Summer art camps and after-school programs. Emergency rental assistance. Historic preservation. From education to human services, neighborhood resilience to the environment, Pittsburghers are giving back and working together to make life better for others.
While Pittsburgh philanthropy has long been associated with industrial titans, our city’s reputation for uncommon generosity was built on countless quieter acts of care by citizens from all walks of life, neighbors helping neighbors and families giving what they can.
Together, their actions have drawn national recognition — Pittsburgh continues to be regularly named among the most caring and generous cities in the nation.
Today, what has changed is not the spirit of giving, but the accessibility of legacy-building. Permanent legacies are no longer the sole province of captains of industry, but increasingly attainable for more residents through a form of philanthropy known as “planned giving.”
Planned giving is a set of strategies that can include donor-advised funds, charitable bequests, IRA gifts, charitable gift annuities and trusts. Using these tools, donors are often able to make a far greater impact than they ever thought possible, while still being able to provide for their loved ones.
Davine Byon and her mother Jeemin Kim, performing a collaborative piece at WILDNESS as part of the Exposure Artists Program. (Photo by Audrey Medrano / The Pittsburgh Foundation)
Some donors make plans to sustain their favorite local nonprofit in perpetuity. Others set up endowments to support a specific cause. Still others advance medical research, funding investigations into the causes and cures of certain diseases.
This shift toward more accessible, values-driven giving is being made possible in large part by institutions like The Pittsburgh Foundation and The Community Foundation of Westmoreland County. These community foundations provide personalized guidance, often working alongside a donor’s professional advisers to design gifts that maximize community impact and explore strategies to reduce or eliminate capital gains, gift and estate taxes, or even generate lifetime income.
“I knew for years what I wanted to do. I wanted to leave part of my estate to charitable organizations that reflect my values and those of my late wife, Georgette,” says Pittsburgh resident Angelo Taranto.
“I assumed that arranging this was going to be complicated, so I kept putting it off. I was pleasantly surprised how easy it was to set up a fund and accomplish our charitable goals with the help of The Pittsburgh Foundation.”
Since 1945, The Pittsburgh Foundation has helped individuals identify and support the causes that matter most to them, handling the administrative burden of managing an endowment and simplifying grantmaking.
Today, the Foundation manages more than 2,500 individual donor funds, each one reflecting the unique priorities of the people behind them.
From right to left, volunteers George Madeja, Toni Lenart, Eric Lackner and Nancy Madeja pack meals for delivery as part of the Brentwood Meals on Wheels Program. (Photo credit: Kitoko Chargois / The Pittsburgh Foundation)
Starting at $10,000, donors can partner with The Pittsburgh Foundation to establish an endowment that provides permanent support for their chosen causes. Over time, these funds grow in value and impact.
Many times, the benefits of a planned gift are felt first by the donor. Families engage in meaningful conversations about values, involving children and grandchildren in deciding which causes to support. And for many, there is a deep sense of comfort in knowing the future will not be left to chance.
Most planned gifts do not bring the public recognition of the family name on a library or park. Yet their impact is no less enduring, giving everyday residents a simple way to leave a lasting legacy on the city we love — a day spent in a safe and beautiful park, a meal shared with a family in need, an advance in research made possible by donors who believed in what could be.
Learn more about planned giving and how The Pittsburgh Foundation can help you get started at pittsburghfoundation.org/YourLivingLegacy.
Pittsburgh’s Public Source receives funding from The Pittsburgh Foundation. This sponsored content was produced via a third-party advertising agency through our standard sponsored content procedures. Public Source subscribes to the Institute for Nonprofit News standards of editorial independence.
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