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I N S I D E : G I V E T O D A Y A N D T O M O R R O W • W H I C H G I F T I S R I G H T F O R Y O U ?

B A R B A R A B R O O K I N S - S C H N E I D E R “ O N T H E G O ” A T D A V I E S S Y M P H O N Y H A L L .

From Cold Calls to Estate Gift, Board Member Creates Lasting Harmony for Symphony B L E N D E D G I F T P R O V I D E S S U P P O R T N O W A N D I N T H E F U T U R E

s a San Francisco Symphony board member since 1979, Barbara Brookins-Schneider has played a major role in the

Symphony’s past and present. Through a blended gift, she’ll also have a hand in the Symphony’s future.

Barbara first contributed to the Symphony’s funds in the early 1970s when a friend brought her to an event teaching volunteers how to cold call donors on behalf of the Symphony. Barbara went on to be the top volunteer fundraiser for the next five years and then joined the board. As a board member, she continued to raise money, motivated by what the Symphony offered in return. “I think when you’re sitting in the Hall as a patron listening to the music, you have the opportunity to refresh and reflect,” she says. “I find that very comforting, almost therapeutic.”

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Continued from Page 1Creating Lasting SupportBarbara decided in the late 1990s to leave the remainder of her estate to the Symphony. Symphony staff advised her to create a blended gift. She established and gave an immediate gift to a named fund within the Symphony’s endowment and has directed her estate gift to that endowment fund. The Barbara Brookins Young Artists Fund provides resources for young artists to appear on the Symphony stage each year. “The nice thing about a blended fund is that you have the ability to keep adding to it. It goes directly to your area of interest—to your passion where you want the money to be used,” Barbara says. Not only was creating the gift extraordinarily easy, but Barbara says she has also been impressed with the Symphony’s management of the endowment, which is high praise from a former securities professional. “They’ve done a wonderful job,” she says. “The market has changed, and the endowment has learned from those changes and done very well.”

From Cold Calls to Estate Gift, Board Member Creates Lasting Harmony for Symphony

The nice thing about a blended fund is that you have the ability

to keep adding to it. It goes directly to your area of interest—

to your passion where you want the money to be used.

—Barbara Brookins-Schneider

W E ’ R E H A P P Y T O H E L P Y O U C R E A T E A G I V I N G P L A N T H A T S P E A K S T O

Y O U R I N T E R E S T S . T O S T A R T Y O U R G I V I N G J O U R N E Y , C O N T A C T S T E P H E N D .

S T E I N E R , J D , A T 4 1 5 . 5 0 3 . 5 4 4 5 O R S S T E I N E R @ S F S Y M P H O N Y . O R G .

Find the Gift That’s Right for YouIn order to know which type of charitable gift best meets your current and future needs, it is beneficial to understand the different charitable gifts and the benefits associated with each. Simply return the enclosed survey to receive your free brochure Your Personal Guide to Gift Planning.

Your Personal Guide to

GIFT PLANNING

Gifts You Make Today Future Gifts• Cash • Bequest in Will/Trust• Stocks and Securities • IRA/Retirement • Real Estate Plan Assets• Tangible Personal Property • Life Insurance• Life Income Gifts • Other Beneficiary • Charitable Gift Annuity Designations • Charitable Remainder Trust

hy choose between cake and ice cream when you can have both? If you

would like to support the San Francisco Symphony today and see your gift at work

while ensuring that world-class music continues in the Bay Area for years to come, a blended gift is the solution that allows you to do both. This approach to giving can take many forms. The common thread is the combination of current and future gifts. To take advantage of the blended gift approach, you select a way to donate today that makes sense for

your situation. Then you choose a way to continue that generosity in the future through a deferred gift.

Check Out This Potential Scenario Mary has supported the Symphony for more than 20 years. She has made gifts of cash or stock each year. Supporting classical music brings her immense satisfaction and allows her to model her philanthropic values for her family. But Mary wonders what will happen to the programs made possible through her annual gifts after she passes away. Her financial advisor suggests adding a bequest to Mary’s will to extend her support far into the future. Mary adds a bequest in her will for $125,000 to go to the Symphony’s endowment fund. We only use a portion of the endowment each year to support our musicians and programs. The remainder is reinvested, which allows it to grow and support Mary’s annual payouts indefinitely. Thanks to her careful planning, the programs and goals most important to Mary will thrive during and after her lifetime.

Give Today and Tomorrow A B L E N D E D G I F T L E T S Y O U D O B O T H

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Combined With

P L E A S E C O N T A C T U S T O E X P L O R E Y O U R M A N Y

O P T I O N S F O R M A K I N G A D I F F E R E N C E A T T H E

S Y M P H O N Y T O D A Y A N D F O R Y E A R S T O C O M E .

here are a number of ways to leave a lasting legacy at the San Francisco Symphony. To find the gift vehicle that is right for you, rank these benefits in order of importance to you:

___ Retain control and flexibility.___ Receive an income tax deduction and eliminate

capital gains taxes. ___ Ensure the future of the Symphony.___ Provide for heirs.___ Secure a retirement income.

Now see which type of gift matches your priorities.

To retain control and flexibility, consider a gift to the Symphony in your will or trust. Since this gift will not go into effect until after your lifetime, you are free to change your mind at any time to adapt to unforeseen circumstances.

To receive an income tax deduction and eliminate capital gains taxes, make a gift of appreciated assets that you have owned for more than one year. Your tax deduction will be for the full fair market value of the donated property up to 30 percent of your adjusted gross income, and you will be exempt from paying capital gains taxes on any increase in value. We will sell the asset and use the proceeds to enrich, serve and shape cultural life in the Bay Area.

To ensure the future of classical music in the Bay Area, create a named fund, as Barbara Brookins-Schneider did. You make a gift to the endowment, we carefully invest the money and then a portion of the earnings is released each year to fund the program. The rest of the endowment remains invested to create a lasting legacy.

To provide for your heirs, make sure their inheritances don’t carry an unnecessary tax burden. Distributions from qualified pensions and retirement plans, for example, are subject to income taxes at the beneficiary’s ordinary income tax rate. Instead, consider leaving less tax-burdened assets, such as real estate and life insurance, to your loved ones and naming the San Francisco Symphony as beneficiary of pensions and retirement plans. We are eligible to receive the full amount of these assets and bypass any federal taxes.

To secure a retirement income, arrange a charitable gift annuity with us. In addition to supporting our musical programming with your gift, you will receive fixed payments for life and a partial income tax deduction in the year your gift is made.

Davies Symphony Hall201 Van Ness Avenue San Francisco, CA 94102

Stephen D. Steiner, JDDirector, Gift Planning415.503.5445 • ssteiner@sfsymphony.orgsfsymphony.planmygift.org

© The Stelter Company.. The information in this publication is not intended as legal or tax advice. For such advice, please consult an attorney or tax advisor. Figures cited in examples are for hypothetical purposes only and are subject to change. References to estate and income taxes include federal taxes only. State income/estate taxes or state law may impact your results.

Which Gift Is Right for You? I D E N T I F Y Y O U R G O A L S T O U N C O V E R T H E I D E A L D O N A T I O N O P T I O N

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P L E A S E V I S I T S F S Y M P H O N Y . P L A N M Y G I F T . O R G

O R C O N T A C T U S F O R M O R E I N F O R M A T I O N .