Imagine the Future

Your community foundation helps bring your charitable goals to life.

Hello from the community foundation! 

The days are getting shorter, and the end of the year is approaching quickly. The team at the community foundation is here to help you carry out your charitable giving plans to make a big difference in 2025. In that spirit, we are sharing insights on three topics that are relevant to many community foundation donors and fund holders right now, as well as to individuals and families who are considering establishing a fund at the community foundation this year.

—The community foundation is here to help you make a difference right now, just as the community foundation has been in the past and will be for generations to come. As our region’s home for charitable giving, the community foundation and its donors respond to community priorities and urgent needs, whether triggered by a government shutdown that disrupts paychecks, services, and community programs, a natural disaster, or economic factors. Learn how 2025 is an especially important year to respond to these needs.

—What’s the difference between tax-deductible and tax-exempt? What does “501(c)(3)” mean exactly? The community foundation is happy to answer these and other questions about the overall framework for charitable giving rules and help you create a punch list of items to discuss with your tax advisors. Especially for year-end giving, it’s crucial to pay attention to deductibility rules.

—Donor-advised funds provide tremendous flexibility for families and individuals and are an important source of funds when times get tough for people in need. If you’ve not yet considered how your donor-advised fund helps you do even more for the community you love, now is the time to discover its multi-faceted uses and benefits.

Finally, November 12 through 18 marks National Community Foundation Week, a special time to celebrate the impact that people like you—our donors, fund holders, and community partners—make possible. Community foundations across the country, including ours, exist to strengthen local philanthropy and connect generous individuals, families, and businesses with the causes that matter most to them. More than 800 community foundations nationwide serve as trusted stewards of charitable resources, offering donor-advised funds, legacy planning expertise, and deep knowledge of local needs and opportunities. During Community Foundation Week, we’re proud to celebrate our shared commitment to making a difference—together. We invite you to connect with our team to explore how your charitable giving can be both meaningful and effective, creating lasting impact right here in our community.

Thank you, as always, for the opportunity to work together. If you’ve already established a fund at the community foundation, thank you! If you are considering doing so, please reach out! We would love to help you get that set up in plenty of time to take advantage of year-end giving benefits and do a lot of good for the causes you care about. 

With gratitude,

Angie Tatro,
CKCF CEO

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Year-end dynamics: Tax law changes and increasing community needs

You are likely aware that many families in our community are struggling, and you may be wondering how you can help most effectively. Whether increased community needs are triggered by a government shutdown that disrupts paychecks, services, and community programs, a natural disaster, or economic factors, the community foundation is committed to helping you structure charitable giving plans that make a real difference in the lives of people in our region.

Here are a few examples of how our team can help:

Real-time identification of needs. The team at the community foundation has its finger on the pulse of which organizations are helping families in crisis. As federal employees and contractors grapple with missing income, and federal benefits become uncertain for families in need, charities in our community can be stretched thin attempting to meet the rising demand for food, rent, and utility assistance. The community foundation knows where dollars are most needed and how those dollars translate into immediate impact.

Offering fast and flexible charitable solutions. If you have already established a donor-advised fund at the community foundation, or if you are considering doing so, you can use it to provide support to charities on the front lines of emergency assistance in our community. The community foundation makes it fast and easy for grants to flow out of donor-advised funds to qualified and vetted organizations that are doing the work on the ground.

Leverage important timing. The urgency of community needs in late 2025 coincides with an important window of opportunity for people who itemize their income tax deductions. Under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA), limits on charitable deductions will tighten beginning in 2026. That means it may be advantageous to certain donors to “front-load” or “bunch” contributions—such as by giving more this year through establishing or adding to a donor-advised fund—to maximize both tax benefits and impact.

Plan for the future. Unfortunately, community crises are not unusual. The community foundation works with you and other donors and fund holders to strengthen our community’s ability to respond to urgent needs, regardless of when and why they occur. For this reason, many donors not only give to their favorite charities through donor-advised funds, but they also use their donor-advised funds to give to the community foundation’s dedicated response funds to ensure that dollars are in place to support people in need the moment the next crisis hits.

At the community foundation, we encourage you to reach out anytime. At this moment, though, when urgent needs and tax opportunities are occurring simultaneously, we encourage you to reach out as soon as possible. It is our honor to work with you and your fellow donors who care so deeply about our community.

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Tax-deductible, tax-exempt, and need-to-know nuances

As year-end approaches, your thoughts might naturally turn to charitable giving—both as a way to support favorite causes and to make the most of available tax benefits. Recent changes in the tax laws have caused many people to reflect on their own understanding of the rules for deductibility, starting with a very fundamental question about what the IRS considers deductible—and what falls outside that category.

Here’s a quick three-point refresher:

–In general, contributions are eligible for the most favorable tax deduction when they are made to organizations that have received tax-exempt status under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. So-called “public charities” with 501(c)(3) status must operate exclusively for charitable, educational, religious, scientific, or similar purposes. Gifts to these organizations are eligible for a deduction if you itemize deductions on your income tax return.

–Beyond 501(c)(3) public charities, there are other types of organizations that do important community work but are not eligible to receive tax-deductible contributions. Civic groups, social welfare organizations, and neighborhood associations—while vital to the community—are usually classified under different IRS categories, such as Section 501(c)(4) or 501(c)(6). Gifts to these organizations are typically not deductible, even though the organizations serve valuable purposes.

–It’s also important to keep in mind that “nonprofit” and “tax-exempt” do not always mean the same thing. Nonprofit status is a matter of state law, while federal tax-exempt status requires specific IRS approval. “Tax-exempt” means that the organization itself does not pay taxes. Only a subset of tax-exempt nonprofits qualify as “charitable,” enabling them to receive deductible contributions.

Sounds complicated, right? It is! The good news is that your community foundation is here to help. Our team works with community organizations every day and can help you confirm which gifts are eligible for a deduction and which are not. More importantly, we can help you make sure that your support—whether or not it qualifies for a deduction—makes the greatest possible impact in the areas you care about most.

