Simple. Giving. Solution.

A Donor Advised Fund is one of the most popular giving instruments available in the United States. With that said, I wanted to take a moment to demystify some of the most common misconceptions about who should open a Donor Advised Fund, how they work, and how they help.

“We have thought about opening a Donor Advised Fund, but we don’t have tons of cash available to justify opening one.”

We hear this one a lot. Many times, there is a preconceived notion that Donor Advised Funds are only for the super wealthy. This is not the case. A Donor Advised Fund can be opened with a minimum of $1,000 and is a great tool to manage giving. Cash is accepted, but many times the most financially advantageous contributions come in the form of non-cash gifts – publicly traded stocks, bonds, mutual funds, privately held stocks, and all forms of non-liquid real estate type assets.

“Opening a Donor Advised Fund at a financial institution is the same as opening one at the Laguna Beach Community Foundation.”

One of our newest fund holders moved their Donor Advised Fund from a financial institution to the Foundation. Why? Laguna Beach Community Foundation has minimal management fees of 1.5% on all contributions up to $1 million and .6% on everything thereafter. Considering our professional investment team is pro-bono, all management fees go to supporting the Community Foundation and enabling us to offer services like our curated grants portal to support other local nonprofits.

“Donor Advised Funds freeze money that would have otherwise benefited a nonprofit.”

All contributions to a Donor Advised Fund must be distributed to qualified 501(c)3’s. Some donors choose to immediately distribute these funds while others hold onto the funds for a period of time to meet their philanthropic giving strategy. A benefit to a Donor Advised Fund with the Laguna Beach Community Foundation is having access to a pro-bono investment team including wealth advisory professionals Laura Tarbox, Jim Fletcher, and George Wood. Over the past three years, our team has produced an annualized return of 11.1%. Given this example, more funding would be available for contribution to qualified 501(c)3’s and more philanthropic missions can be achieved.

“There is a lot of paperwork and administrative burden in opening a Donor Advised Fund. It’s easier to just send directly to the nonprofits I wish to support.”

A Donor Advised Fund can be opened in one day. The application takes anywhere from 10-30 minutes to fill out. Once the fund is opened, all granting and fund reporting is completed through an online donor portal. The Laguna Beach Community Foundation handles all of the administrative back office requirements necessary to ensure that all donations are managed properly and granted to qualified 501(c)3’s. A financial report is generated quarterly for all fund holders providing a detailed summary of contributions that will aid in tax filings. A Donor Advised Fund is an easy way to manage your philanthropic giving.

“A family foundation is the only way to execute on our family’s philanthropic giving goals.”

Like a Family Foundation, a Donor Advised Fund can be named to your liking – Jones Family Fund, Amy and Tom Anderson Fund, etc. A Donor Advised Fund provides an income tax deduction of 50% for cash and 30% for appreciated assets of Adjusted Gross Income while a private family foundation offers an income tax deduction up to 30% for cash and 20% for appreciated assets of Adjusted Gross Income. By opening a private family foundation, the following information is publically available: balance sheet detail (including investment holdings, a listing of directors (including contact information), every grant that is made (organization name and amount), and detail of administrative and investment management expenses. A more thorough comparison is available on our website here. A Donor Advised Fund is an inexpensive and administratively simple way to manage your philanthropic giving goals.

If you have questions about Donor Advised Funds, please feel free to contact Rachel Lindsay at the Laguna Beach Community Foundation at 949-715-8223.

Is your organization using social media to reach your targeted community?

Are you connecting with your stakeholders effectively?

Are you utilizing the most powerful communication systems ever developed to raise awareness of your brand and work?

Brian’s Presentation Shows You How To:

• Integrate social media into your existing communications plan.

• Engage and inspire your targeted community.

• Deepen your network of stakeholders.

• Grow your business.

• Amplify your brand!

Brian Ross Adams, Founder of Trusted Messenger Marketing (TMM), is an Online Branding and Social Media Consultant specializing in political campaigns, nonprofits, small businesses, artists, advocacy campaigns and public figures. He regularly consults on a political campaigns’ online presence, website, social media accounts and overall messaging strategy. TMM’s social media program focuses on dramatically increasing a client’s social media account size and “engagement rates” by “hyper micro-targeting” and community building through listening and inquiry. TMM’s motto is “creative, engaging and measurable messaging.”

Clients:

Public Figures:

Los Angeles County Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas

Senator Ben Allen

Assemblymember Sebastian Ridley-Thomas

Assemblymember Autumn Burke

Assemblymember Richard Bloom

Los Angeles City Council Member Curren Price, Jr.

Mayor Aja Brown (Compton)

Mayor Pam O’Connor (Santa Monica)

Micah Ali (President, Compton Unified School Board)

Organizations

The Broad Foundation

Special Needs Network

United Way

Alliance for College-Ready Public Schools

League of Women Voters- Santa Monica

Get-Lit Words Ignite

“Brian Ross Adams is absolutely the best social media marketing professional in LA! He understands how to develop a message and promote it across multiple platforms to maximize engagement and amplify your brand. Anyone who is looking to promote themselves, a product or their organization has to strongly consider not only traditional marketing and public relations, but also social media. When making such considerations, make sure Brian Ross Adams is at the top of your list!”

–Areva Martin, Founder of The Special Needs Network

Join Brian Ross Adams at the Laguna Beach Community Foundation, 303 Broadway, Suite 212, Laguna Beach from 12:15pm-1:00pm on Thursday, June 18th. The event is free to attend. Please RSVP to Rachel Lindsay at 949-715-8223 or rachel@lagunabeachcf.org. We look forward to seeing you there.

On Tuesday, June 23rd, from 2:00-5:00pm, Laguna Beach Seniors will host “Succession Planning for Nonprofit Organizations”. The three-hour workshop is for Laguna Beach nonprofit professionals and volunteers who want to learn methods of sustaining strong leadership for the future of their organizations. The workshop will be held at The Susi Q Center (380 Third Street, Laguna Beach) and is open to any individual or organization.

“Succession Planning for Nonprofit Organizations” is a partnership project of Laguna Beach Seniors, Laguna Ocean Foundation and Laguna Beach Community Foundation and will be taught by Jeffrey R. Wilcox, CFRE, President and CEO of Third Sector Company, based in Seattle, Washington. Jeffrey is the nonprofit management columnist for The Long Beach Business Journal, the former senior vice president of United Way of Greater Los Angeles, and past president of the Orange County Association of Fundraising Professionals. “Now, more than ever, nonprofit organizations must realize that their human resource needs are as important as their financial resource needs if a worthy organization is to remain sustainable in its work and reliable in its service to the community,” says Wilcox.

Jeffrey R. Wilcox, CFRE, President & CEO, The Third Sector Company
Author, “The Nonprofit Leader of the New Decade,” Nonprofit Columnist, Long Beach Business Journal and Founder, Board Chairs Academy


To register for “Succession Planning for Nonprofit Organizations” contact Helen Wardner at Third Sector Company: hwardner@thirdsectorcompany.com; 562-484-8281. $45 for first-time participants or $35 for graduates of Third Sector Company’s Board Chairs Academy includes course and materials, and a package of Succession Planning Tools.