Coalition Backs Smaller Charity Bill as Broad Measure Falters in Congress
Orlando, Fla. Concerned that broad charity legislation will fail to pass Congress for a fourth consecutive session, a coalition of nonprofit organizations announced here at a meeting of the American Council on Gift Annuities that it plans to back a bill that seeks to accomplish far less than the…
By Brad Wolverton
Contributor
Chicago Trust’s Efforts to Bring In Donor-Advised Funds Pay Off
While many donor-advised funds saw their assets balloon last year, the Chicago Community ALSO SEE:Donor Funds Are on the Rise Again Trust reported one of the biggest increases, a rise of 128.8 percent to $112.8-million last year. The trust achieved its success by hiring additional staff members to…
By nicole lewis
Contributor
Donor Funds Are on the Rise Again
Assets grew 9.4 percent last year, a Chronicle study findsDonor-advised funds grew rapidly last year, benefiting from the recovering economy, especially the surge in ALSO SEE:STATISTICAL DATA: Donor-Advised FundsChicago Trust’s Efforts to Bring In Donor-Advised Funds Pay Off the stock market, and…
By nicole lewis
Contributor
$50-Million Pledged to Aid Blacks
A black Wall Street money manager announced last week that he plans to give $50-million in charitable donations to mark the 50th anniversary of Brown v. Board of Education, the landmark Supreme Court decision that desegregated American public schools. The donor, Alphonse Fletcher Jr., said that…
By Elizabeth Schwinn
Contributor
Rural Causes Get Small Share of Foundation, Corporate Aid, Study Finds
Rural areas get a disproportionately low share of foundation money, a report released last week charges. Although 20 percent of the population of the United States -- about 55 million people -- lives in rural areas, less than 1 percent of the $300-billion in foundation grants distributed annually…
By Michael Anft
Contributor
$60-Million for Middlebury College; Other Gifts
Seven organizations have received large gifts or pledges: Middlebury College, in Vermont, has received a $50-million pledge from an anonymous donor. The gift is unrestricted, although the donor has requested that the college’s science center be named after the college’s president, John M. McCardell…
Low-Carb Craze Takes a Bite Out of Food Fund-Raising Sales
Girl Scout Troop 2077 in New Rochelle, N.Y., didn’t sell enough cookies this year to pay for its annual ALSO SEE:The Atkins Way of Giving overnight outing. The reason, says the troop’s leader, Judy Lederman: Too many potential customers are trying to lose weight by shunning carbohydrates. “Low-carb…
By Debra E. Blum and Cassie J. Moore
Diet guru’s widow oversees new research fund worth millionsVeronica Atkins used to bristle each time the unconventional theories about weight loss and nutrition ALSO SEE:Low-Carb Craze Takes a Bite Out of Food Fund-Raising Sales advanced by her husband, the diet guru Robert C. Atkins, came under…
By Debra E. Blum
Contributor
Orangutans, the world’s largest tree-dwelling mammals, once roamed from India and South China to Indonesia. Today, the two existing species of orangutans in the wild can be found only on the islands of Sumatra and Borneo. Already considered critically endangered, both species, which together number…
Interest Rates for Planned Gifts
Following are the interest rates, provided by the Internal Revenue Service, for computing charitable deductions for charitable remainder trusts, gift annuities, charitable lead trusts, and some other deferred gifts. June 2004 4.6% May 3.8% April 3.8% March 4.0% February 4.2% January 4.2% December…