Parks Foundation Legacy Society: 
Protecting our outdoor treasures for future generations

Is one of Sonoma County's Regional Parks particularly meaningful for you?  Legacy gifts to the Sonoma County Regional Parks Foundation provide a critical source of funds to help ensure that our parks continue to provide recreational, cultural, and outdoor education opportunities for the people of Sonoma County. Your bequest can be general or specific to a particular park or purpose.

Working on your planned gift today offers many advantages, including the peace of mind that comes from knowing your wishes will be fulfilled. You not only will help preserve our cherished parks, but you may also enjoy significant tax benefits. Once you have provided for your loved ones through your estate, you can create a legacy for the parks through a planned gift in a variety of ways:

• A gift through your will or living trust. You can leave cash, securities or real estate to the Parks Foundation while maintaining the flexibility to change your will or trust in the event that life circumstances change.
• A beneficiary designation. By designating the Sonoma County Regional Parks Foundation as the beneficiary of a retirement account, life insurance plan or other account, you can make a meaningful gift and may avoid passing on a large tax burden to your heirs. This is the simplest way to make a large gift because it doesn't involve changing your will or trust.
• ​An IRA charitable rollover. If you are 70 1/2 years or older, you can give up to $100,00 from your IRA directly to the Parks Foundation without paying income tax on the funds. Your gift would be put to use today, allowing you to see the impact of your donation immediately. The dollar amount donated also qualifies for your required minimum distribution (RMD). This article from Charles Schwab explains how a Qualified Charitable Distribution from your IRA optimizes the tax benefits of charitable giving. https://www.schwab.com/learn/story/reducing-rmds-with-qcds 

These are a few of the more common planned giving options, enabling you to pass on your values while ensuring that our Sonoma County Regional parks continue to thrive. Through the Parks Foundation, your planned gift will have a strong and lasting impact on our community. We recommend that you work with your advisors to determine which type of gift is most appropriate for you.

If you are considering a legacy gift, we would be pleased to confidentially discuss your questions. If you have already included the Sonoma County Regional Parks Foundation in your estate plan, let us know so that we can thank you. Please review and return this Declaration of Future Intent to Melissa Kelley at the address below.