McCarty Pledge to Holy Name of Jesus Cathedral
Millie and John McCarty, parishioners at the Holy Name of Jesus Cathedral in Raleigh, wished to honor their family and participate in the building and beautification of the "Mother Church" of the Diocese by providing a stained-glass window.
Over the years, John had attended a number of the Catholic Estate and Personal Planning Seminars, which are now provided by The Foundation of the Diocese of Raleigh. These are parish-based Seminars, and Diocesan-based Webinars, where parishioners learn about the importance of Estate Planning and have the opportunity to have their question answered by top local attorneys.
Participants also learn about ways they can establish a giving legacy, like Millie and John.
As a result of the seminars, Millie and John learned they could use their appreciated securities (stocks) and the assets from their retirement plans, to make charitable contributions to their parish offertory, parish school, Bishop's Annual Appeal, and other favorite diocesan ministries such as the Seminarian Partnership Program. John thought, "could I use these assets to set up a multi-year pledge at the Cathedral for a stained-glass window?" He thought, "since I have to withdraw the money anyway [from my retirement plan], I might as well do some good with it by donating to the church."
When John met with the representative of The Foundation he asked, "I have been using my RMD (Required Minimum Distribution) for a number of years to make charitable gifts. Could I use my RMD and other retirement plan assets to fund a stained-glass window at the Cathedral?"
The answer was a resounding "YES"!
During the course of the meeting, John and staff from The Foundation put together a plan whereby John would transfer the gift amount for the stained-glass window from his 401(k) into a new IRA. Because the funds were going from one qualified retirement plan to another there was no cost involved in making this particular transfer¹. Once the transfer had been accomplished, John would gift a portion of his RMDs annually in the form of a Qualified Charitable Distribution (QCD) from the newly created IRA to fund his stained-glass window pledge. A few years prior, another parishioner established a similar gift in the which he made Holy Name of Jesus Cathedral a beneficiary of his newly created IRA.
Assets that comprise an individual's retirement plan often make for great philanthropic options. When you reach a certain age (now 73) an individual taxpayer must begin to take required distributions from his/her retirement assets. At this point a donor is eligible to make a qualified charitable distribution.
As John remarked,
"Since I have to withdraw the money anyway [from my retirement plan], I might as well do some good with it by donating to the church!"
Millie and John were very happy they were able to make a creative gift to their parish, honor and memorialize their family members and set a wonderful example of generosity within their family and parish community.
If you are interested in learning about creative ways you can support your parish or favorite Diocesan ministry, visit our Planned Giving page for more information or contact The Foundation office on 919-568-1065.