The Cornerstone Foundation is the repository for estate or planned gifts to Lutheran Social Services of Illinois (LSSI).

The funds are held in endowment for LSSI and provide financial support for current LSSI programs and continued support for future years. Up to 5 percent of the applicable fund balance may be distributed in a year to benefit LSSI programs.

Currently, The Cornerstone Foundations assets total approximately $14 million. They are managed so that they will be available to meet the future needs of LSSI’s programs and services for our fellow Illinoisans.

We are grateful to those individuals who share in our mission and remember Lutheran Social Services of Illinois or The Cornerstone Foundation in their estate or financial plans. Those individuals who thoughtfully plan for LSSI in their estate plans become members of the Cornerstone Society so that we can celebrate their generosity and thank them during their lifetime. Life-income gifts, such as a gift annuity or charitable trust, are administered by the Foundation. These gifts can also benefit a donor’s church or another 501(c) (3) not-for-profit organization, if LSSI is at least a 50 percent beneficiary.

Mission

Responding to the Gospel, The Cornerstone Foundation is the endowment which helps ensure the ministries and future of LSSI.

The Cornerstone Foundation invites individuals to support LSSI with their charitable gifts.

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Phone:
847/390-1464 or 847/635-4678 (Des Plaines)

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I include LSSI in my estate plan?

A will is perhaps the easiest and most effective means to ensure that you fully provide for your family and that your assets are distributed as you wish. Additionally, depending on the complexity of your assets and your family situation, a trust agreement may also be part of your overall estate plan.

If you choose to make a bequest to LSSI, the following language will be helpful to you and your lawyer:

"I give, bequeath and devise _______ % of my estate or trust for $______ to Lutheran Social Services of Illinois."

If there are specific LSSI ministries that are special to you, you can designate those ministries as beneficiary by adding these words:

"...to be used for the general purposes of the _____________ ministry. If, during times of change, Lutheran Social Services of Illinois ceases to provide this ministry, then my gift shall be used wherever the need is the greatest." When making a gift to LSSI as part of your estate plan, please consult your legal and tax advisors.

How can I make a bequest?

• Specific bequest
  Designate a specific dollar amount, specific percentage or specific property to LSSI.
• Residual Bequest
  Have your estate pay all debts, taxes, expenses and specific bequests, with the remaining amount -- the residue -- transferred to LSSI.
• Contingent Bequest
  Make a bequest that LSSI receives all or a portion of your estate only under certain circumstances. For example, you can name LSSI as a beneficiary of your estate only if there are no surviving close family members.

What are the advantages of making a gift to LSSI in my estate plan?

• Charitable gifts made in your estate planning documents are 100 percent deductible for estate tax purposes.
• A charitable bequest may place your estate in a lower tax bracket.
• You can decide where your bequest should be used (e.g., for general purposes of LSSI or for a particular program or ministry).
• Once you notify LSSI of your bequest intention, you qualify for membership in The Cornerstone Society.

When making a gift to LSSI as part of your overall estate plan, please consult your legal and tax advisors.

Are there other types of planned gifts?

Other planned giving options include

• Charitable Gift Annuties
• Charitable Remainder Trusts
• Life Insurance
• Retirement Plans

Charitable Gift Annuities
The charitable gift annuity makes it possible to transfer cash or marketable securities, such as stocks or bonds, to LSSI. In exchange, you - and/or someone else you designate - receive fixed payments for life. A portion of each payment will be a tax-free return of principal. And you will also receive a significant charitable income tax deduction in the year you make the gift. If funded with appreciated securities, you may also avoid capital gains taxes. When considering a gift annuity, please consult your legal and tax advisors as well.

When considering a gift annuity, please consult your legal and tax advisors as well.

Charitable Remainder Trusts
A trust is a legal agreement that specifies how the assets placed under the trust will be managed. Essentially, there are two types of CRTs:

• Unitrust income fluctuates annually with the fair market value of the trust.
  
• Annuity Trust income payments are fixed and determined when the gift is made.
  

The advantages of a CRT include: you receive income for life, avoid capital gains tax if funded with appreciated securities, receive an immediate charitable income tax deduction, the possibility of reducing your estate tax, and the satisfaction of supporting LSSI.

As with all planned gifts, please be sure to consult with your legal and tax advisors.

Life Insurance
People who may no longer need their life insurance may consider donating the policy to LSSI by naming LSSI as the beneficiary and owner of the policy. You may claim a charitable deduction for the policy's cash surrender value, and the proceeds are completely removed from your estate.

Another option is to purchase and give a new policy to LSSI by naming LSSI as the beneficiary and owner of the policy, but continuing to make gifts to LSSI to cover the cost of the annual premium.

You may also choose to make LSSI the primary beneficiary or contingent beneficiary of a life insurance policy, where you continue to be the owner of the policy.

Please consult with your insurance professional when considering any gift of life insurance.

Retirement Plans
Assets of qualified retirement plans, such as an IRA, 401(k) or Keough plan, may be given to LSSI. The most convenient way to do so is to change the beneficiary designation to include LSSI. You may also consider using these assets to create a Charitable Remainder Trust (CRT), which benefits LSSI.

Through December 31, 2007, there continues to be an opportunity to make a gift to LSSI directly from your IRA. This distribution may be used to satisfy all or a portion of the annual mandatory minimum distribution requirements associated with your IRA if you are age 70 ½ or older.

As with all planned gifts, be sure to consult with your legal and tax advisors.

We are available to work with your legal and tax advisors as you plan your gift to Lutheran Social Services of Illinois. You may reach an Advancement Staff member by calling our office in Des Plaines 847/390-1464 or 847/635-4678. You may also reach us by e-mail at: info@lssi.org.

Thank you for considering a gift to LSSI.

Learn More

Phone: 847/390-1464 or 847/635-4678 (Des Plaines)

Norma Benson's Final Gift to LSSI

Norma Benson was a very private woman. She was a member of the Plainfield Historical Society, the Prime Timers Association and the First Presbyterian Church in Joliet. She was keenly interested in attending lectures on a variety of subjects, as well as musical and theatrical performances.

She met her husband Robert at the EJ&E Railroad, where they both worked. They were married in 1970 and had no children. Toward the end of his life, Robert lived at Salem Village, a program of Lutheran Social Services of Illinois (LSSI) in Joliet, which was sold in 1998. He moved to Sunny Hill Nursing Home and died in 1999.

Norma appreciated the care her husband received at Salem Village and included the program in her will. When Salem Village closed, she changed her bequest to LSSI.

During her life, Norma gave cash gifts to LSSI, but in April 2004, a letter from her attorney informed LSSI of her death and of the provisions that had been made in her estate plan to benefit LSSI. LSSI was Norma's sole beneficiary, and LSSI received nearly $1.2 million from her estate.

Norma obviously felt strongly about LSSI, and she was motivated by the care her husband received - and perhaps other experiences with the agency - so that she wanted LSSI's work to continue. Thanks to Norma's final gift, LSSI can continue to serve people in need.

If you have made a gift to LSSI in your estate plan, please let us know so that we have the opportunity to thank you during your lifetime and let others know of your generosity.