At the end of the day, while the tax deduction can be an added bonus, what matters most is the good your generosity accomplishes. As you plan your year-end giving, please reach out to our team. We’re here to help you give confidently, wisely, and in a way that makes a lasting difference in the community you love.

 

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Donor-advised funds: Bunching, abundance, and flexibility

Many people establish a donor-advised fund at the community foundation to simplify their giving, stay organized, and even engage the next generation in philanthropy. And, for some families, 2025 is the year when the donor-advised fund takes on an even bigger role in aligning charitable giving goals with changing tax laws. Even families who are not impacted by changing tax laws are beginning to view their donor-advised fund with more admiration for the variety and abundance of purposes it can serve. Let’s take a look: 

–Evaluate “bunching” in 2025. If you itemize deductions on your income tax return, you might have heard that things are changing in 2026 when both a floor and a cap on itemized charitable deductions kick in. This means 2025 offers a unique opportunity to “front-load” or “bunch” charitable contributions into your donor-advised fund before the tax landscape shifts. By making a larger contribution in 2025—perhaps representing two or three years of anticipated giving—you can maximize your tax deduction under the current rules while continuing to recommend grants to charities in 2026 and beyond. 

–Organize your giving. Your donor-advised fund at the community foundation already serves as a useful hub to organize your giving. You make tax-deductible contributions of cash or appreciated stock, and then recommend grants to your favorite organizations over time. With this in mind, make sure your fund is the center of your charitable activity—not a side account. In other words, consider making all of your charitable contributions through your donor-advised fund to streamline recordkeeping and tracking of your annual giving footprint.

–Adopt a portfolio approach. Alongside your donor-advised fund, you can establish a designated or field-of-interest fund at the community foundation to expand your charitable giving portfolio. A designated fund supports a specific charity for the long term, while a field-of-interest fund focuses on an area of community need, guided by the community foundation’s deep local knowledge. If you are over age 70½, your IRA’s Qualified Charitable Distributions can go directly to field-of-interest and designated funds—reducing taxable income while supporting the causes you care about.

–Establish a legacy. Of course, you can include your charitable funds in your estate plan. Many people name donor-advised funds or other community foundation funds as beneficiaries in their wills, trusts, or retirement accounts. Retirement plans such as traditional IRAs, for example, can be tax-efficient assets to give to your fund through your estate because the gift bypasses income and estate tax.

As you begin to view your donor-advised fund in a new light, remember that the community foundation team is here to help you make the most of it, whether that means exploring how to “bunch your giving” in 2025, creating complementary funds, or planning your charitable legacy. We are honored to work together to ensure that your philanthropy continues to make a lasting difference in our community, today and for years to come.

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The team at the community foundation is honored to serve as a resource and sounding board as you build your charitable plans and pursue your philanthropic objectives for making a difference in the community. This newsletter is provided for informational purposes only. It is not intended as legal, accounting, or financial planning advice. Please consult your tax or legal advisor to learn how this information might apply to your own situation.

Imagine the Future

Hello from the community foundation! 

We hope you enjoyed the final days of summer. The team at the community foundation certainly appreciated hearing from so many of you over the last few months as you spent time with family and friends and the conversations turned to charitable giving. It was a busy mid-year as donors and their tax advisors scrambled to understand the new tax laws against a backdrop of increasing community needs.

Here’s what’s trending at the community foundation:

–Many families spend time over the holidays focusing on their charitable giving priorities. If your family is among them, now is a good time to consider how both long-term and short-term planning can be important components of a comprehensive philanthropic strategy. The community foundation can help! 

–The questions keep coming–thank you! We appreciate many donors asking our team to explain just the basics of the new tax laws, with a particular focus on what might impact charitable giving plans through the remainder of 2025. Our team is happy to provide a quick overview.

–Donor-advised funds are just one of many vehicles available through the community foundation to help you structure your charitable giving and support the causes you care about. This is a great time to review the many reasons to consider establishing your donor-advised fund at the community foundation. 

We’re honored to work with so many individuals, families, and businesses to make a difference in the causes you care about. Thank you for the opportunity to work together. As always, please reach out anytime! 

With gratitude,

Angie Tatro,
CKCF CEO

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Balancing immediate and long-term support for your favorite community causes

At the community foundation, we’re committed to working with individuals, families, and businesses to help make a difference in the causes you care about. Indeed, many people have at least a general idea of the community impact they’d like to achieve when they first establish a fund. If you’ve already established a donor-advised or other type of fund at the community foundation, or if you are considering doing so, you might have a list of charities and priorities as your focus. 

Our team can certainly help you achieve your charitable goals, including giving to charities you’ve supported for years, as well as introducing you to new initiatives and programs that fall within your areas of interest. Identifying recipients and goals for impact is certainly important in your philanthropy plan. 

Here’s another question that’s important to answer: How long would you like your charitable dollars to be at work? The team at the community foundation is equipped to help you with this component of your giving, too. Here are six questions we’ll consider when establishing your charitable giving plan and corresponding fund structure:

–Are the causes and issues that matter most to you likely to represent short-term, immediate community needs, or community needs that will be important for generations?

–Would you like your children, grandchildren, or other loved ones to help guide your charitable fund in the future?

–Would you like to see and experience the results of your giving now, or are you more focused on establishing something lasting beyond your lifetime?

–Are tax savings, estate planning goals, or retirement income needs part of what you’d like your charitable plan to support?

–If you’re interested in both immediate impact and long-term legacy, what portion of your charitable fund would you like to see spent down versus preserved in perpetuity?

–When you think about your charitable impact—whether in five years or fifty—what would make you feel your fund or funds at the community foundation accomplished their purpose?

As we work together to consider these questions, the community foundation team is happy to offer suggested reading to help inform your decision-making process about the benefits of each type of structure, or a hybrid. 

