VERO BEACH — The Board of Directors of the Indian River Community Foundation recently announced the creation of the Alma Lee Loy Legacy Society to honor in perpetuity Alma Lee Loy’s tireless work on behalf of the community. The legacy society was launched at a special meeting held at Northern Trust and attended by inaugural members of the legacy society, founders, supporters and professional advisors of Indian River Community Foundation.
“The legacy society currently includes 18 people who intend to utilize the Indian River Community Foundation as a vehicle for ensuring their philanthropic intentions beyond their lifetime,” said Becky Allen, board chairman.
“No one has worked harder than Alma Lee to ensure the quality of life in our community, now and for future generations. She embodies all that we stand for – loyalty, vision and an abiding commitment to philanthropy – which is exactly what we promise our legacy society members.”
Participation in the Alma Lee Loy Legacy Society includes bequests, insurance policies and various other planned giving instruments that may be executed with the help of a donor’s attorney.
“Like Alma Lee, people who choose the Indian River Community Foundation for their legacy giving are intuitive and have a deep commitment to our community,” said Kerry Bartlett, the organization’s executive director. “People can write the Foundation into their wills, which is the simplest thing to do, or they can consult an attorney to determine the many ways they can plan their estates to include the Foundation.”
Loy said she was proud to have her name attached to the legacy society because she knows the Indian River Community Foundation will be a good steward of her legacy giving to address the changing needs of Indian River County in the future.
“The needs of this community 50 years ago are drastically different from the challenges we face today. Who knows what they will be like 50 years from now,” said Loy. “I want to give the Community Foundation flexibility to respond to those needs with the same dedication and integrity I use to govern my own actions.”
To punctuate the value of philanthropic planning, Raymond C. Odom, Director of Wealth Transfer Services for Northern Trust, spoke to the audience about writing a philanthropic legacy now to experience the ultimate joy of giving.
“A legacy gift has the potential to be the largest act of philanthropy a person will ever make,” said Allen. “People who fail to engage in the planning process will miss the opportunity to fully understand their impact on future generations. It can be one of the most satisfying experiences of your life.”
The Indian River Community Foundation has several ways to help donors execute their legacy giving to achieve exactly what the donor intended, Bartlett said. Members of the legacy society may choose to designate gifts to selected charities that will be supported as long as those charities exist or the donor may choose to designate a specific field of interest or geographic region, with instructions for the Community Foundation to respond to the greatest needs within those areas. Donors can be as specific or as general as they choose.
“Each year we will honor the members of the Legacy Society during an event featuring a noted expert on current estate planning topics or leaders who can advise on the pressing needs of our community and the innovative solutions for fully impacting those issues,” said Bartlett. “It is our way of showing sincere gratitude for their foresight and a reminder of our collective commitment to honoring their philanthropic intentions.”
Established six years ago, the Indian River Community Foundation began operating formally in 2008 and currently holds assets of $8 million. The purpose of the community foundation is to provide donors with flexible philanthropic tools to achieve their current and long-term charitable giving goals. The foundation’s mission is to build a stronger community through donor-driven philanthropy.
For more information, contact Bartlett at (772) 492-1407.