Benefits
- Lets you provide for your family after your death
- Allow you to distribute your assets according to your wishes
- Saves on estate taxes, with proper planning
- Lets you leave a legacy without giving up assets now
Have you put off making or updating your will? Maybe you think it costs too much to make a will. Perhaps you’re having a hard time deciding about how to leave your money. Or you may simply have an aversion to confronting your mortality.
Drafting a will may seem like a headache at first, until you realize all the good that comes from having one.
A bequest in your will let you pass any amount you wish to use free of estate tax. You can give cash or specific property, a dollar amount or a percentage of your estate, with restrictions or without.
Designing a will that benefits your family, friends and organizations you care about most requires a small investment of time to direct your estate assets properly. After all you spent a lifetime building your estate. We think it is in keeping with the Boy Scout motto…"Be Prepared". For more information, contact Scout Executive Doug Callahan at 573-449-2561
Whether you are married, single widowed, or divorced, you need a will. Without one, your estate will not be distributed to those family members and organizations that you care about. Instead, the state will decide who gets your estate, and also keep a sizable chunk of it for itself. Without a will, the state will also decide who will take care of your young children when you are gone.
Without a will, not only will your family and friends suffer, but also your church, your schools, and Scouting. Your bequest gift can make a real difference in the financial future of a council as well as the other organizations that are so important to you and your family. Call us for more information on the importance of a will and what it can mean to you.
After all, you spent a lifetime building your estate. It’s time to take a few minutes to protect that estate.
Many Scouters have thought about leaving a legacy by including Scouting in their will, but are not exactly sure what to do at this time. This was true when I met with George and Isobel, both in their early fifties and parents of four grown children.
They want to leave as much as possible to the kids and at the same time do something for Scouting. Their assets were modest, so there would not be Federal Inheritance tax. We searched for the best way that achieved their objectives.
At first, they thought they would designate a dollar amount in their will, but changed their mind because it would be difficult to know the estate size at the time of the second death. They also considered making the endowment fund the beneficiary of a group life insurance policy, but that would change in value upon retirement.
They decided to leave five percent of their total assets to Scouting through their will, recognizing that if their circumstances warranted it, they could change their will. They were not anxious to redo their will at this time, so they decided to use a codicil; that is an addition to their will. The council has codicils, available, and they are simple to complete. You must have two witnesses, who by their signature on your codicil witness to your signing, not what you have written. You simply mail the codicil to your attorney.
Oh, by the way let the Scout Executive know that you have included Scouting in your will, so he can include you as a Heritage Society member.
George, commenting on his gift said, "All my kids can use the money, but not one would miss five percent." Is a percent a good way for you?
Heritage Society
Every Scouter, and friend of Scouting, is invited to join the Great Rivers Council Heritage Society.
The Heritage Society recognizes those individuals who clearly see the significant benefits of Scouting and who believe deeply enough in the BSA to invest in its future. Anyone who chooses to, may qualify for membership in the Heritage Society by making an outright gift to the Great Rivers Council Trust Fund, or by a planned or deferred gift to the fund through their will or estate plan.
The purpose of the Scouting Heritage Society is to inform, educate and inspire prospective donors to make an outright or planned gift to the Council's Endowment Trust Fund to financially perpetuate the Council's future. Those that do, become members of this esteemed society. Each year the society will conduct a dinner to recognize those who helped ensure that Scouting is continued in the Great Rivers Council for future generations.For More Information contact Scout Executive Doug Callahan at 573-449-2561