A planned gift to your church is an expression of you and your family's values and commitment to Christian Stewardship. It is a way of saying that after your family and loved ones, these are the causes that matter most, and providing for them is important to you. A gift from your estate to Plymouth Congregational Church strengthens our endowment and sustains God’s mission through the ministry of the Church – a lasting legacy and powerful response to God’s generosity.
Planned gifts are planned for during the donor’s lifetime but not realized by the beneficiary until the donor’s death. There are many other ways to plan a gift. There are gifts that pay you income during your lifetime and gifts that help reduce or avoid income and estate taxes. How you make your gift is important, but more important is the impact your planned gift will have on the causes that matter to you most.
This site is designed to make it easy for you to get the information you need when considering a planned gift. You will also find information to share with your financial advisor and/or estate planner. When you are ready, you can use this site to reach out to us to share your plans, let us know what you are considering, or just to start a confidential, no-obligation conversation about what’s possible.
A planned gift is an expression of you and your family's values. It's a way of saying that after your family and loved ones, these are the causes that matter most and providing for them is important to you. A planned gift is important to Plymouth Congregational Church, too. These gifts help strengthen our endowment and sustain our mission.
We are the beneficiaries of our predecessors, who had the vision to design and build a church that has provided space for worship, education, and mission for nearly 150 years.
However, the need for financial support to maintain and enhance our historic building and its mission and ministries is great. One way to ensure Plymouth’s ministry remains viable now and in the future, is through planned giving.
Planned giving is a way to share your blessings beyond your lifetime through a variety of charitable giving options, which are described here.
We encourage you to reflect upon what Plymouth’s faith community has meant to you and your family, as well as your vision for its future. We hope you will consider a gift that will support Plymouth Congregational Church.
Your well-considered planned gift can make an impact on a specific area of need. Consider directing your planned gift to these core missions and ministries or directing your planned gift as an unrestricted gift to Plymouth Congregational Church.
Our beloved building was completed in 1870 and placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2009. Gifts to this fund will support building preservation, maintenance and other improvements to meet societal and technological changes.
Youth are the future of Plymouth and our community! Your gift to this fund will support education, youth service trips and other youth programs for both current and future generations.
Plymouth’s mission outreach includes local, national and international activities. Your gift to this fund will support programs such as the Community Children’s Center/Head Start program, Family Promise and the Plymouth Language Program.
Music is an essential part of our spiritual experience. Directing your gift to our music and fine arts fund will help support talented Ministers of Music and Fine Arts and enable us to continue to provide inspirational programs.
A gift to this fund will help support our pastors’ ministry and provide staff development opportunities. It will also assist with support for church members preparing for ordained ministry.
Gifts designated as unrestricted are vital to the long-term health of Plymouth Church. As society changes and community needs shift, it is essential that Plymouth have the flexibility to respond accordingly, pursuant to the direction of the church council and the congregation.
As a donor, you have total discretion over your planned gift; what to give, how to give, and its purpose. There are planned gifts you can designate in a Will or trust, or that will provide income to you and/or a beneficiary for their lifetime.
Through a provision in your written and executed Will or living trust, you can make a planned gift (or an outright gift) to Plymouth in the form of cash, securities, real estate or personal property. There are many types of bequests. Consult with your attorney to choose the one that best fits your needs and intentions.
Download Bequest LanguageYou can turn underperforming or non-income producing assets (cash, stock, CDs, savings bonds, etc.) into a gift to Plymouth that provides income to you or you and a loved one. (One example of several available options is a Gift Annuity.) Your UCF Charitable Gift Annuity will return fixed, quarterly payments for life and provide tax benefits, too.
See How It Would Work for YouNaming Plymouth as the beneficiary or one of the beneficiaries of a qualified retirement plan such as an IRA, 401(k), or 403(b) plan will accomplish a charitable goal while realizing a significant tax savings.
Download Beneficiary FormWhen you donate appreciated stocks, bonds, or mutual fund shares instead of cash, the benefit the church receives exceeds the cost of the original securities purchased. You'll get a charitable deduction for the full amount of your gift and avoid the impact of the capital gains taxes on the appreciated securities.
Download Stock Transfer InfoPersonal property, such as antiques, collectibles, musical instruments, works of art or vehicles, can be donated to us today or even after your lifetime through your estate. If the property is related to our mission, it's usually fully tax deductible based on its fair market value. In some cases, your gift of personal property can be used to fund a life income gift, such as a charitable gift annuity or charitable remainder trust.
