Your year-end support is especially vital to helping the University of Memphis continue to educate the dreamers, thinkers and doers who will strengthen and lead this community. Here are some ways that may help you make your year-end investment in the University of Memphis in the most effective manner.

First, choose the best asset to give.

• Cash is most often given, and we will gratefully and promptly provide necessary documentation for your tax purposes. Make your check payable to the University of Memphis Foundation and mail to: The U of M Foundation, P.O. Box 1000, Memphis, TN 38148-0001. You can make gifts to the University online as well – just go to www.memphis.edu/give.htm.
  
  
• Gifts of appreciated securities may provide other tax benefits to you as well. When these are given to the University of Memphis, you may be able to take a deduction for their full value, not just their original cost, and may avoid the capital gains tax that would be incurred if you had sold the asset. (This only works with assets that have increased in value. If the assets have gone down in value, you may be better off selling the assets, taking the loss, and contributing the proceeds.)
  
  
• Gifts from retirement funds may be a wise choice, especially from your IRA, thanks to recent legislation, as those funds may be subject to tax if withdrawn voluntarily or under mandatory withdrawal requirements. For more information on giving from your IRA, go to www.memphis.edu/advance/giving/ira.html.

In this season of reflection and thanksgiving, you may remember the blessings that the University of Memphis may have provided you – and the blessing it is to this community. Consider making your investment in the University of Memphis through your estate plans.

• Your bequest helps ensure that we do the work that you support far into the future without affecting your assets during your lifetime. Everybody can make an estate gift – there is no such thing as a bequest that is too small. A bequest of a percentage – even 1% – is a wonderful way to remember the University.
  
  
• You can make the University a beneficiary of a life insurance policy, either by purchasing a new one or by using one that you no longer need.
  
  
• There are charitable trusts that allow you to make a gift to the University and receive income for the rest of your life. With charitable trusts, you transfer cash, securities or other appreciated property into the trust. The trust pays either a percentage of the value of its principal or a fixed amount to you or to the beneficiaries you name. When the trust terminates, the principal passes to the University of Memphis.
  
  
• It is also possible to donate your home and continue to live there. You receive an immediate income tax deduction for a portion of the appraised value of your property. Furthermore, you can terminate your life estate at any time and take an additional income tax deduction.

We are most grateful for your continued support of The University of Memphis. If you want to make a gift, but are unsure about the best way, please call us and let us share some possibilities with you. Contact the Director of Development at the University College of your choosing or contact Dan Murrell at 901-678-2732 or d.murrell@memphis.edu.

This information should not be construed as investment, tax or legal advice. Before making your charitable gift, please consult with your financial, legal and other advisors.