United Way Bay Area

Remembering United Way in your will or estate plans will provide critical, ongoing support to our poverty-fighting initiatives. Your legacy gift will help struggling Bay Area individuals create brighter futures for themselves and their families for generations to come. What better legacy could you leave than that?

2 Ways to Plan Your Giving

01

Estate Planning

Consider including United Way Bay Area in your will or living trust. From specific to percentage, residual to contingent, there are a number of ways your bequest can support United Way’s work long into the future. Speak with your attorney about including United Way in your will, or reach out to us for more information using the contact info below.

02

Retirement plan beneficiary

Your unused retirement funds (401k, IRA, etc.) may be taxed heavily when you pass away, potentially leaving just cents on the dollar for your family or other beneficiaries. Avoid this double taxation by designating United Way Bay Area as the beneficiary of your retirement fund.

Paying It Forward, Tax Free

My mother was a frugal woman. She was born in the depths of the Great Depression to first generation Americans—people whose lives were governed by a fierce yearning for security. Mom dropped out of high school, but she inherited her parents’ talent for making a penny do the work of a dime. When she died last March, she left a small estate, a portion of which was held in a well-diversified IRA.

Ken Edlin loved life. In every photo his smile is wide.

He loved his wife, Janine, a mademoiselle he met by chance on the shores of Lake Tahoe. Ken and his cousin offered a young French woman and her friend a ride home one sunlit afternoon. Things clicked in the right way and a courtship ensued. In a blink, sixty years of marriage spooled by. As a charming parallel, Ken’s cousin married Janine’s friend!

Uncles deserve better!

It’s starting to be a stereotype on television, in movies, and in advertising. The eccentric uncle comes for the holidays and disrupts dinner. It’s time to set the record straight. Uncles do a lot of good—quietly, thoughtfully, and generously. Peter Noon took his role as an uncle seriously. He worked hard and got ahead. Peter’s career at Lockheed Martin allowed him to earn a good living

Lower Your Tax Bill Today

If you are 70 and a half or older, you are required to take annual minimum distributions from any IRA accounts you may have. By directing a portion of that minimum distribution DIRECTLY to charity, you can avoid being taxed on that part of your distribution. Because amounts gifted in this way also help to lessen the possibility that your Social Security benefits will be taxed.

To qualify for this type of preferential tax treatment, the gift must move directly from your IRA to the charity. Pay outs made to you and then donated by you to charity are ineligible. Maximum gifts made under this provision are $100,000 annually. Even if you do not itemize, this powerful option can reduce your taxes!

Find Out More

Planned Giving

What kind of legacy will you leave?