Contact Us for DetailsName Plymouth as the beneficiary of an existing life insurance policy; donate an existing, paid-up life insurance policy you no longer need; or purchase a new life insurance policy and name Plymouth as the owner and beneficiary.
Contact Us for Details
Phyllis and I have been married for 61 really great years, have three wonderful kids and 12 awesome grandkids. Life has not always been easy, but we have had a good life and feel blessed in many ways.
Plymouth Church clearly has been one of those blessings. We feel grateful for many aspects of our life, and particularly for the support and mission of Plymouth Church.
Accordingly, our will states that at our death, a modest portion of our estate be given to Plymouth Church Endowment. We have earmarked it to help with special long-term maintenance needs and large purchases such as boilers, tuck-pointing the bricks, or a new organ, not yearly operations.
It is most fitting that we do so, as all of our family has benefited greatly from our membership in Plymouth Church, and God's blessings.
We urge all members of Plymouth Church to seriously consider doing the same. Every bit will help strengthen our Church and its mission, regardless of the amount.
Ron and I have been members of Plymouth Church since 1976. Our daughters were both confirmed and married at Plymouth. I was privileged to be moderator in 2004 as we celebrated the sesquicentennial of Plymouth. We believe in the historic role Plymouth has played in the past and is continuing to play today. We believe the role of Plymouth will continue to be important, perhaps even more important, in the future for our children and grandchildren. We believe the physical church building will be important for future generations. With that in mind, we have designated that after our deaths a percentage of our net estate will go to Plymouth Endowment for church building maintenance.
“Pat and I,” said Phil, “began our love affair with Plymouth and the United Church of Christ when Plymouth hosted the Senior Pilgrim Fellowship groups of our Kansas Conference in 1954, Plymouth’s Centennial Year.
I chose KU majoring in history and Pat settled for ESU majoring in elementary education. We stayed connected through our work with the United Student Fellowship at local, state and national levels. While I was at KU and Plymouth, senior pastors Dale Turner and Paul Davis called forth my gifts for ministry and gave my life a supreme purpose. After Pat and I served eight UCC churches in six states over thirty-two years, we began our phased retirement of over twenty years in Lawrence in what has become our spiritual home. We were pleased to participate and enjoy Plymouth’s sesquicentennial celebration in 2004.
Though we will not be present for Plymouth’s 200th Anniversary in 2054 we have chosen to utilize a Charitable Remainder Unitrust, which at our deaths will support our sons and four main charities including Plymouth out of a required distribution each year. Meanwhile, the principal base continues to grow until our sons’ deaths occur, at which time each charity receives their percentage. We are designating Plymouth’s percentage to be divided among OCWM Beyond Lawrence; the Work of Campus Ministry; Theologian/Scholar in Residence, Pastors, Staff and Seminarian Education; and Music and Fine Arts. Also, a significant percentage will be unrestricted. We also include a provision that every ten years beyond the final settlement of our estate, Plymouth may draw off 10 percent of the ever-growing principal base for Building Renewal and/or a New Church.
One of our principal charities thanked us for being Guardians of the Future. How could we not be having been so blessed!”
I was raised in the Methodist church, but joined the United Church of Christ in the 1960’s. I married Reverend Bob Carlson in the 80’s and we served churches in Berkeley, CA, Manhattan and Lawrence, KS.
In 1989 I was appointed “Planned Giving Director” for the 103 churches of the Kansas Oklahoma Conference, a position I held until 1991. I traveled the two states, meeting with congregations about advanced planning for endowing their church future. Pete Curran and I also hosted several workshops on planned giving. In May, 1994, I was “recalled” into service for planned giving and served for two more years. .
I now have four UCC charitable gift annuities. When Bob died, I received eight thank you letters from eight separate UCC related organizations – all beneficiaries of his planned giving. All of that from a one page document! That’s how simple planned giving can be. .
Marguerite Carlson.
P.S. I also receive interest annually from my gift annuities! A win win!!
Planning your estate and legacy for future generations including your charitable interests takes careful evaluation.
Discussing your charitable intentions with us can lead to a much better result than going it alone – and will ensure that your gift is used just as you wish. Act now to be a good steward of the resources you intend to leave behind. Contact us using the contact info below, or submit this form to get more information.
If you are working with a professional advisor or if you are advising a donor, here's a handy guide for including Plymouth in a charitable estate plan.
Larissa Long
Chair, Plymouth Endowment Committee
785-843-3220
plymouth@sunflower.com