Personal Donor Stories

We thank all our planned gift donors for their generous support.

Gift Annuity Donor Stories

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Secure Income and Keeping Up with Inflation

At 90, Mary insists on doing for herself and is proud to say she holds a commendable record for good health and sound financial planning. She takes an aspirin a day, tends her garden and maintains a lovely little home in Portland, Ore. She can no longer drive but takes a bus into the city to shop or conduct business.

Her husband of 60 years, Verne, had been a famous illustrator. As royalties came in after his death, Mary wanted to ensure the funds would provide a fixed income for her and, ultimately, benefit the causes they both cared about. Because they had no children, they planned to leave their entire estate to charities.

Beginning in 2003, Mary created a charitable gift annuity with AARP Foundation every two or three years. She says it enables her to keep up with inflation and get a fixed income from an organization she trusts.

Mary currently has four charitable gift annuities with AARP Foundation. She says she feels blessed that her financial and charitable decisions help vulnerable older Americans remain independent and live a better life.

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The Second Act

Maria was a teacher in the Dominican order of nuns until the age of 45. At age 50, she married Frank, a widower and former commercial pilot. Now at 88, Maria plans her day and remains active -- teaching part time, walking, line dancing. And, like many teachers, she does her homework.

Maria researches charities and makes recommendations to Frank about their charitable gift options. When asked about her research on AARP Foundation, Maria said, "We trust the organization. We use the services. It seemed like a natural choice." Eighty-nine cents of every dollar raised by the Foundation directly supports its programs and services.

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Exchanging rental income property

At age 75, Lee owned a beach community rental property with a fair market value of $800,000 subject to a $200,000 mortgage. Rental income was well below the market but she preferred a stable income rather than risking vacancies. Although she was retired from her academic career, Lee was responsible for property taxes, insurance and maintenance plus acting as the property manager. After the mortgage payments and overhead expenses were made, an income of only $800 per month remained.

Lee wished to increase her retirement supplement with higher payments. The burden of management and the property's small return on equity led her to set up a charitable gift with the AARP Foundation. She also wanted to help the AARP Foundation in its effort to improve the lives of the aging.

Lee decided to do a charitable gift annuity with the AARP Foundation in exchange for the real estate. She donated the asset in exchange for lifetime payments made by the AARP Foundation.

Now Lee receives well over $3,000 per month with a portion of the income sheltered for six years by virtue of the charitable gift tax deduction that is carried forward. She says the best part of the transaction is that she can really retire now without the financial and emotional burden of property ownership! Securing Steady Income to Ensure a Better Life for Himself and Others After teaching art in a New Jersey high school for many years, James retired to Upstate New York and over the years produced many beautiful works of art. He was a prolific painter, using only a palette in his craft. Today, due to macular degeneration, he cannot pursue his passion.

James lived independently and was able to provide for himself. He liked that. He also knew he had to plan for the future, his advancing age, his inevitable blindness.

James had a very sizeable investment and was deliberating about turning it over or entering into a charitable gift annuity. Since James had no heirs, he wanted a worthy charity to benefit from his life's savings. He also needed a steady, guaranteed stream of income to help pay his expenses in an assisted living facility. Since he received many services of AARP in his community, it seemed natural to do a charitable gift annuity with AARP Foundation.

James legacy speaks to us in his art and the gift of a better life for many seniors so they remain independent, as he did for most of his 80+ years.

Real Estate

For Sid and Betty, now in their late 80's, maintaining their summer home on Block Island had become a burden. They wanted to increase their retirement income by selling it, but were shocked at the potential capital gains tax. They had no children who might inherit the home and all its memories.

Sid read about a Charitable Gift Annuity in exchange for real estate gifted to AARP Foundation. He was familiar with how AARP Foundation charitable dollars worked in his community and had several friends who were tax-aide volunteers. Plus, he viewed AARP as the "action wing" for aging issues. But Sid and Betty also had a long affiliation with their church and wanted their church to benefit from some of their charitable dollars as well.

The AARP Foundation helped Sid and Betty reach their financial and charitable goals. The Foundation arranged to auction their home because of its esthetic private location and value. It sold in four minutes at a price that was substantially higher than the appraised value! The church and AARP Foundation are shared beneficiaries of the gift. And, Sid and Betty have a guaranteed monthly payment which will sustain them for the remainder of their lifetimes.

Sid and Betty have always been active volunteers in their church and in their musical community. Even today, Sid, an accomplished pianist, conducts sing-a-longs to entertain residents at their retirement community.

This unique couple have given their time, talents, and treasures for many, many years. Reflecting on that, Sid commented: "We are thankful for the privilege of giving."

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Low-Yield Returns

Lucy was a bookkeeper for over 45 years. Today, at 85, she says she made a wise decision years ago through charitable gift annuities.

Lucy's husband made conservative investments over the years to supplement their Social Security. After he passed away, Lucy was concerned about the uncertainty of her income stream and wanted a fixed income she could count on.

Lucy is not rich but she has a philanthropic spirit and supports many charities with small donations. When she learned about charitable gift annuities, she knew she found the best way to accomplish two goals very important to her: (1) make even larger gifts to the charities that touched her life, AND (2) provide herself with secure income for life.

Lucy now has several gift annuities, three of them with AARP Foundation. In addition to making gifts she never thought possible, Lucy enjoys charitable deductions and, the best part…some of the income is tax-free!