In the end, we are all remembered for our acts, for the lives we touch, and by the causes we advance. In that respect, perhaps the most important thing that you could do to create a public legacy would be to include the following provision in your Will. Some donors also find it easier to name the Seneca Waterways Council as a beneficiary of your IRA:
“I give and bequeath the sum of $_______ [or percentage of your residual estate] to the Seneca Waterways Council Endowment Fund at the Seneca Waterways Council, Boy Scouts of America, a New York not-for-profit and section 501(c)(3) tax exempt organization.”
This simple language will create a personal gift that will help carry on our mission in perpetuity. The word “endowment” simply means that your gift will be held by the SWC and invested locally. Although endowments can be anonymous, they can also bear your name. This memorializes the donor and their values, and inspires others to do the same.
The earnings from this investment will be contributed to SWC annually and used for our mission of “preparing young people to make ethical and moral choices over their lifetimes by instilling in them the values of the Scout Oath and Law.”
Donors making bequests representing $10,000 or more in deferred gifts qualify for induction into the Seneca Waterways Council’s Heritage Society.
For more information about a bequest to the Seneca Waterways Council’s permanent Endowment Fund, contact Anthony Vogl at (585) 241-8556 or anthony.vogl@scouting.org.
Sample Will Language
BEQUEST OF CASH – “I bequeath the sum of $10,000 to the Seneca Waterways Council, a New York not-for-profit and section 501(c)(3) organization.”
BEQUEST OF A PERCENT OF THE ESTATE – “I devise and bequeath 20% of the remainder and residue of property owned at my death whether real or personal, and wherever located to the Seneca Waterways Council, a New York not-for-profit and section 501(c)(3) organization.”
CONTINGENT BEQUEST – “If my brother John Doe survives me, I devise and bequeath 20% of the remainder and residue of property owned at my death, whether real or personal, and wherever located to John Doe. If John Doe does not survive me, then I devise and bequeath 20% of the remainder and residue of property owned at my death whether real or personal, and wherever located to the Seneca Waterways Council, a New York not-for-profit and section 501(c)(3) organization.”