Last Monday I got to see a demonstration of software meant to make the administration of private foundations much easier. Among other things, the program offers compliance services, including a review of grants to ensure there is no self-dealing; a review of potential recipients of grants to ensure they are, in fact, 501(c)(3) organizations, and thus eligible to receive tax-deductible donations; and a constant vigil over total annual foundation disbursements to ensure that the foundation hits its five percent (5%) minimum distribution requirement.

It was this last service that caught my eye. Read the rest of this entry »

Things are happening so fast right now, I want to break my “series” on our family governance meetings last week in order to report on some other matters that have come up in the very recent past.

This past week we received final word on the results of a fundraising program we were able to spearhead in behalf of Mission India. The results themselves are very exciting to us, and I’d like to direct your attention to a fellow blogger’s post on the subject, 7682 Women in India can learn to read!

But I would like to use that event as a jump off point for talking about the entire subject of strategic giving. How can we maximize the impact of our gifts in philanthropic and charitable endeavors?

I would like to point toward what I am becoming more and more convinced is a good path . . . by means of my wife’s and my personal journey. Read the rest of this entry »

I read two articles today that both seemed to “teach” the same lesson: Be careful about “doing good” that actually does harm. Here are the prime illustrations the authors offered. Read the rest of this entry »

What information can help an estate planning/legacy planning professional create the best plan for you? A document like this could help!

As I noted a month ago, our legacy planner provided a draft “Family Wealth Letter of Intent” designed to summarize in written form what Sarita and I currently understand God’s plans to be for the remaining time we have on earth, and to serve as a guide to our family and advisors to help them understand our life priorities and the things we want to do for our children and for God’s Kingdom . . . during the remainder of our life on earth . . . and beyond.

I indicated I was not happy with the paper as our planner had drafted it. It wasn’t “us.” Honestly, it overemphasized things we would have emphasized far less (and maybe not mentioned at all); it used words and phrases that we would never use; it failed to express the things that we most highly value; and it said several things that, frankly, were just plain untrue.

So I knew I had to rewrite it. And I finally finished my rewrite today. As I wrote a month ago, so now: I share this with you “primarily because I want you to see the full process we are going through. Sometimes the process is easy; often, I’m afraid, it is–or is going to be–very difficult. Most importantly, I think you need to understand that legacy planning is an iterative process.”

So here is my/our “latest iteration.” Read the rest of this entry »