Many donors choose to combine strategies as they work with the community foundation to build a portfolio of charitable giving vehicles to accomplish all aspects of their philanthropy goals. Here is an example:

–A donor-advised fund to organize annual giving to favorite charities, including taking advantage of “bunching” techniques to front-load contributions to take advantage of itemizing charitable deductions.

–A designated fund to support a specific favorite charity in perpetuity, ensuring that charitable funds will be preserved even if the charity falls on hard times.

–Annual gifts to the community foundation’s endowment fund so that critical issues can be addressed in perpetuity as the community’s needs change over time. 

–Beneficiary designations on traditional IRAs and other qualified retirement plans naming both the donor-advised fund and the community foundation’s endowment fund to receive the proceeds.

Please reach out anytime. The community foundation team is here to talk with you about your favorite charities, your philanthropy values, and your goals for impact. Together, we can create a charitable giving plan that reflects your vision, whether that means lasting forever, making a difference right now, or both.

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Six tips for your year-end game plan

With only a few months left in 2025, it is important to evaluate your philanthropy sooner rather than later. Recently-passed tax laws may throw a curveball into the financial planning strategies you’ve set in motion with your advisors. 

Here are six tips to help you and your attorney, CPA, and financial advisor evaluate whether adjustments to your charitable plan might be in order. Of course, the team at the community foundation would be honored to join your meeting for the charitable giving conversation. There are so many ways we can help! 

Check out the new estate tax exemption.

The One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) extended or “made permanent” many favorable tax provisions, notably the elevated estate tax exemption. In technical terms, under the new law, the 2025 estate tax exemption is $13.99 million for single filers and $27.98 million married filing jointly. In 2026, these numbers increase to $15 million and $30 million respectively. You may recall that the higher exemption was originally scheduled to sunset at the end of this year, which would have caused a lot more estates to be subject to tax. This, in turn, prompted many people to lean on charitable gifts in their wills and trusts to blunt the impact of estate taxes.

Keep planning!

If you are a high net worth individual, even though the estate tax exemption is staying high, this is no time to become complacent. Although no one knows what future tax legislation might look like, we all know that there will be tax legislation in the future. Today’s tax advantages will not be tomorrow’s tax advantages. Continue to talk with the community foundation and your advisors about your charitable giving plans so you are ready to make adjustments when the laws change again.

Consider not making a change.

Above all, remember that financial motivations are not the top reason people support charities. That is certainly our experience at the community foundation. So, if you were among the people who adjusted estate plans in anticipation of the lower estate tax exemption, consider retaining the larger bequest to your fund at the community foundation or other charities. You’ll be doing a lot of good! 

2025 is important if you itemize deductions on your income tax return. 

If you itemize deductions on your income tax return, 2025 presents a window of opportunity! This is because the OBBBA increases the standard deduction in 2025. This is also because your itemized charitable deductions will be subject to a “floor” and cap starting in 2026. A technique called “bunching” could allow you to make big contributions to your donor-advised fund at the community foundation in 2025 so that you can benefit from itemizing your deductions. In turn, over the coming years, you can use your donor-advised fund to support your favorite charities.   

Stick to the basics.

Sure, a lot is changing, but a lot isn’t! Appreciated stock is still likely to be a much more tax-savvy gift to charity than cash, and it’s important to keep this top of mind. In addition, IRAs remain a powerful charitable planning tool. For instance, when you name a fund at the community foundation as the beneficiary of an IRA, the gift avoids estate tax and income tax, both of which can hit your heirs hard. 

Know the opportunities if you are 70 ½ or older.

If you are 70 ½ or older, the Qualified Charitable Distribution (“QCD”) is a great way to transfer up to $108,000 (2025’s per taxpayer limit) income-tax free to a qualified charity, including some types of funds at the community foundation. 

Please reach out to the community foundation team. We’re honored to be your first call on all things charitable giving! 

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Donor-advised funds: So much to celebrate

Over the years, our team has talked with a lot of people who are surprised to learn that they can set up such a wide variety of charitable giving vehicles at the community foundation, including legacy gifts as well as lifetime giving vehicles such as donor-advised funds. What’s more, some people who have already established a donor-advised fund at a national financial institution don’t realize that they could have set up that donor-advised fund at the community foundation. 

Establishing a donor-advised fund is a terrific first step toward establishing a comprehensive charitable giving plan. And October is a particularly good time to evaluate the role of a donor-advised fund as part of your philanthropic strategy. That’s because October 9 was DAF Day 2025, a national celebration of donor-advised funds and the impact they make in communities everywhere. 

If you already have a donor-advised fund at a national financial institution, the good news is that it’s never too late to transfer the fund to the community foundation. You’ll be glad to know that donor-advised funds at the community foundation can carry the same tax and administrative advantages as those at national firms, including:

–Online account access and simple grant request processes

–Consolidated tax reporting and full back-office administration

–Useful as a tool for “bunching” by front-loading several years of charitable giving into a single tax year to exceed the standard deduction threshold

–Dollars in the fund support favorite charities over time, enabling strategic giving

Here’s where a donor-advised fund at the community foundation really stands out:

–Personal guidance and deep community knowledge of staff members who live and work in our region

–Close relationships with nonprofit leaders and organizations across many fields

–Tailored advice, local insights, and opportunities to collaborate with others who share donors’ interests

–Administrative fees support the community foundation’s operations, which in turn help sustain and expand services for donors and the community

If you haven’t yet set up a donor-advised fund at the community foundation, we would welcome the opportunity to serve you! Here, your fund will be managed with the highest level of care, grounded in a true understanding of community needs, and supported by professionals who are committed not only to your goals but also to the health and vibrancy of our region. Together, we can make sure your charitable assets accomplish exactly what you intend—whether that means making an immediate difference, planning for the future, or both.

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The team at the community foundation is honored to serve as a resource and sounding board as you build your charitable plans and pursue your philanthropic objectives for making a difference in the community. This newsletter is provided for informational purposes only. It is not intended as legal, accounting, or financial planning advice. Please consult your tax or legal advisor to learn how this information might apply to your own situation.

