Thank you for sharing your treasure in the year of Rotary Opens Opportunities and we look forward to your ongoing support to continue to do good in the world.

Article by PDG Dennis Shore - Endowment/Major Gifts Adviser Zone 8

As we welcome a new Rotary year to Serve to Change Lives, sincere thanks to those Rotarians (and Rotary friends) who entrusted The Rotary Foundation as their charity of choice during the past year, with its unprecedented challenges. All gifts, from one dollar to one million dollars and beyond, are valued and make a real difference.

Rotarians give in three ways: their Time; their Talent and their Treasure. Many Rotarians give in all of these ways.

Some Rotarians are in a position to donate significant treasure or commit a gift through a bequest to The Rotary Foundation as their way of ensuring that we continue to do good in the world long after we are gone.

Did you know that your bequest is managed to maintain its real value in perpetuity but a bequest invested for the past 25 years, despite tech wrecks and global financial shocks, has also delivered earnings equivalent to the value of the bequest to Rotary projects and programs. This is the power of Rotary’s Endowment Fund. In the words of ArchKlumph “Rotary’s tomorrow depends on what we do today”.

That is where the Regional Endowment/Major Gifts Adviser is able to assist.

Many Rotarians are happy for The Rotary Foundation to determine how their gift is spent, whereas others want to support their passion. For significant gifts there are a range of customised options that allow the donor to direct their gift consistent with their passion.

In either situation there needs to be communication to ensure the gifts are properly recorded and the donor appropriately recognised.

With Staff Partner Mark Anderson from our Parramatta Office, we can provide personal assistance to work through the available options.

In a future “On the Move” we will discuss some of these options.

Everyone, including Rotarians, have choices about how they share their treasure. An important aspect of the EMGA’s role is to ensure that prospective donors understand why The Rotary Foundation is right for them.

In Australia there are more than 53,000 registered charities and about 28,000 in New Zealand. Many charities spend up big to make sure we know who they are, using funds from donations they receive. Unsurprisingly the best-known charities also receive most of the $12 billion donated annually by Australians and the $2 Billion in New Zealand. 9% of New Zealand’s largest charities receive 91% of all donations and 94% of all donations go to Australia’s largest 10%.

The charity business is big and in Australia is the second largest employer after retail.

The support these big charities receive means they must be doing something worthwhile, so why should Rotary donors preference The Rotary Foundation, other than for the reason it is our charity? 

We all know about The Rotary Foundation’s 4-Star rating on Charity Navigator (only achieved by about 1% of all charities) for 13 years in a row but what does that mean for Rotarians in Australia and New Zealand? It means our donations are managed to the highest standards, with low overhead expenses and spent on sustainable projects and programs consistent with The Rotary Foundation’s 7 causes (Areas of Focus). Significantly, it is Rotarians who get to decide on the projects and programs that are funded.

Did you know that Rotary’s causes are consistent with the 17 United Nations Sustainable Development goals? This means that there is a menu of programs and projects to address almost all of the issues that are important to Rotarians. 

Finally, but by no means last, for those who need it, your personal donations are tax deductible.

Thank you for sharing your treasure in the year of Rotary Opens Opportunities and we look forward to your ongoing support to continue to do good in the world.