A charitable online tool — now available through Deseret Trust Company — allows Latter-day Saint donors to simplify and expand their charitable giving.
The Church company now offers donor advised funds, which are quickly growing in popularity across the United States.
With an online donor advised fund at Deseret Trust, donors have the opportunity to securely access their financial statements and recent account activity and make future grant recommendations for their donor advised funds from a home computer.
David G. Moore, President and Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Deseret Trust Company, said donors can make a gift to the fund at any time and then recommend later which charity or charities they believe should be supported. This allows them to realize immediate tax advantages while, if desired, delaying decisions about grants to charities.
"With speed and security you can consolidate and direct your charitable giving where you feel it will do the most good," he said.
With a minimum of $10,000, a person can establish a fund with Deseret Trust, whose offices are located in downtown Salt Lake City in the Deseret News building.
Deseret Trust Company works in partnership with LDS Philanthropies to help donors accelerate the work of the Church and its institutions, including BYU and other Church schools, Humanitarian Services, the Perpetual Education Fund, the Church History Fund, the General Missionary and Temple Construction Funds and other important initiatives approved by Church leaders.
Formed in 1972, Deseret Trust was created to manage assets held in trust by BYU. There was a need for the company, said Glenn D. Ahrens, a trust officer, because the number of charitable gifts to the Church and Church institutions had grown and because there were growing needs for additional Church-wide philanthropic contributions. In addition, the laws of charitable giving had changed and institutional trustees were required to hold special licenses.
Today Deseret Trust is a tax-exempt charitable organization and is governed by a Board of Trustees that is appointed by the First Presidency.
That means the Company can help Church members and others who have assets they want to give to the Church and other Church-compatible charitable organizations.
Brother Moore said since the inauguration of Deseret Trust Company's Donor Advised Funds early last November, the company has witnessed a significant increase in donors, large and small, "who have opened accounts and embraced the ability to make charitable grants to Church and compatible charities with the use of state of the art online technology.
"The ease and ability to involve family members, as well as low cost to make gifts to Church charities continues to catch the attention of donors and their professional advisors."
For more information about Deseret Trust Company go to www.deserettrust.com or call (800) 746-8250.
E-mail to: sarah@desnews.com