NATURALIST'S LEGACY SOCIETY

If you have already named Squam Lakes Natural Science Center in your will or trust, please let us know so that we can thank you and welcome you into the Naturalist’s Legacy Society. The Naturalist’s Legacy Society was established in 2006 to celebrate the Science Center’s fortieth anniversary and to recognize and honor those who have made gifts which will help to continue its work into the future. You may also chose to remain anonymous, but please let us know about your gift.

Choosing the Right Gift

What You Can Give

• Cash
• Marketable and non-marketable securities
• Tangible personal property
• Real estate
• Life Insurance

Outright Gifts

• Provide immediate support and the most direct way to give
• May be funded with cash, securities, or other assets
• Charitable deductions lower income, gift, and estate taxes
• Science Center receives full benefit of the gift upon receipt
• You see your gift at work during your lifetime

Bequests

• Easily done through your will or trust
• May be a specific dollar amount, a percentage of your estate, or a specific asset
• You have continued use of your assets during your lifetime
• May provide charitable estate tax deduction

Retirement Assets and Life Insurance

• Name the Science Center as beneficiary of a retirement account, life insurance policy, or investment account
• Take advantage of the IRA Charitable rollover as a tax free rollover which counts toward your required minimum distribution.

Deferred Gifts

• Provide an income stream for you and a loved one
• May be funded with cash, securities, or other assets
• May provide income and estate tax benefits

Charitable gift annuity

• You will receive a fixed income, regardless of market conditions
• Payment is guaranteed for your lifetime
• Payments may be deferred, which increases the income payment and charitable tax deduction
• May provide a rate of return higher than otherwise available
• Allows you to diversify your assets
• When annuity payments cease to beneficiaries, balance is transferred to the Science Center

Charitable remainder trust

• You or your beneficiaries receive a fixed or variable amount for life or a term of years
• If trust is established during your lifetime, you receive a charitable income tax deduction for the value of the remainder interest that is transferred to the Science Center
• May reduce or eliminate capital gains tax if you use assets with a low basis
  
• No capital gains tax is owed on the gift portion if you fund a trust with appreciated assets; the trustee can sell the assets free of capital gains tax and reinvest the proceeds
  

Charitable lead trust

• Charities you designate benefit immediately
  
• Your family or other beneficiaries ultimately receive the remainder of the trust’s property

We advise you to seek legal counsel from your attorney or financial advisors who can help you with a plan that can be highly beneficial to you and also provide a significant and lasting charitable gift.

For more information contact:
Janet Robertson
Development and Communication Director
603-968-7194 x 12

Print an interest form >>>

Testimonials from Naturalist's Legacy Society members:

	BARBARA BALD When it came time for me to consider writing my will and deciding where to allocate my money, there was no question that the Science Center be first on that list. Since I wanted to see these programs continue and expand beyond my lifetime, I set up a trust naming the Center as one of my beneficiaries. I encourage others to consider remembering the Science Center in their bequests. Consider it our legacy, our payback, our celebration of the Earth and for what New Hampshire continues to offer to future generations.
	SUSAN AND TIM FABIAN The Science Center is important to us, not only because we met there, but because of what it meant to our families and to us as children. We think the work the Science Center does is so important in teaching people about nature and the environment and conserving that beautiful part of New Hampshire. We wanted to make sure that we could continue to support the ongoing operations and development of the Science Center even after we are gone. That's why we have left a portion of our estate to the Science Center in our will.
	CAROL AND ROB STEWART When we began our estate planning, it became evident that we had an opportunity to establish a charitable lead trust to benefit a few organizations that were both worthwhile and that had contributed to our personal growth and education. The Squam Lakes Natural Science Center was at the top of the list. Both of us wanted to assure that the Science Center’s programs continue and expand beyond our lifetimes.