For over two decades, the Robert E. Webber Institute for Worship Studies has been preparing students to serve the Universal Church of Jesus Christ as leaders and teachers of worship. Hundreds of faithful, faith-filled and compassionate students who were educated here are now serving the Lord all across the globe.
We are grateful and humbled by the support of friends, like you, who are committed to our school, our mission and our future. IWS thrives today thanks to the generosity of those who have made gifts—including deferred/planned gifts—to the Institute over the years.
The IWS Legacy Circle proudly honors those who have made gifts to IWS in their estate plans. Bequests, life insurance policies, beneficiary designations of life insurance or retirement plans and life income gifts are among the planned giving options that qualify you for membership.
The IWS Legacy Society is a way for us to thank and honor these donors in a special way. Please contact the Office of the President for details on the Benefits of Membership. As you consider your own long-range estate plans, you may want to provide meaningful and lasting support to IWS through a deferred/planned gift. Such gifts come in a variety of forms and many offer you tax benefits. Here are some options you may want to consider:
When you make or update a Will, you may include charitable bequests of a specific dollar amount, a percentage of what is left after other bequests have been made or even a particular asset. You may be able to add a bequest to an existing Will through a codicil, or amendment.
You may reduce the tax impact on your estate by directing all or a portion of your IRA or 401(k) or 403(b) to IWS. Designating a charitable organization as beneficiary of an IRA or 401(k) or 403(b) does not require you to change your Will.
You can also make IWS the beneficiary of life insurance policies without changing your Will. They may make an excellent source of charitable gifts.
There are Charitable Trust giving options that allow you to increase your income in retirement, make educational funds available for children or grandchildren in tax-favored ways, provide inheritances free or largely free of gift, estate and generation skipping taxes and supplement the income of a spouse, parent, sibling or other loved one.
Any of these gifts can be made in honor of a spouse, special friend or relative. This can be a wonderful way to continue your support and create a legacy for the future while remembering someone special you care about.
Bequests are often the first and easiest planned or deferred gift a donor can make. In planning your estate, you should remember that an outright bequest to IWS, as well as certain bequests in trust, are not subject to estate taxation. A bequest should always be drawn up with the advice of an attorney. A bequest to IWS can take any of the following forms:
In order to make a bequest, one must have a Will. Everyone should have a Will, regardless of the ability or desire to make a charitable bequest. Having a Will confers the inestimable peace of mind that one’s estate will be distributed according to personal wishes and not by the laws of the state. Once a Will is drawn, bequest intentions are easy to make or amend, and donors often find they are able to make a more significant estate contribution to a beloved institution or charitable interest than may be possible in outright fashion during life.
The following language may assist you and your attorney in preparing a bequest.
To make an outright bequest of cash, securities, or other property by designating a specific dollar amount, a particular asset, or a fixed percentage of your estate to the Seminary to be used for its general purposes:
“I give, devise, and bequeath to The Robert E. Webber Institute for Worship Studies, a non-profit educational institution located at 4001 Hendricks Ave., Jacksonville, Florida, the sum of $________ [or a description of the specific asset], OR _________ % of the rest, residue and remainder of my estate after all debts, expenses and taxes have been paid and all the general and specific bequests have been made for the benefit of The Robert E. Webber Institute for Worship Studies for its general purposes.”
To make an outright bequest for a specific purpose:
“I give, devise, and bequeath to The Robert E. Webber Institute for Worship Studies, a non-profit educational institution located at 4001 Hendricks Ave., Jacksonville, Florida, the sum of $________ [or a description of the specific asset], OR _________ % of the rest, residue and remainder of my estate after all debts, expenses and taxes have been paid and all the general and specific bequests have been made for the benefit of The Robert E. Webber Institute for Worship Studies for the following purpose: [state the purpose]. If at any time in the judgment of the Trustees of The Robert E. Webber Institute for Worship Studies it is impossible or impracticable to carry out exactly the designated purpose, they shall determine an alternative purpose as near as possible to the designated purpose.”
To make a contingency gift, so that IWS will receive a portion of your estate if your named beneficiary does not survive you:
“I devise and bequeath the residue of the property, real and personal and wherever situated, owned by me at my death, to [name of beneficiary], if [she/he] survives me. If [name of beneficiary] does not survive me, I devise and bequeath my residuary estate to The Robert E. Webber Institute for Worship Studies, a non-profit educational institution located at 4001 Hendricks Ave., Jacksonville, Florida, for its general purposes.”
It is helpful to IWS if you confirm a deferred/planned gift by sending the President a single page simple estate distribution declaration for our files. President Jim Hart is available to work with you and/or your advisors to find a gift option that will benefit you and your family as well as IWS.
If you have already made a gift commitment to IWS, or would like more information confidentially with no obligation, please call President Jim Hart at (800) 282-2977.