Imagine the future.

We’re honored to work with so many individuals, families, and businesses to make a difference in the causes you care about. Philanthropy isn’t just about wealth—it’s about values, habits, and improving the quality of life in our community. This philosophy guides the community foundation’s work with donors across generations. We hope you enjoy this month’s insights and tips. As always, please reach out anytime!

–You know the community foundation is a terrific resource for all things related to charitable giving. Still, sometimes it is hard to know exactly when to reach out to our team. We’re happy to share five of the many reasons you should contact the community foundation. We love hearing from you!

–If you’re a young adult, or the parent or grandparent of a young adult, the community foundation can offer a variety of ways to get involved in the community. Making charitable giving part of the plan at an early age can be easy and very rewarding. Learn how to get motivated, get started, and get connected.

–It’s easy to get caught up in the frenzy of tax planning, especially during periods of significant change to the rules. Remember, though, that for most people, financial motivations are not the primary driver of charitable giving. At the community foundation, we are honored to experience firsthand–every single day–overwhelming evidence that donors like you truly want to make a difference.

Thank you for the opportunity to work together! We wish you a happy start to the fall season!

With gratitude,

Angie Tatro,
CKCF CEO

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Lean on us: Five reasons to call the community foundation

In an economic and legislative environment full of unpredictability, we encourage you to tap the knowledgeable team at the community foundation–perhaps even more than you have in the past.

If you’ve already established a donor-advised or other type of fund at the community foundation, you’re familiar with many of the ways we make charitable giving easy, flexible, and effective so that you can achieve your goals for improving the quality of life in our community as well as fulfilling your own estate planning and financial objectives.

Not quite sure when to reach out to the community foundation? If any of these situations applies to you, drop us an email or give us a call!

You promised yourself in 2024 that you’ll never again get caught in a year-end crunch.

The last few months of the year are always hectic with holiday activities. When you layer on the added stress of tax planning and completing the charitable giving plans you set back in January, you might tip the scales from hectic to chaos! The community foundation can help organize your year-end charitable giving early so that it achieves both your financial and your philanthropic goals.

You’re concerned about recent drops in funding to local charities, but you’re not quite sure about what you can do to help.

The community foundation is our region’s home for charitable giving. That means we’ve got a finger on the pulse of our community’s needs and the nonprofits that are addressing them. Our team can provide information about program cuts that have left people in our community vulnerable and share ideas and recommendations for how you can help fill the gaps.

Your tax advisor has suggested that 2025 is an important year to increase your charitable donations, but you don’t want your gifts to favorite charities to suddenly spike and then drop again.

For the small percentage of people who itemize deductions on their individual income tax returns, 2025 may indeed present opportunities. The community foundation is happy to work with you and your tax advisors to structure gifts to a donor-advised or other type of fund at the community foundation to ensure that you’re leveraging tax advantages while also maintaining consistent support year after year for the causes you care about.

You’re thinking about selling commercial property or private business interests and you’ve heard that charitable gifts can be an effective component of the transaction if structured correctly.

Many people do not realize until it’s too late that they can give real estate or closely-held stock to a fund at the community foundation well in advance of a future sale and achieve significant tax benefits while also setting aside charitable dollars to make a positive difference in the community either immediately or across generations. Before you and your advisors put any pen to paper on the disposition of real estate or private business interests, please reach out!

You’re updating your estate plan and want to leave money to charity, but you’re not exactly sure what charity.

Please reach out to the community foundation anytime you are updating your estate plan or related financial documents, such as beneficiary designations on IRAs, life insurance policies, or retirement accounts. Our team is happy to work with your advisors to deploy the community foundation’s flexible tools to round out your estate plan and make sure you’re exploring the tax benefits of using various types of assets to fund your charitable intentions.

Whatever your charitable giving situation, we are here for you! Whether you’ve already started a fund at the community foundation or you’re considering getting involved, we look forward to our conversation!

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Philanthropy is for everyone: Three tips for young adults

“Philanthropy” may sound like something reserved for wealthy, “mature” adults, but that’s not at all the case. At the community foundation, we work with individuals of every generation, from young adults to retirees and everyone in between.

Young adults in particular are getting involved in the community in ways that look a little different from prior generations. Research shows that Generation Z and Millennials tend to be more focused on issues than specific charities. Not surprisingly, a tech-forward approach to all aspects of philanthropy is common among members of these generations, including engaging with favorite causes on social media and making donations online. What’s more, a 2024 study indicates that for younger generations, volunteering and donating are strongly tied to civic participation.

If you’re a parent or grandparent of young adults, or if you’re a young adult yourself, you’ll be glad to know that the community foundation can help. Here are three suggestions.

Make it a family affair.

The community foundation works with families to build charitable giving plans that involve all generations to achieve overall philanthropic priorities as well as coordinating with families’ advisors to achieve tax planning (subscription required) objectives. For example, a multi-generational philanthropy can include donor-advised funds, legacy plans that include IRA beneficiary designations to establish an endowment, and strategic use of Qualified Charitable Distributions for family members who are 70 ½ or older.

Make a point to start early.

Many young adults are establishing charitable giving practices early in their careers. For example, it’s not uncommon now for new hires to name a charity, such as a fund at the community foundation, as the contingent beneficiary of an employer-sponsored retirement plan. In addition, starting in 2026, taxpayers who don’t itemize deductions can still take a tax deduction for charitable gifts up to $1000 for single filers and $2000 for joint filers. This can be a great way for younger generations to support the causes they care about. Although the deduction only applies to cash gifts and does not include gifts to donor-advised funds, it’s nonetheless a notable perk. The community foundation is happy to serve as a sounding board for ways to leverage this opportunity to make a difference.

Make new connections.

The community foundation can help young people get connected with peer networks who share an interest in getting involved in the community. For example, our team is happy to serve as the back office for establishing what’s known as a “giving circle,” which is a type of fund that allows donors to pool resources with peers to make a bigger impact than they could achieve alone. Giving circles also provide an outstanding hands-on learning experience in philanthropy, especially because the community foundation provides education and resources about grantmaking, local needs, and nonprofit leadership.

