Legacy Club: A Lasting Legacy
You have experienced the empowerment and joy of learning music at the Center for Musical Arts firsthand. Why not leave a Center legacy to assure this experience continues for generations to come? Your Legacy gift signals your passion and commitment to the vision of Music for all, for life!
“Schools don’t support kids with music programs the way they used to. The Center fills a critical gap.”
Each legacy gift, large or small, helps strengthen the Center for Musical Arts in permanent ways. Explore the menu below to discover the many options that exist, the various tax benefits, the great flexibility in this planning, and the powerful stories of our Legacy Club members.
Your Impact
Your legacy gift can be designated for a specific interest area or for general support, which gives us the opportunity to fund the area with the most need. Opportunities include the following, but can be tailored to your interests:
- Named Endowed Program Fund – Permanent support for a program of choice (e.g. musical performances, tuition assistance, community programs, etc.)
- Named Endowed Fund – Permanent support for faculty excellence
- General Endowment – Funds permanently invested to provide recurring income
- General Support – Gift utilized to support areas of greatest need
Meet Our Members
Coming soon.
How to Give
Estate gifts come in many shapes and sizes. The following options help you balance planning for family and loved ones with the desire to give back.
Charitable Bequest – By including us in your will or living trust, you create a gift today that we will receive only when your estate is settled.
IRA or Retirement Plan – You can name the Center for Musical Arts as a beneficiary of your IRA or workplace retirement plan. To create a gift, simply request a “beneficiary change” form from your IRA custodian or Human Resources department, complete the form, and then return it according to their instructions. Beneficiary change forms are often available online.
Life Insurance – You can name us as the beneficiary of a new or existing life insurance policy. To create a gift, simply request a “beneficiary change” form from your life insurance company, complete the form, and return it according to the instructions provided. Again, most companies make beneficiary change forms available online.
Charitable Remainder Trust – In the right situations, a charitable remainder trust can provide powerful financial, tax, and estate planning benefits. You donate assets into trust for the eventual benefit of the Center for Musical Arts. In the interim, the trust pays income to you and/or your designated income beneficiaries.
Charitable Lead Trust – A charitable lead trust can provide support for the Center for Musical Arts while transferring assets in the future to your heirs with little or no gift or estate tax.
Retained Life Estate – You can donate future ownership of a residence to the Center for Musical Arts, while still retaining the right to live there for the rest of your life.
Flexibility: Revocable Gifts
The future is uncertain. However, you can still create a legacy gift today while simultaneously retaining full control over your assets for life. These gifts are called revocable gifts. If an unforeseen need arises, you’re prepared and have full control.
A revocable legacy gift is the best option for most people, ensuring you and your assets are protected throughout your life. These gifts are generally one of the following:
- Bequest in a Will or Living Trust
- Beneficiary Designation in IRA or Retirement Plan
- Beneficiary Designation in Life Insurance Policy
- Pay-on-Death arrangement for a bank account
Revocable gifts give you access to your assets at any time, should the need arise. If not, your gift will come to the Center for Musical Arts exactly as you desire.
Tax Benefits
The IRS provides important tax incentives to encourage support for charitable organizations. To qualify for any given tax benefit, a gift typically must be irrevocable. Stated another way, a gift must be complete and not one a donor could ‘reclaim’ in any way.
Clearly, an irrevocable gift only should be made after proper reflection and consultation with your legal and financial advisors. However, with proper planning, such gifts can provide important income and tax benefits for you and your heirs.
Examples of these gifts include Charitable Remainder Trusts, Charitable Lead Trusts, and Charitable Gift Annuities.
Information for Advisors
It is always appropriate to consult with your professional advisors when considering an estate gift. The following information can help your advisor facilitate any gift you might wish to make:
Legal Name: Center for Musical Arts
Address: 200 East Baseline Road, Lafayette, Colorado 80026
Phone: 303-665-0599
Website: www.centerformusicalarts.org
Brokerage Information
The Center for Musical Arts gratefully accepts gifts of publicly traded securities. In general, donating securities in appreciated positions can help maximize an individual’s tax benefit, as the associated charitable income tax deduction is typically based on the full fair market value of the security. No capital gains tax would be payable by the donor or the Center for Musical Arts.
For more information about gifts of securities or to request our brokerage information, please contact development@comusic.org.
Recommended Language for Bequests and Testamentary Gifts
Sample language for a specific bequest to the Center for Musical Arts through a will or living trust: “I give to the Center for Musical Arts, Tax Identification Number 84-0735716, 200 East Baseline Road, Lafayette, CO, 80026, a Colorado non-profit corporation, the sum of $_______ [or ______% of my estate; or the property described herein], for its general purposes.”
Sample language for a residuary bequest to the Center for Musical Arts: “I give to the Center for Musical Arts, Tax Identification Number 84-0735716, 200 East Baseline Road, Lafayette, CO, 80026, a Colorado non-profit corporation, all [or ______%] of the rest, residue, and remainder of my estate, both real and personal, for its general purposes.”
Beneficiary Designation
A person wishing to support the Center for Musical Arts through a retirement plan, IRA, or life insurance policy, should request a beneficiary change form from his/her company or plan administrator. Beneficiary change forms are typically available online. Please indicate the desired gift percentage and return/submit the completed form.
Other Arrangements
The Center for Musical Arts also encourages estate gifts through other arrangements, including Charitable Remainder and Charitable Lead Trusts. However, the Center for Musical Arts prefers not to serve as Trustee for these gifts.
Purpose of Gift
People who make estate or outright gifts may designate their gift for a specific purpose. Examples include:
- Named Endowed Program Fund – Permanent support for a program of choice (e.g. musical performances, tuition assistance, community programs, etc.)
- Named Endowed Fund – Permanent support for faculty excellence
- General Endowment – Funds permanently invested to provide recurring income
- General Support – Gift utilized to support areas of greatest need
Thank you!
The Center for Musical Arts created the Legacy Club to honor and recognize those who remember us with an estate gift. This provides us with an opportunity to say “thank you” during a person’s life.
We also recognize that some donors prefer to remain anonymous regarding a future estate gift. We will honor and respect these wishes in full. In addition, we also seek the opportunity to share our gratitude for an estate gift whenever possible.
In some cases, a client may allow an advisor to share his/her name with us. In others, an advisor can play a helpful role in forwarding a “thank you” letter to a client, while still preserving client anonymity.
If you or your client moves forward with an estate gift, we would appreciate any guidance about the best way to share our gratitude. The Center for Musical Arts places great importance on thanking donors for their confidence and generosity, while also respecting their wishes for anonymity in every instance.
For more information about any of these options, please contact our Development department via email. All inquiries are held in confidence. There is never an obligation to complete any gift.