The Dayton Foundation has some tips ahead of Giving Tuesday to help you give to vetted local organizations, find tax advantages and boost the impact of your donations this holiday season.
Jerry Kenney spoke to Michelle Lovely, the foundation's senior vice president for development and donor services, about all this.
This interview has been interview for clarity and length.
Michelle Lovely: Giving Tuesday is a great way for people to come together and give. So it's one day that's really focused on giving back to the community, giving back to the nonprofits that you care about in a consolidated way, and actually when we look at the tips to just giving in general, that's one of the things we always talk about, is that when you can pull together and make a bigger impact collectively, that's always good to do. So I think Giving Tuesday is that on steroids. It's really being able to come together as a big group and help the nonprofits financially through your giving.
Jerry Kenney: And you've also sent out a couple of recommendations for people interested in giving at this time of year. The first thing that you mentioned is do your research. Can you explain what you mean by that?
Lovely: So when we say do your research, the biggest thing that we mean there is that you always want to go on their website, look at what the nonprofit is needing, sometimes even calling and talking to them. A financial donation is always great, especially unrestricted. Nonprofits can always use those type of funds. But sometimes people donate something they think the nonprofit needs. But then, for example, maybe they are donating clothes, but they really need food items. So just really checking in with that nonprofit to find out what their needs are. Then checking candid.org is a great place to go on and look if you want to look at their financial stability. You can click the tax return for the entity. And then we always just say, 'Don't rush.' Because a lot of times, this time of year, there's a lot of scams that go on and people are generous toward the end of the year and the holiday season. And so if anyone's ever trying to push you too hard to make a donation right then and there, I always just say take a step back. Say, 'You know, can you give me your information, your website information, I'll check it out and consider a donation.' Just again, don't rush, get in there and do your research and make sure that you're giving to a legitimate charity.
Kenney: This is something that your foundation does every day.
Lovely: Yes, so the Dayton Foundation is always happy to help. If you want to reach out to find out, 'Hey, who and what are the organizations right now that are really feeding the hungry?' Or whatever it is that their passion is — who are the organizations that are making a difference in that sector? So we're happy to share some things, the projects that we're seeing or nonprofits that have applied for funding with us. We're always happy to share that information out with people that may be interested in knowing that. And (for) our donors, one of the benefits of having a fund with the Dayton Foundation is that we actually vet the charities. So we go out and do that research to verify that they're still in good standing with the IRS and that they're eligible for a grant. So our free charitable checking account, a lot of people will use that product just to be sure that their donation is going to a legitimate 501-C3.
And we have over 4,000 funds, but when you have a fund here, you can grant (anywhere you want.) You may have a grandchild that lives in California that you're supporting them in a walk or run. And then you also may be donating to the local animal shelter here in Dayton. So you can literally grant anywhere that you want to. It's not restricted to things that, it's not our priority. It's your priority as a donor. What are the charities that are important to you? So there's no restrictions.
Kenney: A plus for donors giving at this time of year, obviously, is tax deductions. What can you tell us about how that plays out?
Lovely: I always say the best advice I can give is when you're thinking about making a donation, just pause. And before you pull out your checkbook or write a check, before you pull out your credit card, just maybe talk to your tax adviser or your financial adviser, your planner, the Dayton Foundation, and talk to someone. Just say, 'Is there a way that I could do this that may be more tax effective?' And so a lot of times, just for a couple examples, if we're meeting with a donor who's over 70, we're always asking, 'Do you have a traditional IRA? Because the reason that's important, a traditional IRA, if you make a qualified charitable distribution to a 501-C3 or through a fund at the Dayton Foundation, one of our IRA funds, you can avoid completely state and federal taxes on that qualified charitable distribution up to $105,000 per person. So that's one thing.
And then some other examples we always talk about this time of year, a lot of people maybe can't itemize anymore, but they do have an appreciated stock. So there may still be a tax play for them if they're holding on to a stock that they haven't been able to sell because it's appreciated quite a bit. It's a great way for their financial adviser to be able to get that asset out of their portfolio. They can rebalance that then and get rid of that appreciated stock, and they can use it for charitable giving.