The community foundation is honored to serve as our region’s home for charitable giving across generations. We look forward to working with you and your family to support your favorite charities and achieve meaningful outcomes in our community.

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Tax deduction? What tax deduction?

Despite–or perhaps in light of–the recent whirlwind of commentary about new federal laws and the implications for the charitable deduction and charitable giving, it is really important keep in mind that for most individuals, the decision to give is driven by deeply personal factors–such as compassion, moral obligation, empathy, or a belief in a cause—rather than financial incentives.

Indeed, altruism and emotional resonance, not tax breaks, are at the heart of philanthropic motivation. While tax incentives can influence giving, they typically play a supporting role—not a leading one. Psychological and social drivers are deeply powerful motivators for giving that tax considerations cannot match.

That’s why we have always loved this article from the Greater Good Science Center and what it stands for, including our favorite points:

Generosity is truly human.

Generous behavior isn’t merely a social construct—it’s embedded in our evolutionary makeup. Researchers have found that species ranging from bees and chimpanzees to bats exhibit “prosocial” behaviors, suggesting that generosity evolved to enhance survival. In humans, acts of generosity light up the brain’s reward pathways—similar to pleasurable experiences like eating or intimacy—highlighting that generosity is inherently satisfying.

Philanthropy benefits both the giver and the receiver.

Engaging in generous acts delivers tangible psychological and even physical benefits. Volunteering and offering support—whether time, goods, or emotional aid—have been linked to increased well-being, higher self-esteem, and even delayed mortality, particularly among older adults. Furthermore, many studies reported greater happiness when spending resources on others compared to oneself.

Charitable values can be nurtured.

It’s especially good news that acts of philanthropy are influenced by a blend of personal and social factors. Certainly empathy, humility, and moral values play a role. What’s more, cultural norms, expectations of reciprocity, and strong social networks motivate generosity, too. Unsurprisingly, people are more inclined to come to the aid of specific individuals rather than abstract causes, and generosity tends to be “contagious”—spreading through social groups and communities.

If you love supporting your favorite causes no matter what’s going on with the tax laws, you are in good company! At the community foundation, we are honored to work with hundreds of families and individuals whose giving is anchored in genuine concern for others. This in turn helps create sustainable long-term positive impact in the community we all love.

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The team at the community foundation is honored to serve as a resource and sounding board as you build your charitable plans and pursue your philanthropic objectives for making a difference in the community. This newsletter is provided for informational purposes only. It is not intended as legal, accounting, or financial planning advice. Please consult your tax or legal advisor to learn how this information might apply to your own situation.

Imagine the future.

Your community foundation helps bring your charitable goals to life.

Before we share the latest news and updates, we’d like to offer two observations:

First, it is our honor to work with so many families and businesses to structure and implement your charitable giving plans. What’s perhaps most rewarding to the team at the community foundation is the overwhelming sentiment among our donors that no matter what happens with the tax laws over the years, you are committed to making a difference by supporting the causes you love. Although tax benefits of charitable giving ebb and flow, your support for our community and the charities you love remains steadfast. Your generosity continues to improve the quality of life for everyone who lives here. Thank you!

Second, August is National Make-A-Will Month, which means it’s the perfect time–before the fall gets busy–to review your estate plans with your attorney and our team at the community foundation to ensure your philanthropic intentions are up to date. Even a quick check-in now can maximize the impact of your legacy and help ensure that your wishes are clearly carried out to support the causes you care about for generations to come.

Now, let’s get to it! Here’s what’s trending at the community foundation:

–2025 is shaping up to be an important year for charitable giving from a tax planning perspective. That’s because the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, signed into law on July 4, 2025, includes several provisions taking effect this year and next year that could influence the timing and structure of your donations. Learn how the community foundation can work with you and your advisors to navigate these opportunities.

–Back to school is upon us, and this means education is on the minds of many. If you’ve established a scholarship fund at the community foundation, or if you’re considering it, please reach out to the community foundation team. We can help structure charitable support for students’ education in ways that go well beyond scholarships to help support academic and personal success.

–If you are a business owner, the concept of succession planning is nothing new. But succession planning isn’t just for business owners–it’s also important for leaving a charitable legacy. The team at the community foundation can help capture your intentions, and we make it easy to involve your family members so that the causes you care about are supported for generations to come.

Thanks so much for all you do for our community. We look forward to talking with you soon about how you can deepen your involvement with your favorite charities. Our team is here to help.

With gratitude,

Angie Tatro,
CKCF CEO

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Navigating new laws: Opportunities for 2025

It’s more important than ever to stay informed about how changes in the tax law may affect your charitable giving. The recently-passed One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) creates challenges as well as opportunities for structuring your philanthropy. We encourage you to reach out to your attorney, CPA, and financial advisor to evaluate how the changes in the law impact your own situation.

As always, the community foundation is happy to work side-by-side with you and your tax advisors to build a plan for 2025 and beyond that not only supports your plans to make a difference in the community, but also addresses the rule changes under the OBBBA.

To help you along this journey, we’ve provided the checklist below of issues to discuss with your advisors.

Evaluate whether “bunching” may be right for you.

The OBBBA increases the 2025 standard deduction to $15,750 for single filers and $31,500 for married couples filing jointly. The higher standard deduction will likely impact tax-motivated charitable giving, even with the expected uptick in the number of itemizers thanks to the OBBBA’s state and local tax deduction allowances (subscriptions required to the Wall Street Journal). There are important exceptions and nuances to consider, which you’ll want to discuss with your advisors. For example, if you are 65 or older, you’re eligible to receive an additional $6,000 “bonus” deduction—but it begins to phase out if your modified adjusted gross income (MAGI) exceeds $75,000.

