Gift Planning at PLU
Incorporating PLU into your estate plan is a powerful way to leave a lasting impact that benefits students, faculty and programs. Planned giving costs nothing during your lifetime yet enables you to expand access to higher education, enabling students to think critically, globally, and empathetically for years to come.
FreeWill: A Gift from PLU to You
PLU is committed to providing our alumni and friends with helpful resources for lifelong learning and growth. Therefore, we are proud to partner with FreeWill to offer the Lute community a free, easy resource to help you write your will in less than 20 minutes.
FreeWill is a user-friendly, trusted online tool that helps you create a will and offers the option to include PLU in your estate plans. This platform introduces planned giving in an accessible and inclusive way, guiding you through understanding your assets and how you might distribute them. FreeWill is available anytime, making it convenient for you to start planning when you’re ready, ensuring that your legacy can have a lasting impact.
How Planned Giving Protects Your Loved Ones and Supports Future PLU Students
In all phases of life, planning for the future is essential for making crucial decisions and safeguarding those who matter most to you. By establishing an estate plan, you can:
- Provide financial stability for yourself and your loved ones.
- Clearly communicate your preferences to your family.
- Enjoy peace of mind knowing your future is protected.
- Extend your support for causes dear to your heart for generations to come.
- Provide tax-saving benefits and reduce capital gains by leveraging tax-free transfers, utilizing trusts, implementing strategic gifting, benefiting from step-up in basis, and employing charitable planning.
Questions? We can help.
Jennie Griek
Gift Planner
253-535-7156
jgriek@plu.edu
Sue Loiland
Senior Gift Planner
253-535-8421
loiland@plu.edu
Ways to Give
Gifts by Will or Bequest
Make a gift that costs nothing now. The most common future gift is a bequest, where the donor includes PLU in their will or estate plan. If you don’t have a will, you can make it in less than 20 minutes using our free tool.
Gifts from DAFs
Have a Donor Advised Fund (DAF)? You can make a grant recommendation to PLU from your DAF or name PLU as a beneficiary of your DAF.
Gifts by Estate Note
An estate note is an irrevocable pledge or debt against a donor’s estate.
Gifts from Retirement Plans
Lifetime Gifts
You can take a distribution from your qualified retirement plan or IRA, which will be included in your gross income. Then, you can make a charitable gift equal to the distribution amount, and in doing so, you may receive an offsetting charitable deduction.
Qualified Charitable Distributions
Qualified Charitable Distributions (QCDs), also known as IRA Charitable Rollovers, are the savviest way for individuals age 70½ or older to use their IRAs to maximize their charitable impact.
Estate Gifts
You can name PLU as beneficiary for part or all of your retirement-plan benefits and the funds are transferred by the plan administrator at your death.
Gifts that pay you income and protect your assets
Charitable Gift Annuities
A charitable gift annuity allows you to donate to a charity, like PLU, in exchange for fixed lifetime payments, with the remaining funds supporting the charity after your death. An immediate gift annuity begins payments shortly after the donation. In contrast, a deferred gift annuity starts payments at a future date, often during retirement, offering a higher payout due to the delay.
Charitable Trusts
A charitable trust is a legal arrangement where assets are placed into a trust, providing income to beneficiaries for a set period, with the remainder going to a designated charity, like PLU.
Charitable Lead Trusts
A charitable lead trust allows you to provide income to a charity, like PLU, for a set period, with the remaining assets eventually passing to your heirs, which can reduce estate and gift taxes.
What to Give
Check & Cash
Address to: Pacific Lutheran University
Attn: Gift Processing
12180 Park Ave S Tacoma, WA 98447
Credit Card
You can easily make a secure gift online using your credit card.
Tangible Personal Property
This contribution provides charitable deductions based on a standard of “related use.”
Real Estate
Most kinds of real estate can be donated to PLU.
Life Insurance
A gift of life insurance may fund a gift or replace the value of a gifted asset.
Retirement Funds
Consider retirement plan benefits for a significant gift to PLU.
Appreciated Securities
Smart gift planning combines charitable intent with cost-efficient planning techniques.
Closely Held Business Stock
Business owners contributing closely held business stock are allowed a charitable deduction.
Harstad Heritage Society—Planned Giving at PLU
The Harstad Heritage Society celebrates the visionary commitment of individuals and families who have secured PLU’s enduring prosperity through planned gifts.
Established in 1981 with a small group of dedicated supporters, today, the Society comprises over 500 families whose documented deferred gifts exceed $100 million. By including PLU in your estate plans, or designating the university as a beneficiary of a trust, charitable gift annuity, life insurance, donor-advised fund or retirement account, you are part of an esteemed legacy of philanthropy, ensuring PLU’s future excellence for generations to come.
If you are considering leaving a legacy at PLU, joining the Harstad Heritage Society is a meaningful way to do so.
