Giving through
Life Insurance

MISSOURI SOUTHERN FOUNDATION
In Support of Missouri Southern State University

You may consider making a future contribution to the College by using a life insurance policy. There are several ways to use life insurance to fund a contribution to the College.

• The simplest method is to name the Missouri Southern Foundation as a beneficiary. Since the beneficiaries can always be changed and the donor holds the policy no tax deduction is available.

• The donor may give an existing, paid up, policy to the Foundation by naming the foundation as owner and beneficiary. In this case the donor is entitled to a charitable tax deduction for the replacement value of the policy.

• The donor may take out a new policy on themselves, or someone else if the donor is uninsurable, and name the Foundation as the beneficiary. By naming the Missouri Southern Foundation as the irrevocable owner and beneficiary the donor is entitled to a charitable tax deduction for the amount of the premium.

Donors should always contact the Foundation if they are considering giving a gift through an insurance policy. The donor may wish to restrict how the funds are used by designating certain departments or activities at the College as recipients of the gift. A Foundation representative can work with the donor to ensure the gift is used as the donor wishes. Because you retain possession of the assets and all income during your lifetime there is no income tax deduction, however the assets will pass outside probate avoiding any estate tax.

Here is one example of a gift using an insurance policy:

Mrs. Smith, a retired nurse owns an insurance policy she had during her working years in the case of her early death. Her husband is deceased and her children grown. She wishes to make a gift to MSSU and names the Missouri Southern Foundation as the beneficiary to receive 50 percent of the policy proceeds and her church to receive the remaining 50 percent.

This is only one example of how a retirement account can be used to fund a gift to the College. In all cases, donors should consult their attorney, accountant, or estate planner when considering gift giving.