A simple resolution that will leave a lasting impact

Originally published on 10/11’s Pure Nebraska program.

There’s no better time than right now to get your estate in order. The new year is an opportunity to consider how you can give back to the people, places, and even the hometown you care about.

Nebraska Community Foundation (NCF) works with Nebraskans every day on ways to support the people and places most important to them. The generous people NCF helps have opted to not only include their heirs in their estate plans, but also the community they call home. Some make plans to benefit their communities or favorite charities to relieve the people they love from inheriting tax-burdensome assets. For others, it’s their way of saying thank you to the hometown where they spent their youth, raised their kids, or started a career or business.

We caught up with Melissa Turner with Arbor Bank in Nebraska City. She is an example of someone who has moved with intention in her estate planning process to give back, while also taking care of her family. We talked to her about her connection to the Nebraska City Community Foundation Fund, and how it’s a place where people can donate to benefit the future of the town. “The Nebraska City Community Foundation Fund was established about 24 years ago,” Turner said. “We are unique in Nebraska City as the only foundation in town where people can donate. Our community is blessed with a large number of family foundations, but people like me can’t donate to those. Anyone can donate to the Nebraska City Community Foundation Fund, and we’ve had some generous donors. Our endowment is now more than $1 Million, and we are able to grant back to the community more than $50,000 a year.” Giving to the fund is a way local people can leave a legacy.

There is a definite culture of giving in Nebraska City, and Turner has taken steps to be a part of that. “My husband and I have been talking about our estate,” Turner said. “We are a long way from this, we hope. But it’s never too soon to think about the legacy we want to leave. We have three daughters, and we want to take care of them. We also want to give back to the organizations that helped raise our daughters, and supported us during our careers.”

Turner says making plans to give back is easier than you might think. “There are so many ways to do estate planning,” Turner said. “One of the things we did is change the beneficiary on our life insurance. We have three daughters. When you divide that by three, there’s a small portion left. We are taking that extra portion, and that is a beneficiary on our life insurance policy which will go back to a local organization.” According to NCF, there are other ways to consider giving. In 2021, Nebraska Community Foundation released its third Nebraska Transfer of Wealth Study. NCF discovered that during the 2020s, more than $100 billion in Nebraska wealth will pass from one generation to the next. In the next half century, that number jumps to $950 billion. The NCF “Five to Thrive” campaign urges future-minded Nebraskans to consider leaving just 5% of their estate to their hometown. If all Nebraskans gave just 5% to local charitable causes, it would amount to more than $5 billion in the next decade—and $47.5 billion over the next half-century. For most people, a gift in their will is the largest charitable gift they will ever make, not to mention leave the greatest impact on future generations who call Nebraskans home.

Turner says it’s important to talk about estate planning around the dinner table. “My parents taught my sisters and I very early on how important it was to take care of your community,” Turner said. “The conversation around our table does include how things will be left when my parents are gone. My parents just went through some very extensive estate planning, and my sisters and I are grateful they have shared that plan with us. My parents are also teaching their grandkids how to leave a legacy. At Christmas, they give money to the grandkids to give back. I would encourage people who are planning their estate to consider their hometown. Remember what is important. Think about what is important in your life. Do you want those things to continue for future generations? Then, consider what kind of legacy you want to leave and how you want to be remembered.”

Meeting with an attorney or professional advisor is always recommended, however, there are also free online tools to help people get started. Nebraskans are invited to visit www.fivetothrivene.org for a free, easy-to-use will planning guide to take you through the process. Visit the website, scroll down to the “Transfer of Wealth Toolkit,” and click on “WORKBOOK: Planning Your Legacy” to access the free guide. Nebraska Community Foundation staff are also always happy to discuss tax-wise charitable gift planning strategies and the ways our fellow Nebraskans are leaving a legacy.

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