Based on the increases to the standard deduction, you may want to talk with your tax advisors about “bunching” charitable gifts for 2025 using a donor-advised fund at the community foundation. Through this technique, you can make several years’ worth of charitable contributions in a single year to exceed the standard deduction threshold, thereby maximizing tax benefits in that year. Over the following years, your donor-advised fund can distribute grants to charities over time according to your wishes.

There are more reasons you might want to talk with your advisors about front-loading charitable contributions in 2025. In 2026, a new provision under the OBBBA takes effect that allows you to take a deduction for charitable gifts only to the extent that your giving exceeds 0.5% of your AGI. What’s more, if you’re in the highest tax bracket, 37%, you can still only deduct charitable contributions at the 35% rate.

The upshot here is that you and your tax advisors may decide that 2025 is the year to bunch charitable contributions to maximize tax savings.

Get familiar with the deduction for non-itemizers, coming next year.

If you don’t itemize your deductions, you’ll be glad to know that starting in the 2026 tax year you can claim a deduction for cash gifts to qualifying public charities—up to $1,000 for single filers and $2,000 for married couples filing jointly. Excluded from this new provision are gifts to donor‑advised funds and non‑cash gifts, which is unfortunate because those vehicles are popular, convenient, and tax-effective. Still, keep in mind the new deduction, and, if you’re encouraging your adult children to get involved in philanthropy, make sure they are aware of this deduction. It could be particularly helpful for young people because many young people do not yet itemize.

If you are over 70 ½, review the benefits of Qualified Charitable Distributions.

A Qualified Charitable Distribution (QCD) enables individuals aged 70 ½ or older to donate up to $108,000 per year (as of 2025) directly from an IRA to eligible charities, and in the process exclude the donated amount from taxable income altogether–rather than relying on an itemized deduction. QCDs may be especially advantageous after the OBBBA’s significant increase to the standard deduction because QCDs provide a direct tax benefit regardless of whether you itemize or take the standard deduction. Indeed, using a QCD to fulfill required minimum distributions (RMDs) can lower your adjusted gross income, potentially reducing taxes on Social Security income and Medicare surtaxes and helping you sidestep the new floors and caps on itemized charitable deductions imposed by the OBBBA starting in 2026.

The community foundation is happy to collaborate with you and your tax advisor as you explore ways to achieve your philanthropic goals under the new laws. We look forward to hearing from you!

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Back to school: Expanding support for education

It’s time for back-to-school planning! If education is on your mind, you’re in good company. Charitable giving to education rose in 2024 to more than $58 billion! If education and related causes are important to you, the community foundation can help you explore a variety of meaningful ways to make an impact. Here are three ideas to inspire a deeper discussion:

Explore options for expanding student support

In many cases, donors set up a scholarship or other type of fund to support a particular educational institution, and then set it on autopilot. There’s nothing wrong with this approach, but you might be missing an opportunity to make a deeper impact. The community foundation team is happy to facilitate a dialogue with you and the school to structure your funding–whether through a scholarship or other types of support–to fill gaps in student need. For example, if you’d like to support students pursuing a college degree beyond simply scholarship dollars, the community foundation can help identify needs for dollars to increase faculty salaries, purchase lab equipment, or pay an on-campus counselor to help students acclimate to college life.

Investigate opportunities to improve the quality of education itself

Many donors are concerned that high school graduates are ill-prepared for post-secondary education, whether that’s a traditional four-year college, community college, or trade school. The community foundation can help you address this gap with your charitable dollars. For example, you could establish a fund to support teachers, which in turn helps improve student success. Indeed, teachers are often considered the single most important in-school factor for student success. Charitable funding that enhances teacher training, mentorship, and ongoing professional development creates ripple effects across classrooms and generations of students.

Find your education “niche”

By establishing a field-of-interest fund at the community foundation, you can work with the community foundation team to identify specific parameters within education that you’d like to fund. For example, you may  be interested in supporting local grassroots programs offering tutoring and mentorship. Or, you may decide to direct your charitable dollars to quality early childhood programs, which have been shown to yield high returns on investments in education. The community foundation can help you identify an area of focus. Going forward, our team leverages the community foundation’s deep knowledge and research to identify high-impact opportunities, helping to ensure your generosity makes the greatest difference within your area of interest.

Please reach out to our team anytime! As students head back to school and education is top of mind, the community foundation is here to make sure your giving is impactful, focused, and in line with your philanthropic goals.

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Succession planning: It’s not just for businesses

Many people think of succession planning as something only relevant to businesses or nonprofits. However, it’s equally important when considering the legacy you want to leave through philanthropy—including being intentional about what happens to your donor-advised fund at the community foundation after you’re gone. The community foundation team can help structure provisions for your donor-advised fund to engage your family, tap the community foundation’s expertise, or a combination of both so that your donor-advised fund can become a multi-generational legacy that reflects your values.

Here are three considerations as you consider your “charitable succession plan”:

Leave a legacy

One of the most powerful ways to extend your impact is by leaving a portion of your estate to charity—such as by naming your donor-advised fund as a beneficiary of an IRA or other retirement account. This strategy delivers considerable tax advantages and enables your philanthropic dollars to be thoughtfully distributed in accordance with your values. Remember, IRAs left to the community foundation avoid not only the income tax that would hit your heirs, but also removes the assets from your taxable estate for estate tax purposes.

Lean on the community foundation

The community foundation is honored to serve as a trusted partner for many individuals and families. Our team can work with you and your advisors to enlist the community foundation’s expertise to make grants from your donor-advised fund according to your values and charitable intentions following your death. We can also work with you and your advisors to incorporate the ability for your children and grandchildren to serve as advisors to the donor-advised fund following your death, including taking advantage of the community foundation’s educational programs to help your children and grandchildren learn how to be effective philanthropists.

Capture your intentions

The community foundation team is happy to work with you to document and formalize your charitable wishes. We’ll help you articulate your priorities and outline how you envision your fund making a difference across generations, whether that means supporting specific organizations, issue areas, urgent community needs, or a combination of priorities. By helping you capture your intentions in writing and then following your wishes, the community foundation acts as a steward to safeguard your philanthropic goals and help ensure that the causes you care about continue to receive support for years to come.

