Nolan and LeTourneau contributed gifts to their 50th reunion class projects using Individual Retirement Account (IRA) assets.
LeTourneau is making gifts to the Annual Fund over the next five years and to the class project with Qualified Charitable Distributions (QCD). The QDC rules allow individuals age 70½ or older to make direct gifts up to $100,000 annually from a traditional IRA to qualified charities. The QCD counts for the IRA owner’s required minimum distribution (RMD), reducing the taxable amount. Additionally, LeTourneau named W&L as a beneficiary of his retirement account, allowing him to stretch his 50th reunion gift.
Nolan did the same, giving with his IRA as well as naming W&L as a beneficiary. “From a tax standpoint it made more sense to give via an IRA distribution,” he said. “We can’t predict the future. My gift is a percentage of my retirement assets. That way if my assets are lower than expected, my heirs are not negatively impacted by a W&L commitment of a specific dollar amount. In like manner, if assets are higher than expected, W&L can benefit as well as my heirs, who would also have more than currently envisioned.”
Learn more about giving after your 45th reunion or providing a gift through your IRA.