Creating Your Family Legacy

Families and individuals turn to the Global Gift Fund and their personal DonorAdvisor when they want to maximize their charitable giving and tax planning while minimizing their legal and administrative hassles. The Global Gift Fund is a donor-advised fund — a charitable vehicle similar to a family foundation.

A single contribution today can establish your charitable fund and additional contributions can be made at any time. During the year, you — as the donor and GiftAdvisor — recommend grants from that charitable fund in the support of your favorite causes. You can name others in your family (including future generations) to serve as additional GiftAdvisors to your fund. (Your legacy of giving can live on, even after you are gone by establishing your fund as an endowment permitting distribution of the income. This will insure that your charitable goals are met today and in perpetuity.)

Unlike traditional private foundations that require substantial investments in up-front funding, administration and legal support, a Global Gift Fund is easy to create and reaps the benefits of professional management by a DonorAdvisor who is specially trained to provide guidance in charitable or financial planning.

Who Can Create a Global Gift Fund?
Anyone can create a charitable fund with an irrevocable contribution of cash, publicly traded securities, real estate, life insurance or planned gifts. Members of the Million Dollar Round Table (MDRT) may establish funds, as well as clients of MDRT members and individuals referred by other insurance-based financial planning professionals.

The minimum fund size is $25,000 (excluding those funded with a planned gift).

A Trusted Resource
Global Gift Fund assets adhere to the prudent investment guidelines of the MDRT Foundation. The Foundation has a fifty-year history of philanthropic activity and dedicated volunteer leadership.

As a donor-advised service of the MDRT Foundation, the Global Gift Fund is guided by its mission "To encourage, enhance and support donors worldwide in fulfilling their charitable goals and dreams."

Types of Foundations
To learn what kind of foundation is best for you, see the Types of Foundations section for a comparison of the advantages and limitations of private family foundations, supporting organizations and donor-advised funds.

GGF Committee
The Global Gift Fund is supported by the guidance and oversight of its volunteer committee of financial planning and tax experts, listed in the GGF Committee section.