Former Bakery Owner Donates
Millions to Hospital in Estate
The
Silver Cross Foundation recently received a $1.8
million charitable donation from the estate of Jennie Mariner, a former foundation trustee
and volunteer. Mrs. Mariner passed away in Arizona in June at the age of 91.
Her generous donation will be used to help pay for the new $365 million
hospital which recently opened in 2012 in New Lenox.
Mrs.
Mariner co-owned and operated Rainbow Bakery. For decades, she helped as a
volunteer and eventually as a trustee for the Silver Cross Foundation and
Hospital in Joliet. She was a member of the Silver Cross Advisory Board,
president of the Childerguild, and the first female to be elected to the Board
of Trustees. Paul Pawlak, president and CEO of Silver Cross Hospital, said "Through her selfless acts of kindness, over the
past fifty years she has touched thousands of lives in such a positive way. Her
generous estate gift will allow us to help many more patients in the years to
come."
Charitable Giving Options in Illinois
If you wish to leave part of your estate to a charitable
cause or organization, there are many ways that it can be accomplished. Each
has its own advantages and disadvantages in terms of taxes and estate planning.
Lifetime Gifts
Making donations during your lifetime comes with multiple
benefits. First, you get to enjoy the fruits of your giving while you are still
alive and feel the gratitude of those that you have helped. Second, giving
gifts inter vivos, while still alive, has estate planning and tax
advantages. You can give up to $14,000 away, tax free, under Illinois’ gift tax laws. If you gift
more than that amount in any given year, the difference goes towards the
lifetime exclusion of $5.34 million. Giving during your lifetime also takes
away the added tax on estate after you are gone.
Charitable Remainder Trust
A charitable remainder trust allows you to apportion your
estate to your heirs as you see fit, and the remainder of the estate, or any
gifts that you place into the trust during your lifetime, go to the charity.
You get to retain the income of the trust during your lifetime, and you are
permitted to take an income tax reduction for the year that you made a donation
to the trust.
A charitable foundation is a growing
trend for leaving money to worthy causes, where the account is set up in your
name and the funds are distributed by you or your heirs. But there are
significant regulatory and administrative requirements attached to foundations.
In addition to being audited annually, charitable foundations must also file
yearly forms with the IRS that provide detailed administrative and financial
information. In addition, there are strict rules regarding self-dealing,
conflicts of interest, political activities, and the like that must be adhered
to by the members of the foundation. However, there are many tax and estate
planning advantages to setting up your charitable endeavors through a
foundation.
Donor-Advised Funds
A donor-advised fund is similar to a charitable foundation
but negates many of the administrative hassles that come with it. This type of
account is set up in your name, similar to a foundation, but the funds are
handled by an organization instead of by you. The organization then decides how
to administer the funds and makes distributions to charity.
Call an Illinois Estate Planning Attorney Today
If you wish to leave a piece of your estate to a worthy cause
or have other questions regarding estate planning and live near Northbrook,
Evanston, Skokie, Glenview, Glencoe, or Highland Park, the experienced estate
planning attorneys at Orlowsky & Wilson, Ltd. can help. Call
or contact the office today for a confidential
consultation of your case.
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