Planned Giving

Making a planned gift is an impactful way to create a legacy for you and your family at The Phoenix Center (TPC).  A planned gift is pledged now and gifted at a later date. There are a variety of ways to make a planned gift, some at no cost to you and others can potentially give you income now.

Those who include TPC as a beneficiary in their will or develop a planned giving strategy that includes TPC will be added to TPC’s Legacy Society.

As a member of TPC’s Legacy Society, you will inspire others to be philanthropic and will represent an eternal champion of our mission. You will also know that you are making a positive impact in the lives of our students and families as well as our programs. 

To inform TPC of your intention to make a planned gift, please fill out this form and send it to Carolyn Sharaway. We are always available to talk with you about what way works best for you. Please feel free to contact Carolyn Sharaway at csharaway@thephoenixcenternj.org or (973) 542-0743 ext. 403 with any questions at all!

Making a planned gift enables us to:

• Ensure a sustainable future for our students with special needs and their families
• Enhance our students’ education by making it possible for us continue to provide cutting edge technology
• Support the “whole child” with highly customized programs, including our robust transition program that prepares the students for life beyond the classroom
• Offer enhanced leisure and recreation programming that promotes social interaction, physical fitness and independence
• Engage and support families through outreach initiatives, support groups and family assistance services  

Planned Gift options include (but are not limited to):

• Bequests and Life Insurance: including The Friends of The Phoenix Center as a beneficiary in your will is easy, costs you nothing and allows you to memorialize your generosity, while also benefiting Phoenix Center students and families for years to come.
• Retirement Assets: You can make a gift of your unused retirement assets such as your IRA, 401(k), 403(b), pension or other tax-deferred plans. Consult your retirement plan custodian on ways to do this.
• Life Insurance: You make a gift to The Friends of The Phoenix Center today, you give the tax savings from the charitable deduction to your children, your children then purchase an insurance policy on your life with the tax savings and your children will receive the proceeds upon your death.  

Life Income Gifts

Donating stocks, bonds, mutual funds or any type of marketable securities to The Friends of The Phoenix Center will enable you to make a big impact on the lives of our students and their families while enjoying maximum tax benefits now.

Making a gift of assets to The Friends of The Phoenix Center can provide you or others with income for a pre-determined period of time before The Friends of The Phoenix Center is permitted to use your gift. Life income gifts are made by transferring securities, cash, or other property to The Friends of The Phoenix Center which will manage the investment of the assets while paying an income to you, your designated beneficiaries, or both. Income payments continue for the beneficiaries’ lives or, in some cases, for a pre-determined number of years.

There are several other kinds of life income gift options for your consideration: 

• Charitable Gift Annuities: In exchange for an outright gift, TPC agrees—by contract—to pay a fixed amount each year to you and/or another beneficiary for life.
• Charitable Remainder Unitrusts: You establish a trust from which you and/or other beneficiaries receive variable annual payments for life and/or a term of years. At the end of the term, the remainder of the trust assets goes to TPC for the purposes you designate.
• Charitable Remainder Annuity Trusts: You establish a trust from which you and/or other beneficiaries receive annual payments of a fixed dollar amount for life and/or a term of years, after which the remainder of the trust assets pass to TPC for the purposes you designate.
• Pooled Income Funds: Your gift goes into an investment pool that functions like a mutual fund. Investment returns are paid to you and/or other beneficiaries for life, after which your gift is withdrawn and used to support your designated purpose at TPC.
• Charitable Lead Trusts: A charitable lead trust makes an annual payment to TPC for a period of years, and at the end of the term, the remaining assets go to your children or other beneficiaries.
• Donor-Advised Funds: A donor-advised fund allows you to make a tax-deductible gift to TPC to establish a fund today, and later advise TPC on how you would like the gift used. At least half of the gift must be designated to TPC, and the rest may support other charities.

To consult about making a planned gift, setting up a trust, donating stock or another type of marketable securities, please contact Development Officer, Carolyn Sharaway, 973.542.0743, ext. 403 or csharaway@thephoenixcenternj.org.