You may donate to your beloved charities, such as Bethany, by using a “qualified charitable distribution,” or QCD. You must be at least 70 ½ and have a traditional IRA, an inherited traditional IRA, or an inactive
SEP or SIMPLE plan. QCDs can save you taxes (and maybe Medicare premiums) while helping those charities as well. The contribution must go directly from your IRA plan sponsor (such as Merrill Lynch, Schwab, T. Rowe Price, etc.) to the charity. The check cannot be written out to you (see below). By taking a QCD, you do not pay any taxes on that money because it is not included in your adjusted gross income. (Please let your tax accountant know that the distribution was a QCD.) You may contribute up to
$100,000 (indexed for inflation) each year via a qualified charitable distribution from your IRA regardless of whether this amount exceeds your required minimum distribution.

Would you consider using your distribution, or just a portion, to donate to Bethany’s Endowment Fund? The Endowment Fund is designed to help fund various ministries that aren’t fully funded through Bethany’s operating budget. Only the earnings on the investments in the fund are used to fund these programs, so your Endowment gift will continue to serve Bethany for generations.

While you are thinking about your IRA, you may want to note that naming Bethany as a beneficiary of your IRA is easier and cheaper than modifying your will to make a bequest.

There are three ways to send your QCD to the Endowment Fund.

1. Your IRA provider can send a check directly to Bethany.
2. If you have a checkbook for your IRA account, mail or hand-deliver (safest) a check to Bethany.
3. Your provider can make the check to Bethany but mail it to you to deliver to Bethany.

Regardless of the method you choose, always make the check payable to Bethany and be sure to note on the check that this is a QCD for the Endowment Fund.

If you have questions, please talk with a member of the Endowment Committee.