Estate/Gift Planning

The Center of Rational Spirituality (CRS) was founded in order to help solve the world’s problems at the root, help people spiritually evolve, and raise the consciousness of humanity. You can be assured that any gift received will support this purpose.

Endowments

Naming The Center of Rational Spirituality as a beneficiary in your will or living trust is a popular way to make a planned gift. It is a simple and valuable way to help humanity and the world for future generations. Endowments allow donors to make extraordinary contributions at the end of their lives that provide a living legacy at Mount Soma.

We welcome the opportunity to discuss any of the planned gift ideas with you. Please contact our Donations Coordinator, Mark Putnam, at mark@michaelmamas.org or 828-273-4330. We also encourage you to contact your professional tax or legal advisor prior to structuring a planned gift.

Thank you for considering making a legacy gift to The Center of Rational Spirituality.

Endowments to The Center of Rational Spirituality

Legal Wording

The Center of Rational Spirituality recommends the following language for your will, codicil to your will, or your living trust:

“I hereby give and bequeath (a specific amount/a percentage of your estate/or specific assets) to The Center of Rational Spirituality, a not-for-profit, tax exempt charitable organization incorporated under the laws of the State of North Carolina, having as its principal address 1 Lila Lane, Clyde, NC, 28721 for The Center of Rational Spirituality’s general purposes.”

If you include any restrictions on the purpose of your bequest, it would be helpful if you also include the following additional language:

“If at some future time, it is no longer practicable to use the income or principal of this bequest for the purposes stated, in the judgment of the Board of Directors of The Center of Rational Spirituality, the Board of Directors has the right to use the income or principal for whatever purpose they deem necessary and most closely in accord with the intent described herein.”

The Center of Rational Spirituality’s tax ID # is 91-2096530. Gifts to The Center of Rational Spirituality made in your will or living trust may entitle you to an estate tax deduction.

Retirement Plans - CRS BeneficiaryRetirement Plans

You can name The Center of Rational Spirituality as a partial or total beneficiary of your Individual Retirement Account (IRA), pension plan, employer retirement plan, Keogh plan, 401(k), 403(b), or other qualified pension plan. This type of gift to The Center of Rational Spirituality is distributed outside probate and is entirely free of both federal estate tax and income tax.

Additionally, taxpayers age 70½ or older can make tax-free distributions to charities directly from their standard IRAs and Roth IRAs up to $100,000 per taxpayer, per taxable year. We expect the U.S. Congress will soon make this a permanent provision in the tax code, eliminating any ambiguity about its renewal from year to year. Please contact our Donations Coordinator if interested.

Life Insurance

If your life insurance policy is no longer necessary for liquidity or to support your family, you can name The Center of Rational Spirituality as the beneficiary of your life insurance policy. After your lifetime, the benefits from your life insurance plan would pass free of federal estate tax to The Center of Rational Spirituality. You can also take out a policy and name The Center of Rational Spirituality as the beneficiary to get this same result.

Real Estate with Retained Life Estate

The difference between a simple gift of real estate and a gift of real estate with a retained life estate is that with a retained life estate, the donor may live on the property for life. The real estate used can be your primary residence, vacation home, farm, or ranch. You will be entitled to an income tax deduction equal to a portion of the value of the real estate when you make the gift.*

Charitable Remainder Trust (CRT)Charitable Remainder Trust (CRT)

You can create a charitable remainder trust that will save you income taxes* and capital gains taxes in the current year, save estate taxes in later years, and provide for guaranteed income for life or a term of up to 20 years. You put a portion of your assets into the trust irrevocably, and the trust invests those assets and pays you a calculated amount for the rest of your life. At your death, the trust assets are used for the charitable purposes of solving the world’s problems at the root, helping people spiritually evolve, and raising the consciousness of humanity. A charitable remainder trust works especially well for individuals and couples who are 70 years of age or older.

* Subject to certain IRS limitations

Questions or Further Information?

Please contact our Donations Coordinator, Mark Putnam, at mark@michaelmamas.org or 828-273-4330 if you have questions or would be interested in more information. He will be happy to assist you in any way he can.

Information You May Need Regarding CRS

The Center of Rational Spirituality
a not-for-profit, tax exempt charitable organization
incorporated under the laws of the State of North Carolina
located at 1 Lila Lane, Clyde, NC, 28721
Federal Tax ID Number is 91-2096530

Thank you for your support!