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Support the Work of Lyon-Martin Health Services

Memorials and Endowments:
Gifts that Transcend Time

Your continued support for our immediate needs is vital and welcome. But have you ever thought about creating a permanent fund that will assure us of an ongoing source of income? A fund that could honor you or a loved one forever?

Even with longer life expectancies, no one can attain true immortality. Yet, by creating an endowment you'll enable us to remember you or a loved on far into the future. And your enduring benevolence will perpetuate your support of a cause that's close to your heart. Your gift can underwrite a particular project, maintain a continuing program or aid Lyon-Martin's critical everyday needs of offsetting the cost of culturally competent healthcare for those who can't afford it.

Throughout history, worthy and memorable philanthropies have been endowed by people of exceptional vision. Think of the Mellon contributions to sustain great art and the Ford, Carnegie and other foundations that make grants to education and other causes. Regardless of the size of your fortune, you can join the pantheon of farsighted individuals who are recalled today for the continuing good works that benefit community service organizations.

You can establish the fund now with an outright gift and add to it each year, or you can arrange future funding by means of a bequest or life income plan. And fittingly, the fund may be named for yourself or a loved one.

How an Endowment Fund Works
Let's look at the nuts and bolts of endowments. An endowment is a fund established with cash, securities or other assets to provide income for the support of a nonprofit like Lyon-Martin Health Service.

The use of the fund itself may be permanently restricted, temporarily restricted or unrestricted. For example, you can instruct us to use only the income from the fund-or you can allow us to use the principal if, in our discretion, it is needed for a defined purpose.

The "spending rate" of the fund, or the portion of total return used for current needs, is usually measured in terms of an amount or a specified percentage of market value. Careful consideration of this rate can protect an endowment gift from a loss of purchasing power.

"Total return" measures the investment performance, focusing on the overall return of the endowment's investments, including interest and dividend income as well as realized and unrealized gains and losses. Used in connection with the spending rate, this formula decides how much of that return can be used for our current requirements.

Specifying the Purpose of Your Gift
You may agree with Andrew Carnegie's opinion: "It is more difficult to give money away intelligently than it is to earn it in the first place." In any case, when you establish an endowment you decide how the funds will be used. For example, you might direct that it be used to support a special purpose, sustain an ongoing program or provide for our current expenses. When we receive your contribution, we'll set up the fund and use it the way you've specified.

From our standpoint, a gift without restrictions may actually be the most beneficial because it enables us to apply the funds to our most urgent needs. Such flexibility can be especially helpful for dealing with changing requirements over the long term and urgent demands that come to the forefront. Still, we realize that you might want to instruct us to use your gift for a particular activity-either an existing one or a new one you have in mind.

Many people choose to endow their annual gift. Annual giving is our lifeblood. The ability to count on money raised each year makes it possible for us to carry out our mission. Yet when a donor dies, so does that individual's annual gift, and the source of a reliable flow of funds abruptly ends. Unless we can replace that annual gift with other dependable income, our mission may suffer.

Again, the purpose of your gift is up to you. When a donor's expressed purpose is feasible and the fund is adequate, we can fulfill that person's intent. We urge you to consult us in advance, however, to make certain we'll be capable of meeting your conditions. And if you wish, we'll be glad to identify some of our most critical needs for your consideration. Then we'll work with you to determine the ideal goal and to ascertain the resources necessary to make it possible.

How We Can Honor You or a Loved One
Paradoxically, in Through the Looking Glass the Queen was right when she told Alice, "It's a poor sort of memory that only works backwards." Your memorial contribution to our future needs is a wonderful way to let us remember you or a person you loved and respected. Your gift becomes a lasting tribute to an important relationship. It can establish a permanent link with the past and may encourage others to participate in your vision for the future.

Endless ways exist to compose the language of your memorial gift intended to fund an endowment in your name or in memory of a loved one. And we can recognize your gift in numerous ways. For instance, your name or the name of your loved one might be printed in our annual report or inscribed on a plaque. For a sizeable gift, the honored name might be placed in our lobby, a patient room or our group room. We will determine the appropriate form of recognition after careful consideration of your wishes, our circumstances and the purpose of the gift.

If you are considering a memorial gift, please let us know. We'll be happy to work with you to plan a gift that will serve as a lasting memorial to you or your loved one, while providing dependable support for an important need or program.

How to Make Your Gift
Once you have decided to create an endowment and memorial, you can achieve your goal through several methods-the choice is yours. And your benevolence may be rewarded by substantial tax savings.

Gift of Cash. The simplest way to make your gift is by check/credit card. By doing this you may be entitled to an income tax deduction-and we will be able to use your generous gift immediately to further our mission.
Gift of appreciated assets. A gift of stock or real estate that has increased in value provides additional benefits. If you make an outright gift of an appreciated asset that you have owned for more than one year, you may be entitled to an income tax deduction for the full market value of the asset, while avoiding the capital gains tax on the asset's appreciation.
Gift of life insurance. Perhaps you own life insurance policies, purchased years ago, that are no longer needed to protect your original beneficiaries. By making us the owner and beneficiary of the policy, you may enjoy the current tax savings-and we will receive the insurance proceeds in the future.
Gift of retirement plan assets. Do you have a retirement plan that has been growing, tax-deferred, over the years? If you are now required to withdraw annual amounts from the plan and you don't need some or all of these amounts for personal use, you might consider donating them to us. Such a gift may provide current income tax savings to you.

Since retirement plan assets may be taxed heavily by the IRS after your death, you might consider naming Lyon-Martin as the beneficiary of your IRA or other retirement plan and leaving other assets (such as cash, stock or real estate) to your family. A well-crafted gift may even enable you to leave more assets to your family. Note: Since the tax rules regarding retirement plans can be complex, consult your tax advisor before making this form of gift.
Gift that provides income. Possibly you would like to make a major gift but can't afford to part with the income it generates. In this situation you can establish a life income gift-for example, a charitable remainder trust-that will pay income to you or a family member for life (or other stated period). Thereafter, the assets will be distributed to Lyon-Martin. A life income gift is very appealing because of the tax savings and the possibility of higher income, along with a meaningful gift in support of our mission.
A Bequest. You may decide that the best way to make a lasting difference is to remember us in your will. When you update your estate plans, it is simple to include Lyon-Martin. Your bequest can be a specific amount or a percentage of your residuary estate. You can provide support for a specific activity or our general purposes. And, of course, your legacy can be in memory of yourself of a loved one. Whatever you decide, when you name Lyon-Martin in your will, you will leave a legacy that can benefit many generations to come.

Who Benefits From an Endowment?
You do- and so do we. You can help to perpetuate a program or provide support for our general purposes. In either case, your endowment may enable Lyon-Martin to continue to grow when other funding is lacking. By funding an unrestricted endowment, you will allow our leadership to determine the best use of the income in the face of unforeseen circumstances.

No doubt about it, your memorial gift confers a claim on immortality for yourself or a loved one by means of a named endowment.

How to Get Started
We will be pleased to help you create and endowment and achieve timeless recognition for yourself or a loved one. Just arrange a meeting with one of our representatives-without obligation. Working with your professional advisors, we will help you determine the fund's appropriate purpose and resources.

The information above is not intended as legal advice. For legal advice, please consult an attorney.
Fundraising and Development:
Eric Fimbres
Lyon-Martin Health Services
1748 Market Street, Suite 201
San Francisco, CA 94102

Phone: (415) 901-7106
Fax: (415) 252-7490
eric@lyon-martin.org