Estate Planning and Legacy Giving

Creating Your Legacy of Love, Hope and Belonging

When creating or updating your will, once you’ve looked after your loved ones, including a gift to Our Place Society would create a heartfelt legacy of love for those we serve.

A gift in your will, also known as a bequest, is paid out through your estate – so you don’t have to give up any of your income or savings during your lifetime. And, it will generate a charitable tax receipt which can reduce income tax payable by your estate.

And, if you choose to let us know about your future gift, you could join our Legacy of Love Circle.

Leaving a gift to Our Place Society in your will is an important decision requiring careful consideration. You can read how we will respect your decision (and privacy) both now and in the future in this document: Our Place Legacy Charter.

Your legacy gift can honour a loved one (here’s a story about an Our Place donor who did just that), or recognize your own life journey by making a compassionate commitment to care for others in our community – after you’re gone.

Please take a moment to watch this video and discover how your legacy gift will make a difference. (This was filmed before COVID-19 and requirement for social distancing and wearing masks.)

We recommend you discuss your legacy intentions with professional advisors. They can help you choose the most tax-effective way to make your gift and craft the language in your will to ensure your wishes are fulfilled. You may find it useful to provide them with our sample will clauses and other legal information included in this document, Our Place Legal Information for Legacy Gifts.

What Your Future Gift Can Accomplish at Our Place

At Our Place, we’ve been helping people through tough times for over 50 years.

Your future gift will help people struggling with homelessness, poverty, addiction, job loss and mental health issues.  By providing nourishment for the multiple forms hunger can take – physical, social, emotional and spiritual – we strive to meet the needs of the whole person.

If there was a way we could end poverty today, or prevent all forms of abuse, we would.  We can and do try. But the reality is that until miracles become more commonplace, the need for the programs and services offered through Our Place will be here for years to come.

That’s why your future gift of care and compassion will be as crucial as it is today.

Please Let Us Say Thank You

If you let us know about your future gift, we’ll be able thank you (because once your gift arrives, that won’t be possible).  And of course, we will respect your privacy and confidentiality.

What Type of Gift is a Legacy Gift?

Legacy gifts come in all shapes and sizes.   It could be something specific like a piece of property, a number of shares, or a specific amount of cash. However, one of the easiest legacy gifts is to leave a percentage of the ‘residue’ in your estate.  The residue refers to the amount of money that’s left once all other gifts (to heirs or other loved ones) and any taxes or fees owing have been taken care of.

Even a gift of 5-10% of the residue could make a huge difference in transforming lives. By choosing a percentage rather than a specific dollar amount – you won’t have to update the dollar amount in your will, if your financial situation changes.

And remember, your estate will receive a charitable tax receipt for the full amount of your legacy gift – which can lower or even eliminate any income tax payable by your estate.

Every gift in every will – regardless of the size – will make a difference to those struggling through tough times, right here in our community.

You Can Create a Legacy Gift through your Retirement/Pension Funds or TFSA

There’s another way for you to create a legacy gift to Our Place Society – by naming it as a beneficiary of your retirement funds. For example, RRSP or RRIF or other pension funds.  Or, as a beneficiary of your TFSA.

To do this, you would change the beneficiary designation through the financial institution that holds the particular fund. You can split the designation, on a percentage basis, between one or more people – or one or more charities.  And, your financial institute will not charge you to do so.  Because it’s so easy to set up (or change) this type of gift often referred to as the ‘5 Minute Legacy.’

Unlike a gift in your will – which would be paid out by your executor as part of your estate settlement – naming a charity as a beneficiary means the gift flows directly from the financial institution to the charity.

A Legacy Gift through Life Insurance

There are a number of ways in which you can make a legacy gift using life insurance. To find out more it’s advisable to discuss this with your professional advisor or life insurance provider.

Interested in Learning More About Your Legacy Gift?

For more information and a confidential conversation – with no obligation – please contact contact Janice Kalin at janicek@ourplacesociety.com or call her direct line at 250-940-5067.

Thank you for considering helping those we serve with a future gift in your will or estate planning.

Our Privacy Promise

We are committed to protecting your privacy.

We will not rent, sell or trade your information to other organizations, parties or mailing lists.

Any personal information that you provide to us while on our website or in other communications with Our Place Society will be kept strictly confidential and used only to keep you up to date about our work, to deliver tax receipts and to send you other information that you have requested.