Charitable Trust

Summary: The St. John’s Charitable Trust provides a way for members to designate “Planned Giving” gifts to support St. John’s Lutheran Church current or future ministries. Persons who have included St. John’s Charitable Trust for bequests, gifts, charitable annuities, life insurance policies or other financial distributions in their wills or estate plans and advises the church may become members of the Legacy Society (see below).

What: The St. John’s Charitable Trust is the recipient of members planned and current giving to support St. John’s Lutheran Church ministries. The Charitable Trust formed in 1982 and in general, the trustees use income from investing the donated gifts received to help our ministries. The goal isthe  creation of a large investment base to create more income to share with others, i.e. gifts that keep giving.

Who: A nine-member board, six elected by the congregation and three by virtue of their position (Senior Pastor, Congregation President and Finance Ministry Team leader) manages the Charitable Trust. The board manages the investments and distribution decisions, promotion for gifts and the Legacy Society.

The Trustees are:
Chris Magnuson, convener
Ben Wells
Brent Anderson
Brian Hulsether
John Gordon
Jim Click
Congregation President Dan Lammers
Finance Ministry Team leader Tom Shadid
Vernon Veal, assistant

Value: The Charitable Trust is valued around $350,000. Distributions are projected to be $15,000 to ministries beyond the congregation in 2010.

Distributions: The Trustees follow an open giving formula that includes: community, seminary/college education, Mission Outreach, Worship & Music and “special church needs.” Recipient examples: Habitat for Humanity, Safe Harbor Homeless Shelter, Home Sweet Home Ministries, Seminary Education, College and Camp Scholarships, Lutheran Outdoor Ministries Center, LSSI, Faith in Action, SJL Worship & Music and other church needs. For the Charitable Trust Scholarship Request Form click HERE.

Why: Two key reasons can be given for the Trust: First, the Trust offers members a place specify donations [gifts] that continue to serve current and future ministries, i.e. keeps giving now and long after they pass. Second, distributions from the investment return on the gifts support varied and needy ministries.

St. John’s Legacy Society: The Legacy Society includes those persons who have included and advised the church of plans to support St. John’s Lutheran Church and/or St. John’s Charitable Trust in their wills or estate plans. Gifts may be from living members as well as from estate planning. All St. John’s Legacy Society members are invited to attend an annual “Legacy Society” luncheon hosted by the Board of Trustees as a way of saying “thank you” for their participation in the future support for St. John’s.

Please consider this way of supporting your church through Planned Giving now or later. If you have questions, please call the church office or any of the Trustees of St. John’s Charitable Trust.