Your Gift Creates a Lasting Legacy

Bequests, life income gifts, and all other planned gifts are an investment in the future of our Seminary.  These gifts will help generations of students obtain the education and training they need. There are many ways you can meet your financial goals and maximize your philanthropic giving to the Hartford Seminary through sound and timely gift planning.  

 Benefits of Planned Gifts

•           Tax advantages are substantial, especially on appreciated securities and properties.
•           Total savings on income, estate, and capital gains taxes and on probate expenses can come close to the amount you transfer.
•           Many giving options can assure you of income for the rest of your life.
•           Your assets remain in your control during your lifetime.
•           You can modify your gift to address changing circumstances.
•           You can direct your gift to a particular purpose.

Legacy gifts can be made in several forms including bequests and planned gifts and are especially important for Hartford Seminary as we seek to build endowment resources to provide scholarships for students and to strengthen support for teaching and research.

Gifts That Cost You Nothing Over Your Lifetime

There are several ways to support Hartford Seminary that will not affect you and your family during your lifetime. We recommend speaking with a financial adviser and attorney on the best way for you to leave a legacy gift to Hartford Seminary

Bequests (Gifts by Will or Living Trust)

Gift of Life Insurance 

Gift of a Retirement Plan

Gifts That Pay You Back

Planned Gifts, also known as life income gifts, are frequently an important source of retirement income. Gifts that pay life income have many benefits including dependable income for you and your family, current and future tax savings, and a means to make a generous gift to Hartford Seminary. As you are planning for retirement or the care of a loved one, life income gifts are a helpful way to meet both your personal and charitable giving goals.

Depending on your situation, there are several different kinds of planned gifts that may meet your needs:

Charitable Gift Annuities

A Gift Annuity’s rate of return is based solely on your age at the time of the gift. Annuities may be funded with cash or appreciated securities, and provide fixed income payments, for life, to you and/or another person, successively. A significant portion of the income may be tax-free. You may defer income payments to a later date, such as retirement age, which may produce a substantial increase in the rate of return.

Charitable Remainder Trusts

Trusts may be funded with cash, securities or real estate, and income payments may be fixed or flexible. The most common type, the Unitrust, is valued annually and the donor is paid a fixed percentage of the value over the following year.

Pooled Income Fund

The Pooled Income Fund is like a mutual fund; it accepts gifts from many donors, manages them, and distributes each gift’s portion of the earnings to the designated one or two life-income beneficiaries, successively.

Hartford Seminary welcomes your inquiries about life income gifts and stands ready to assist you. All inquiries are strictly confidential.  We also strongly advise and encourage donors to always consult with their own attorney or financial adviser as well. For more information, please feel free to contact the Development Office at (860) 509-9520 or send an email to giving@hartsem.edu.