they die. Still, it’s a fraction of the $324 billion Giving USA reports was given to charities in 2020 by living individuals.
As you work with your philanthropic clients, consider helping them make meaningful gifts during their lifetime, in addition to discussing their estate plans for distribution after death.
Here are three tips for encouraging your clients to consider “giving while living” as part of their plans:
1. Clients get to see the results of their gifts. Encourage them to get involved, whether as a volunteer, board member, or simply an observer at a site visit to each charity they support.
2. Clients can involve their children and grandchildren in making the gifts, especially when the clients are working with CFAAC through a family Donor Advised fund or another collaborative vehicle.
3. Clients are eligible for an income tax deduction for lifetime charitable gifts, and the gifted assets are no longer subject to future estate taxes.
CFAAC can help you assist your clients with a philanthropy plan, starting with the basics. Click here to review three talking points to help you begin the conversation with your philanthropic clients…
An Eye on the Law: Recent Updates and Rulings
The Community Foundation stays on top of tax cases, IRS rulings, and legislation that could impact the advice and counsel you provide your clients on matters involving charitable giving.
Click on the current highlights and reminders below to read more.