By including the Sheriff’s Meadow Foundation in your estate planning, you can support Sheriff’s Meadow Foundation while making a tax-wise gift for the future. A bequest is a simple statement in your will that directs a gift to SMF.

Bequests
The most common bequest is an unrestricted gift of a specified dollar amount or percentage of your residual estate. Through a bequest, you may very simply give cash, securities, personal property, or real estate to Sheriff’s Meadow Foundation. You may specify a specific asset to be bequeathed, a fixed dollar amount, or a certain percentage of the balance of your estate.

An unrestricted bequest may be used for general purposes, or may be designated by the Board for use for specific purposes. You may also restrict a bequest and dedicate its use to a specific purpose or project. Those considering making a restricted bequest are asked to discuss these intentions with Sheriff’s Meadow Foundation in advance, as we wish to be sure that the intended purpose can be achieved.

Retirement Plans, 401(k), and IRAs
You may designate Sheriff’s Meadow Foundation as a beneficiary of your IRA, 401(k), or other qualified retirement plan. With such a designation, you may continue to make regular withdrawals within your lifetime. Designating Sheriff’s Meadow as a beneficiary of your retirement account helps to avoid double taxation on assets left in your retirement account. To pass the balance or a portion of your retirement assets to Sheriff’s Meadow, please contact your plan administrator.

Life Insurance
A life insurance policy can prove an excellent way to leave a legacy. You may transfer ownership of a paid in-full life insurance policy to Sheriff’s Meadow. Sheriff’s Meadow may then cash in the policy, or hold on to it. You would receive an income tax deduction equal to the cash value of the policy.

Charitable Remainder Trust
You may create a Charitable Remainder Trust for which Sheriff’s Meadow is a charitable beneficiary. With a Charitable Remainder Trust, you transfer assets to a trustee, and the trustee then makes specified payments to one or more non-charitable beneficiaries. When the Trust expires, the property within the Trust would then be distributed to Sheriff’s Meadow Foundation. You may create a Charitable Remainder Trust during your lifetime, or you may create one in your will.

Life Estate and Remainder Interest 
One unique way to give land or a home to Sheriff’s Meadow Foundation is to donate the land while retaining a life estate. Under such an arrangement, you would give what is called a remainder interest in the land to the Foundation now, but you would use the land for the rest of your life. At the end of your life, Sheriff’s Meadow would own all of the interest in the property. This arrangement can be useful for both conservation lands and lands not appropriate for conservation, that could later be sold. This could also be a useful way of creating future employee housing.

A donor-advised fund (DAF) succession plan can be an important part of your overall estate plan and charitable legacy. To benefit Sheriff’s Meadow Foundation, you would need to direct your DAF sponsor on how to distribute assets remaining in your charitable giving fund after your lifetime. If you do not write a succession plan, the funds remaining in your DAF could be rolled into the sponsor’s own charitable fund, to be distributed as the sponsor chooses and not according to your wishes. Sheriff’s Meadow is available to discuss your DAF succession plan or other legacy giving opportunities.

For those considering leaving a bequest of land, it is especially important to consult Sheriff’s Meadow Foundation in advance. Certain bequests of land may be appropriate for and intended as conservation land, where the land will be placed under the conservation stewardship of Sheriff’s Meadow Foundation. Other bequests of land, however, may be appropriate as “asset” land. Such land could be sold so that the proceeds from the sale can benefit Sheriff’s Meadow Foundation. Sheriff’s Meadow Foundation reserves the right to conduct research before accepting any gift or bequest of land. Removing land and real property from an estate can significantly reduce inheritance taxes.