A Winning Gift Strategy

Bill Leitch's family ties to Long Pasture Wildlife Sanctuary are 50-years strong.

"First we were neighbors in Cape Cod Village, a cottage colony in Cummaquid, just to the east of Long Pasture's beach, and devotees of the gentle tides and expansive seashore for expeditions to observe horseshoe crabs. When we heard Mass Audubon was going to establish a sanctuary in Cummaquid, we quickly became fans of the entrepreneur and environmentalist extraordinaire, Ian Ives, who is Long Pasture's founding Sanctuary Director."

In wanting to continue Ian's and Long Pasture's success, Bill employed a strategy using his IRA that allows him to make larger gifts without tapping other investment needed for current living expenses. In 2015, Congress made permanent the charitable IRA rollover provision of the Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012 and it continues to this day. The provision allows the transfer of any amount up to $100,000 from your IRA directly to Mass Audubon. The distribution is tax-free and counts towards your required minimum distribution if you are 70 1/2 or older.

Donors also name Mass Audubon as the beneficiary or contingent beneficiary of their IRA accounts because the IRA assets if left to heirs are highly taxed. In naming Mass Audubon as a beneficiary of an IRA the donors have planned a future gift that will carry forward their legacy and commitment to protecting the nature of Massachusetts for the generations to come.