Investing with Faith / Kimberly Pohovey

Legacy gifts help to support ongoing mission of Jesus and his Church

Creating a legacy isn’t just something we do in the future. It’s doing something good here and now that has value that lasts into the future. But it can be difficult to figure out just what that something could—or should—be. The truth is that there are needs just about everywhere we turn. We know we cannot help everyone or support every worthy cause, and sometimes the sheer number of possibilities can keep us from doing much of anything at all.

Thankfully, the time-tested wisdom of our Catholic faith can help us.

In his First Letter to the Corinthians, St. Paul reminds us of what truly endures: “So faith, hope, love remain, these three …” (1 Cor 13:13). In other words, if we want to build something that lasts, we should focus our efforts on the hallmarks of the Christian life—faith, hope and love. It shouldn’t surprise us that these are also the substance of the ongoing mission of Jesus through his Church.

As Catholics, we are called to bring the presence of Christ to our world. To do so, we must be led by faith, hope and love. The good news is that we do not have to start new endeavors or reinvent the wheel.

There is an abundance of good and holy initiatives in the Archdiocese of Indianapolis that actively strengthen faith, bring hope and share the unconditional love of God with those in need. All we need to do is support them.

But if we want to leave our world better than we found it, we need to look for ways to guarantee that these works of mercy will continue, even after we have left this world behind.

That is the purpose of legacy giving. A legacy gift is arranged now in order to provide a future source of income for a beneficiary. In the Archdiocese of Indianapolis, that could be a beloved parish, school, ministry—or even the archdiocese itself.

What if I’m not sure what is the best way for me to give? Planning can empower us to be as generous as we want to be. Even if you don’t know how, what, or even when you want to give, you can begin the preparation necessary to do so eventually.

There are numerous options to consider: preparing or updating a will, rolling over an IRA, establishing a charitable gift annuity, or designating the Church as an additional beneficiary on a life insurance policy. The staff of the Catholic Community Foundation is here to help guide you.

What if we aren’t ready or able to give a significant gift now? First, it’s important to remember that every gift is significant. Creating a culture of giving does more to extend the love of God than any large gift can on its own. A culture of generosity encourages others to give, too. In fact, it creates a community of givers.

How can I belong to a family of givers? We invite those who give legacy gifts or endowment funds of any size to become members of our Legacy Society. Anyone who makes a gift through a will or trust, life insurance and/or a charitable gift annuity is welcome. We keep members of the Legacy Society informed with periodic pastoral letters from Archbishop Charles C. Thompson, as well as the Catholic Community Foundation newsletter. And we express our appreciation with an annual Mass and reception hosted by the archbishop.
 

(Kimberly Pohovey is the director of major and planned gifts for the archdiocese. To learn more about legacy giving, please contact us at 317-236-1482 or ccf@archindy.org.) †