Endowments and Planned Gifts: What and Why?

* Perpetuate the donor’s values and priorities in the wake of change. An endowment gift can provide assurance that programs that are important to the donor will survive. By creating or adding to a permanent endowment for a designated purpose, the donor seeks to enable and obligate the organization to carry out his or her expressed wishes, so long as it is practical and possible to do so. A restricted endowment can ensure organizational support for the donor’s priorities.