Giving

Planned Giving

Throughout the years generous parishioners who love Saint Thomas Church and its Choir School have shown their support by including the Church or Choir School in their estate plans. Indeed, both the church and school could not exist in their present forms without the estate contributions of previous generations. There are many ways to include Saint Thomas in your plans, and a few of these are described in the second half of this page. The Rector and the Vestry encourage all members of the Parish to remember the Parish in their estate plans and through gifts.

	The Cornelius Roosevelt Duffie Guild, part of the Saint Thomas Planned Giving Society, was named for the first Rector of Saint Thomas Church to recognize those people who have put Saint Thomas in their estate plans. If you have put Saint Thomas in your will and have not completed a Cornelius Roosevelt Duffie Information Card, please do so. Email Ann Hall Kaplan for more information.
	In 2010, the Choir School realized a long desire to acknowledge and thank those who have remembered the Choir School in planning their estates through the establishment of the T. Tertius Noble Guild.  Email Ann Hall Kaplan for more information.

Wills

All adults should have a will and decide upon the legacy they leave for the people and institutions they love – if you don’t define your estate provisions, state law will do so. If you would like to make a provision in your will to leave a specific sum to the Church, the language of the bequest to Saint Thomas Church should read:

I give to Saint Thomas Church in the City and County of New York, for its corporate purposes, the sum of _______________ dollars.

If you decide to leave a percentage of your estate, your will could include the following language:

I give to Saint Thomas Church in the City and County of New York ______ percent of the rest, residue and remainder of my estate.

The form of bequest to Saint Thomas Choir School would read:

I give to Saint Thomas Church in the City and County of New York, for the support of the Saint Thomas Church Choir School the sum of ________________ dollars  or  ______ percent of the rest, residue and remainder of my estate. 

These forms of bequest may be changed on consultation with the Rector to reflect other types of gifts. It is important to talk with your family and your financial adviser before making a decision about including a gift to Saint Thomas in your will. Saint Thomas cannot render any type of legal or tax advice.

Charitable Gift Annuities

A Charitable Gift Annuity is both a charitable gift—with specific tax benefits—and an annuity that provides annual income. Parishioners and friends can make a significant gift to the Church’s General Fund or Endowment Fund during their lifetime through gifts of appreciated securities, cash, or other assets that will provide them with immediate tax advantages and income for life guaranteed at a fixed rate. The minimum gift value is $10,000 and the minimum age for annuities to begin payment is 65. Annuities may be written to pay income to one or two individuals and income can start the year of purchase or be deferred.

Life Insurance and Other Gifts

It is possible to support Saint Thomas through gifts of life insurance either by:

• Naming the Church or School as the beneficiary, in whole or in part, of an existing policy or as a contingent beneficiary, or
• Cashing in a policy and donating all or part of the cash value to Saint Thomas.

It is also possible to make significant gifts to Saint Thomas through Charitable Remainder Trusts, Charitable Lead Trusts and retirement plans, such as 401 (k)s and IRAs.

The Columbarium

When finalizing these important end-of-life decisions, please consider the Columbarium in the Resurrection Chapel. The Columbarium consists of hand-carved oak cabinets containing private niches, each one holding a bronze funerary urn. The entrance to the Resurrection Chapel is pictured at left, with the Columbarium cabinets on the right side behind the icon of Christ.

Email Ann Hall Kaplan to receive a brochure to help you plan your funeral well in advance, and email Barbara Pettus to reserve a space in the Columbarium.