It is a simple thing to leave a legacy to the next generation. Simply live our lives with integrity, and people will not forget it. In fact, they might even emulate it, which will cause our legacy to live on for many generations.
It is also a simple thing to leave a financial legacy. We can mention the church in our will, for example, and that legacy will live on for multiple generations as well. It costs nothing while we are live, but such a gift can positively affect lives many years into the future.
Here in the diocesan office, we want to encourage you to remember the church as you make plans for your legacy. You can remember the church in your will, in a retirement account, in a trust, or in an insurance policy. For example, I have mentioned the diocese’s Permanent Episcopate Fund as a beneficiary of the balance in my retirement account. I will still get all the income I expect each year after I retire, but the principal in the account will be distributed to charity after my death. Nothing could be simpler or less painless. That is how to leave a financial legacy.
I Want to Leave a Legacy
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Now, let’s talk about putting life back into a one-time promise. About eighteen years ago we began the Bishop Pierce Society as a way to recognize people who tell this office that they have remembered the church in their estate plans. We promised to keep them up to date with information on what is happening with our endowment funds. Well, as with so many good expectations, our efforts were not as good as we had wished. The record keeping system had a software change, and we lost information. So, today I ask you to let us know if you have remembered the church in your estate plans so that we can say thanks to you.
If you have mentioned the diocese (as in, for example, the Permanent Episcopate Fund or the New Generation Fund), Camp Mitchell, or a local congregation in your estate plans, let us know. We want to thank you, and then we want to keep you up to date on what is happening as we try to prepare for supporting the important work we do for generations to come. It is the sort of work that Bishop Pierce in the 19th century was so looking ahead to when he served as this diocese’s first resident bishop.