Remember St. Martin’s

Financial stewardship is an important component of a balanced spiritual life. Returning to God that which God has given us is a tangible way to express and grow our faith. Making Church of St. Martin-in-the-Fields (hereafter, “St. Martin’s” or “the church”) part of your estate planning is one way to continue your generosity to the church after your death.

The following is St. Martin’s Planned Giving-Gift Acceptance Policy and is designed to provide information you need in making a decision. If you are considering including St. Martin’s in your estate planning, we urge you to seek the advice of a professional financial advisor, estate planner, or legal counsel. A donor who chooses not to seek such advice must acknowledge that decision in a written statement addressed to the Vestry before their acceptance of a proffered planned gift.

General Considerations:

• Acceptance of all gifts is at the discretion of the Vestry. The Rector may accept gifts on behalf of the Vestry, but only the Vestry has the power to formally accept gifts.
• St. Martin’s will only accept gifts that further the work of St. Martin’s ministry. The Vestry reserves the right to decline proffered gifts.
• Gifts must be funded with cash, publicly traded securities, or other financial instruments with ready market value.
• In general, it is not the policy of St. Martin’s to accept gifts of real estate and personal property. However, special circumstances may be presented to the Vestry for review and determination of acceptance.
• In general, it is not the policy of St. Martin’s to accept irrevocable agreements, including charitable gift annuities, charitable remainder trusts, charitable remainder unitrusts, charitable remainder annuity trusts, or wealth replacement trusts. However, special circumstances may be presented to the Vestry for review and determination of acceptance.

Acceptable Gifts:

Wills: A written statement in the donor’s will directing that specific assets or a percentage of the estate be transferred to the church upon the donor’s death.

Retirement Plan/IRA: St. Martin’s is named as the beneficiary of a retirement plan/IRA, or a percentage of a plan.

Life Insurance: St. Martin’s is named the beneficiary of an insurance policy.

Minimum Named Endowment Gifts:

• Because of the administrative fees required to maintain a restricted long-term investment account, the requirement to reinvest interest income to offset inflation, and the shared desire of both St. Martin’s and the donor to generate meaningful interest income, a minimum gift of $100,000 is required to establish a restricted and/or named endowment fund.
• Donors wishing to make gifts of less than $100,000 for endowment purposes are encouraged to combine their gifts with the gifts of others in either St. Martin’s general endowment fund or special purpose endowment funds that help underwrite specific needs, programs, or services that are part of St. Martin’s ministry.

Restricted Gifts:

• Donors may choose to restrict the use of their gift to a particular purpose. So long as the restriction is general in nature, consistent with the goals and vision of St. Martin’s, and not contingent on specified future acts by St. Martin’s, the Vestry will consider accepting the gift.
• However, donors will be asked to agree that if the restrictions they choose not be appropriate at the time of the maturity of their gift, the Vestry of St. Martin’s may use the gift in a manner that meets the then current greatest need.

Protection of Donor Interests:

• Protecting the donor’s interest is a top priority of the Vestry.
• Information learned by the Vestry or any official representative of the Vestry about a donor or the donor’s assets or philanthropic intentions will be held in strict confidence.
• Donors are encouraged to notify St. Martin’s of their planned gifts, including bequests, and all such information will be kept confidential unless written permission to release it is obtained from the donor or the donor’s official representative.
• Neither members of the Vestry nor the Rector, as a representative of the Vestry, will give legal, accounting, tax, or other advice regarding bequests or other planned giving.

St. Martin’s Legacy Society

St. Martin's Legacy Society exists to honor and thank those who include St. Martin’s in their estate plans. These future gifts contribute to the growth and success of the Church of St. Martin-in-the-Fields and they will greatly benefit future generations of St. Martin’s parishioners. Your membership in the St. Martin’s Legacy Society can be anonymous, however your intent to provide St. Martin’s with a planned gift serves as an inspiration and encourages others to consider a planned gift to benefit the work that other parishioners care about in the St. Martin’s community.