Gifting Opportunities

Giving is a Personal Choice. The Lake Mills Area Community Foundations provides a broad range of gifting opportunities for those who wish to give back to the community in a way(s) that are consistent with their basic values and priorities.

People contribute to charitable organizations for many reasons. Some do so purely out of gratitude for the many blessings that graced their lives. Others may feel a strong sense of community spirit and simply wish to make the place they call home a better place for all to live, work, and enjoy leisure time. Still others may feel the need to give back to an organization or cause that provided help at a time of need to themselves, a family member, or perhaps a dear friend.

Whatever the reason, your Community Foundation will work with you to insure that your philanthropic wishes and needs will be met.

Selecting a Giving Instrument that Meets Your Needs. The Lake Mills Area Community Foundation maintains a strong fund portfolio of giving opportunities with the confidence that you can find the way to give back that best expresses your feelings and desires. These funds include:

Endowment Fund
The Endowment Fund of the Lake Mills Area Community Foundation accepts gifts of any amount and uses only the earnings from the fund to make grants to worthy organizations and causes whose work is consistent with the mission of the Foundation.
Named Scholarship Fund
A Named Scholarship Fund provides graduates of Lake Mills High School with scholarship monies to help fulfill their life dreams and aspirations by advancing their education through attending a community college, university, or technical/trade school.
Donor-Advised Fund
A Donor-advised Fund provides the opportunity to establish a personal or family fund in the Lake Mills Area Community Foundation with the ability to provide guidance and direction to gifting from the fund. With a Donor-advised Fund, the donor is granted advisory status in the determination of beneficiaries of the Fund.
Field of Interest Fund
A Field of Interest Fund provides donors the opportunity to direct how their gift can be used to support organizations or projects within the community that benefit a particular field or interest group. Examples might include funds that support Healthcare, Children, Parks and Recreation, etc.
Designated Fund
A Designated Fund allows the donor to direct his/her gift toward a particular organization in the community, e.g., the Fargo Library, the Arts Alliance, etc. Once established, anyone may contribute to such a fund.

Ways You Can Give to the Foundation

Cash Gifts
Donations of any amount are greatly appreciated by the Foundation. Cash donations can be made to our Unrestricted or Endowment funds or can be used to set up or add to other types of funds.
Bequests
A bequest is a gift given through your will or trust. You may designate a specific amount of money or a specific percentage of your estate. Or you may donate all or a percentage of the residue of your estate after taxes, expenses and other bequests have been fulfilled.
Appreciated Securities, Real Estate, or Other Assets
Current U.S. tax law allows the donor of appreciated securities, real estate, or other assets to get a tax deduction for the market value of the donation and avoid capital gains taxes. This double tax advantage can make donating appreciated assets to a charitable organization more attractive than selling the assets and donating cash. It is important to note that the charitable deduction you receive is based on the full value of the asset when transferred, regardless of the price the Foundation sells it for.
Individual Retirement Account or Tax-Deferred Annuity
You can use the Foundation as the beneficiary of a traditional IRA or tax-deferred annuity. Such an asset would have income tax implications for yourself or your estate but by donating the asset to the Foundation the entire value goes to the Foundation. It is simple to do this by changing beneficiaries and does not necessitate an attorney or redoing the will (or revocable trust). If it is a large account, one might consider donating a percentage of the residue after distributions have been made to other beneficiaries of the account.
Life Insurance
You can make a donation to the Community Foundation by purchasing a life insurance policy naming the Foundation as Owner and Beneficiary. By making small, annual, tax deductible premium payments, you can create a much larger gift than you might otherwise be able to afford.
Estate Contributions to an Existing Fund
You can enhance an existing fund, established by yourself or others, by making a major gift to the fund via your estate plan. This could be done, for example, for an existing Family Fund or an existing Scholarship Fund.
Deferred Gifts
It may be beneficial to make a deferred gift of future interest during your lifetime, by retaining life interest in your property and leaving the remainder of the interest to the Foundation. You may transfer cash or other assets to the Foundation irrevocably in exchange for lifetime payments and tax deductions.