We look forward to talking about succession planning for your donor-advised fund. The community foundation is honored to help you secure your charitable legacy and involve your loved ones in meaningful giving. Thank you for the opportunity!

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The team at the community foundation is honored to serve as a resource and sounding board as you build your charitable plans and pursue your philanthropic objectives for making a difference in the community. This newsletter is provided for informational purposes only. It is not intended as legal, accounting, or financial planning advice. Please consult your tax or legal advisor to learn how this information might apply to your own situation.

Imagine the future.

Your community foundation helps bring your charitable goals to life.

Thank you for the opportunity to work together! Even in a year like 2025, we’re honored to help philanthropy in our community celebrate big and little victories as we all work together to improve the quality of life in the community we love.

A bright spot in the world of charitable giving is that philanthropy in the United States reached a significant milestone in 2024, with individuals, bequests, foundations, and corporations contributing an estimated $592.50 billion to charitable causes. That’s according to the recently-released Giving USA report, citing a 6.3% increase in current dollars from the previous year, or a 3.3% increase when adjusted for inflation.

As always, we’re happy to offer insights into trends and issues that shape the way you carry out your charitable giving priorities:

–Many philanthropic individuals serve on the board of directors of a charity–and in many cases more than one! Learn about the factors you may want to consider before you say yes to a board invitation. As always, the community foundation is here as a resource and sounding board.

–Finding purpose is often a top priority for retirees. Carrying out your purpose requires not only planning your time, but also thoughtfully considering how to allocate financial resources, including how you might leave a legacy. The community foundation can help.

–Tax laws remain a topic of conversation, including in conversations about charitable giving. Check out the latest updates and learn how changes might impact the way you approach philanthropy. Our team is here to help!

Whether you’ve established a fund at the community foundation, given to an existing fund, or are just beginning to get involved, thank you for all you do to help charitable giving in our region stay strong!

With gratitude,

Angie Tatro,
CKCF CEO

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More than meetings: Considerations for joining a board

If you’ve served on a charity’s board of directors, you know that the role demands much more than simply showing up for meetings. Charities benefit from board members’ active engagement, strategic oversight, and a deep commitment to the organization’s mission. Indeed, board members are fiduciaries who are responsible for guiding the nonprofit’s culture, ensuring sound governance, providing financial stewardship, and acting as ambassadors and advocates in the community. Beyond legal duties, they are expected to help secure resources, oversee leadership, and contribute to the charity’s long-term sustainability and impact.

If this sounds like a lot, it’s because it is! Before you make the leap to join a charity’s board, please consider reaching out to our team. The community foundation can serve as an invaluable resource to support your decision-making process. Our professionals know a lot about local charities, including in-depth information about programs, impact, leadership, financial stability, and reputation. We’re happy to provide an impartial assessment of the charity’s governance practices, evaluate alignment with your values, and fill you in on the current needs or challenges the board is facing.

Thorough due diligence is crucial, not only to ensure that the board position would be a good fit for your skills, interests, and availability, but also to avoid potential legal pitfalls and liabilities that could stand in the way of your ability to carry out your fiduciary duties. Our team can provide a high-level review of these duties, including:

• A duty of loyalty to prioritize the charity’s interests and avoid conflict;
• A duty of compliance to adhere to the nonprofit’s mission and legal requirements; and
• A duty to “manage accounts,” which means overseeing financial stability and accountability

These duties translate into real responsibilities for strategic planning, fundraising, financial oversight, and executive evaluation.

Please reach out anytime. It is our honor to help you make a difference in the community we all love, whether that’s through charitable giving, board service, volunteering, or advocacy. The community foundation is your home for philanthropy in all of its many forms.

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Advancing your purpose: Considerations for a philanthropic retirement

If you’ve recently retired, you may still be figuring out the ideal balance of activities. If you’ve been retired for several years, you might still be trying to figure it out! Time and again, research shows us that finding purpose is an essential component of a happy and satisfying retirement. Consider the following:

• A large-scale, longitudinal study used data from 13,770 older adults, finding that those with a higher sense of purpose at baseline were significantly less likely to develop unhealthy behaviors.
• Other research used a nationally representative panel of over 8,000 American adults and determined that, contrary to some beliefs, retirement can actually increase a person’s sense of purpose.
• A cross-sectional study analyzed data from nearly 2,000 adults and found that sense of purpose was significantly associated with lower depression and anxiety in both retirees and non-retirees.

Indeed, retirement offers a unique opportunity for individuals to rediscover their sense of purpose beyond the confines of a traditional career. The community foundation’s team and charitable tools can play a pivotal role in this journey. Here’s how:

Check in on tax planning

For starters, the community foundation team can work with you and your tax advisors to be sure your charitable giving is reflected in your estate and financial plan to achieve the impact you’re seeking. Among other issues, we’ll help you and your advisors explore whether itemizing your tax deductions in certain years might save you money. You can “bunch” charitable donations into your donor-advised fund in higher-income years to exceed the itemization threshold, then support your favorite causes steadily over time from that fund. If you’re 70 ½ or older, we’ll also help evaluate whether tax-free transfers directly from your IRA—up to $108,000 (in 2025)—to a designated, unrestricted, or field-of-interest fund at the community foundation would be an effective planning technique for your situation.

Involve the next generation

Many retirees have more time to include family members in their personal charitable giving activities. The community foundation team can work alongside you and your estate planning advisors to name children or grandchildren as advisors or successor advisors to your donor-advised fund and invite them to participate in site visits and educational events. This is a great way to strengthen family bonds while building a legacy of generosity across generations. Our team can help you identify ways to include children and grandchildren in site visits to favorite charities and participate in education sessions about community needs and the nonprofits that are making a difference for people who live in our region.

