Charitable Bequest
A charitable bequest is one of the easiest and most flexible ways that you can leave a gift to Loma Linda University Health that will make a lasting impact.
Benefits of a bequest
- Receive an estate tax charitable deduction
- Reduce the burden of taxes on your family
- Leave a lasting legacy to charity
How a bequest works
A bequest is one of the easiest gifts to make. With the help of an attorney, you can include language in your will or trust specifying a gift to be made to family, friends or Loma Linda University Health as part of your estate plan, or you can make a bequest using a beneficiary designation form.
Here are some of the ways to leave a bequest to Loma Linda University Health
- Include a bequest to Loma Linda University Health in your will or revocable trust
- Designate Loma Linda University Health as a full, partial or contingent beneficiary of your retirement account (IRA, 401(k), 403(b) or pension)
- Name Loma Linda University Health as a beneficiary of your life insurance policy
A bequest may be made in several ways
- Percentage bequest - make a gift of a percentage of your estate
- Specific bequest - make a gift of a specific dollar amount or a specific asset
- Residual bequest - make a gift from the balance or residue of your estate
Did You Know?
Did you know that you can name Loma Linda University Health as beneficiary of your IRA or any retirement plan? Learn more here.
We are very grateful to those who elect to include Loma Linda University Health as a charitable beneficiary of their legacy plan. Loma Linda University Health is a sophisticated organization with a number of different entities operating under one corporate umbrella. There are several different Tax ID numbers. The university has eight schools and the medical center involves many departmental specialties and lines of patient care and a donor may support any of those areas. Alumni usually want to support their specific school and grateful patients choose to support the area(s) that provided their care.
All too often, an executor will reach out with notification of a legacy gift coming our direction and the only language used in the legal document refers to the gift being for "Loma Linda University, Children's Hospital, or the Medical Center." When this happens, it is very difficult to know what the donor truly intended for the use of their gift. That is why it is important that we have the opportunity to speak to donors as they make their plans. In many cases, we work with the donor to draft a Gift Agreement to spell out the details of a restricted/designated legacy gift. For example, anytime a gift is to be used for a specific naming of any sort, a Gift Agreement should be in place.
For those who are working on their plans or considering making changes, we encourage donors to be in conversation with the Office of Planned Giving, so your questions are answered ahead of time and your clear intent is known. We offer the basic language, provided below. Just know that we strongly encourage dialogue as plans are being made. This language will need to be refined if there are specific restrictions and/or designations for the use of the legacy gift.
Contact us
If you have any questions about leaving a bequest to us, please contact us. We would be happy to assist you. If you have been so generous as to include a bequest to Loma Linda University Health as part of your estate plan, please take the time to let us know. We would like to recognize you and your family for your generosity.
Additional Information
The method used to make a bequest will depend on the kind of gift you choose to leave to Loma Linda University Health.
Bequests of real estate, personal property, business interests and cash are typically made by way of a will, revocable trust or even a simple codicil to your current estate plan. Your estate-planning attorney can assist you in preparing the necessary papers for you to complete the bequest.
Other bequests, such as those involving retirement assets, insurance policies, bank accounts and stocks and bonds, are typically made by completing the appropriate beneficiary designation form. Simply contact your retirement plan administrator, life insurance company, bank or investment broker and ask them to send you the appropriate "beneficiary designation" or "payable on death" form. To complete your bequest, you will need to complete and sign the form and then send it back to the person who originally sent the form to you.
The last step in leaving any bequest involves the transfer to charity. When you pass away, the bequest property will be transferred to Loma Linda University Health. The full value of this gift will be transferred tax-free and your estate will receive an estate tax charitable deduction.
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