Building Family Ties to Philanthropy and McLeod Health

Philanthropy and the love of McLeod Health are a family affair for Evans and Mary Jane Holland.

"McLeod has caring doctors and they listen to your needs," Mary Jane says. "It has always been our hospital."

"We've seen what McLeod has achieved in the past, and we want to be part of what they do in the future." Evans and Mary Jane Holland <larger>

In fact, Mary Jane's father, Frank McLeod Pearce, was named after the founder of McLeod Regional Medical Center, Dr. Frank H. McLeod. Mary Jane's grandfather, Dr. James H. Pearce, was also a physician and he worked closely with Dr. McLeod. At the time when they practiced medicine, Dr. Pearce was considered the "country doctor" caring for patients in the Claussen and Mars Bluff communities while Dr. McLeod was known as the "city doctor" serving patients in Florence.

The couple's history of support began years before when Evans was asked to be a member of the McLeod Hospice Advisory Board - during which he helped raise $4 million from the region to build the McLeod Hospice House. Today, Evans also serves on the McLeod Health Foundation Board of Trustees. He says charitable gifts are critical to the medical center's future. "It provides the hospital with funding so they can put money back into their services, programs and technology," he says.

"The money the hospital receives from services goes right back into those services, so they need additional support for growth," Mary Jane adds.

The Hollands have provided for the future of McLeod with a charitable gift annuity (CGA). This gift returns lifetime payments to the couple, and the remainder, after their lifetimes, is available for McLeod's use. "We've seen what McLeod has achieved in the past, and we want to be a part of what they do in the future," Evans explained.

The Hollands have three grown children and six grandchildren ages 3 to 11, whom they say all support their charitable giving. Son Dr. Evans Holland, Jr. is a cardiologist who spends much of his time at McLeod. Through a family foundation for charitable giving, the Hollands are giving each grandchild the opportunity to donate $500 to a charitable organization of their choice. "This is our way of getting them started on a life of philanthropy," Mary Jane added.

Gifts such as those from the Hollands help ensure that the region McLeod serves continues to benefit from the latest technologies and the best trained staff available.

A charitable gift annuity can provide tax benefits now and a life-time income for the donor and a beneficiary if desired. Perhaps also it brought peace of mind to Burton knowing that Joyce would have the resources she needed if he was no longer there.

A deferred gift annuity is a variation on a gift annuity. A gift is made and the charitable organization promises in return to pay you an income stream that begins on a future date you specify. The annuity rate is calculated based on your age when the payments begin and will be greater than an immediate annuity based on your current age. The charitable deduction, which you get to take in the year of the gift (subject to your tax circumstances), will also be based on when the payments begin and will also be greater than if it was an immediate annuity.

Children's Playground at Hospice House <info>

A flexible deferred gift annuity allows you to pick a range of dates when the annuity payments will begin. For example, you might choose to begin quarterly payments on March 31st of any year not earlier than 2013 or later than 2018. The payment amount will be based on the year you choose in the future to have payments begin. The charitable gift deduction is based on the earliest possible beginning date (2013 in this case) and is taken in the year of the gift, subject to your tax circumstances.

An attractive benefit of deferred gift annuities is that they enable a donor to make a gift now and take a charitable income tax deduction now while in a high tax bracket. Income may be deferred, for instance, until after retirement, when the rate of tax will presumably be lower. Deferred gift annuities are creative ways to delay income to pay for children's or grandchildren's college expenses, supplement your retirement income, or assist with assisted-care living arrangements that may be inevitable.

A part of each payment, as in any gift annuity, may be tax-free for a period of years. However, the precise amount of each payment will depend on the tax rules in effect when the payments start.

Charitable gift annuities are the gifts that keep on giving. Rates on charitable gift annuities are based on age and whether the contract is immediate or deferred. If you would like an illustration of this life income to address your particular situation, please click here and fill out the response form and send us the appropriate information. To look at some specific rates on current gift annuities, click here. A generic example of a charitable gift annuity is available as well as a graphic example.

Now click here to meet Susan and Fred.