Build a legacy

Many people update their estate plans just after they retire. As you work with your tax and estate planning advisors, consider incorporating a gift in your estate plan that will allow your charitable legacy to live on for generations. For example, many people name a fund at the community foundation as the beneficiary of their IRAs because of the significant tax advantages when compared with leaving the IRAs to heirs. The community foundation is happy to work with you and your advisors to establish a special fund to receive assets from your estate, whether from an IRA or other type of estate gift. The fund can be structured as a permanent endowment to address the community’s greatest needs far into the future, or even support the community foundation’s operations to ensure that philanthropy and stewardship continue to thrive for generations to come. You can also name your donor-advised fund as an estate beneficiary, and your children and grandchildren can serve as advisors to the fund so that they, in turn, can carry on the spirit of charitable giving in the family’s name.

We look forward to working with you throughout your retirement years to ensure that your community dreams are fulfilled through the power of charitable giving. Please reach out anytime.

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One Big Beautiful Bill Act: Three Insights for Philanthropy

The One Big Beautiful Bill Act was signed into law by President Trump on July 4, 2025, after the House of Representatives approved the Senate’s changes to H.R. 1, which passed the House by a narrow margin in May.

The OBBBA, with nearly 900 pages of provisions, reshapes policy across major sectors of the U.S. economy. Included in the OBBBA are several provisions that impact philanthropy. Three major takeaways are of particular importance as the community foundation helps donors, fund holders, and nonprofits–as well as attorneys, CPAs, and financial advisors–navigate charitable planning opportunities over the months and years ahead.

(Notably, the OBBBA omits several provisions that appeared in previous versions of the legislation, such as a proposed increase to the net investment income tax on private foundations.)

Insight #1: Standard deduction goes higher

What’s in the OBBBA?
The new law makes permanent the standard deduction increases under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 (TCJA), increasing the standard deduction for 2025 to $15,750 for single filers and $31,500 to taxpayers who are married and filing jointly. The new law also expands the “bonus” deduction for taxpayers 65 and older through 2028.

What’s more, under the new law, individuals who itemize may take charitable deductions only to the extent the charitable deductions exceed 0.5% of adjusted gross income. Furthermore, taxpayers in the top bracket can only claim a 35 percent tax deduction for charitable gifts instead of the full 37 percent that would otherwise apply to their income tax rate. Note also that the final bill extended the 60% of adjusted gross income contribution limitation for cash gifts made to certain qualifying charities.

What does this mean for charitable giving?
With even fewer taxpayers eligible to itemize, and deductions capped for high-income earners, we’re likely to see a continuation of the chilling effect on charitable giving that occurred in the wake of the TCJA.

What can you do?
If you regularly support charities, it’s important to continue to do so whether or not you’re benefiting from a tax deduction. Our community needs you, now more than ever. If you’re a nonprofit, or if you’re an attorney, CPA, or financial advisor who works with charitable clients, remember that people do not give to charity solely to secure a tax deduction. Keep in mind that many other factors motivate charitable giving, and philanthropy is an important priority for many families. (This article in the Stanford Social Innovation Review has stood the test of time.)

Insight #2: Deduction for non-itemizers

What’s in the OBBA?
The new law includes a provision, effective after 2025, allowing non-itemizers to take a charitable deduction of $1,000 for single filers and $2,000 for taxpayers who are married and filing jointly. As has been the case in the past, gifts to donor-advised funds are not eligible. Unlike a previous (but smaller) similar provision, though, this law is not set to sunset.

What does this mean for charitable giving?
After the TCJA went into effect, households that itemize deductions dropped to under 10%. Parallel to this trend, the number of U.S. adults who give to charity in any given year has dropped over the last 20 years from nearly two-thirds to less than half, according to some studies. Against this backdrop, the OBBBA’s deduction for non-itemizers has the potential to re-motivate charitable giving among a significant number of households.

What can you do?
For everyone, now is the time to take a serious look at your charitable giving plans to support the causes you care about over the years ahead, especially if you are early in your career and not yet itemizing deductions. If you’ve already established a fund or you’re working with the community foundation in another way, please reach out to learn how we can help you make the most of the new tax laws, and even get your children and grandchildren involved. If you’re a nonprofit, now is the time to attract and engage brand new donors. And if you’re an attorney, CPA, or financial advisor, make sure you talk about charitable giving with your clients who don’t itemize; a $1000 or $2000 deduction could be just the motivation they need to begin a journey of philanthropy.

Insight#3: No sunsetting estate tax exemption

What’s in the OBBA?
For affluent taxpayers updating financial and estate plans, and for the attorneys, CPAs, and wealth managers advising them, the last couple of years have been a roller coaster because of the looming possibility that the TCJA’s increase to the estate tax exemption would sunset at the end of 2025. Finally, there is clarity: Under the OBBBA, the sunset will not happen. The new law makes permanent the increase in the unified credit and generation-skipping transfer tax exemption threshold. The 2025 exemption is $13.99 million for single filers and $27.98 million married filing jointly. In 2026, these numbers increase to $15 million and $30 million respectively.

What does this mean for charitable giving?
Purely estate tax-based incentives to give to charity continue to apply only to the ultra-wealthy, likely resulting in a continuation of the taxpayer behavior triggered by the TCJA. In other words, most people will give to charity during their lifetimes and in their estates for reasons other than a tax deduction.

What can you do?
There is no guarantee that the estate tax exemption will stay high forever. As families work with their tax and estate planning advisors, many are viewing the next two years as an important window to plan ahead. The upshot of the new law is that high net-worth taxpayers now have more time to thoughtfully consider estate planning strategies, including charitable giving. For nonprofit organizations, this means continuing to focus on long-term planned giving strategies is wise.

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The team at the community foundation is honored to serve as a resource and sounding board as you build your charitable plans and pursue your philanthropic objectives for making a difference in the community. This newsletter is provided for informational purposes only. It is not intended as legal, accounting, or financial planning advice. Please consult your tax or legal advisor to learn how this information might apply to your own situation.