Donor Advised Fund

A donor advised fund is like a charitable savings account. It gives you the flexibility to recommend how much and how often money is granted to United Way of Olmsted County and other qualified nonprofits. You can recommend a grant or recurring grants now to make an immediate impact or use your fund as a tool for future charitable gifts.

CONVENIENT AND SIMPLE:
Your financial and charitable goals are a reflection of your commitment to support the future of your loved ones, charitable organizations you value, such as ours, and the greater community. But sometimes it can be difficult to keep track of the organizations you wish to support and the documents required to receive your benefits from charitable gifts. A convenient and easy way to organize your charitable intentions is to create a donor advised fund. 
HOW IT WORKS
  • You open a donor advised fund by a written agreement at a community foundation or sponsoring organization. Most donor advised funds require a minimum gift to open your fund, although additional contributions may be less.
  • You can name your loved ones as your successor to continue to recommend grants to charitable organizations, or you can name United Way of Olmsted County Iowa as a beneficiary to receive all or part of the account after your lifetime.
  • You can make contributions to your fund at any time. Your contributions are invested by the sponsoring organization, which provides a regular accounting to you.
  • You make the recommendations that various amounts be distributed to charitable organizations of your choice, such as ours.
  • You qualify for a federal income tax charitable deduction for gifts to your donor advised fund.
BENEFITS
  • Convenience—Setting up a donor advised fund qualifies you for a federal income tax charitable deduction when you make a gift to the fund—without immediately having to choose the charities you want to support.
  • Simplicity—You can support a number of charitable organizations without having to retain records for a number of separate contributions.
  • Family philanthropy—Families can build a tradition of giving and teach their children the values of philanthropy by involving them in the decisions about which grants to recommend.
EXAMPLE 

Joe and Laura want to give back to their hometown by putting their money where it will do the most good. They establish a $25,000 donor advised fund with a community foundation. The couple receives a federal income tax charitable deduction for the amount of the gift. They also get all the time they need to decide which charities to suppo

After researching community needs with the foundation’s staff, Joe and Laura recommend grants for United Way (which they've supported for years) and the Humane Society. The foundation presents the nonprofits with checks from the Cameron Caroline Fund, which Joe and Laura named in honor of their grandchildren. Joe and Laura are delighted to start this personal legacy of giving.

NEXT STEPS

  1. Contact Resource Development at 507.287.2000 or email at RD@uwolmsted.org to discuss using your donor advised funds to support United Way and our mission.
  2. Seek the advice of your financial or legal advisor.
  3. If you include United Way in your plans, please use our legal name and federal tax ID.

Legal name: United Way of Olmsted County 

Address: 903 West Center St, Ste 100 Rochester, MN   

Federal Tax ID # 41-0695594

If you would like more information on setting up a donor advised fund to support organizations important to you, such as ours, please contact Contact Resource Development at 507.287.2000 or email at RD@uwolmsted.org.