family giving plan

7/31/2019 Family Giving Plan

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Family Giving PlanA Practical Guide to Spend Your Life We ll

www.reachingforwardllc.com

Spring 2012


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Family Giving Plan

Your Familys Plan

A giving plan guides what you will do with what you have been given. Working on your plan provides an

opportunity for your family to consider its unique purpose so that you may strategically deploy family assets in

alignment with the family purpose.

Our giving plan is based on experiences over the past and guides how we make giving decisions. We moved from giving out of

compulsion to experiencing the joys and challenges of being an overseer.

Our actions are typically guided by our beliefs and values. Our

family history, family experiences and teaching are the mold that

forms a familys beliefs and values. Taking the opportunity to

discuss and discover your familys beliefs and values is

fundamental to living and giving on purpose. A corporation finds

its values to be fundamental as it forms strategy so that it can

deploy resources wisely. In a similar way, a family that knows

their values can chart life more meaningfully.

Purposeful, meaningful and courageous forward living is the end

game. Theres nothing better than operating in this zone.

However, the process and the new discussions that occur as a

family reflects on the past shared experiences and considers how

those experiences have shaped the individual family members

will bring new found depth and bonds. Many children have never

heard stories of their parents journey and many parents have

never heard about family life through the eyes of their children.

These discussions afford us a rich opportunity to share, learn and

grow.

The family giving map is a discussion guide for families to launch

into the great adventure of giving and growing together and build

a plan to live and give with purpose as a family.

My father is a story-teller. Our childhood was filled with his stories of how God had guided our family.

These stories established the foundation of who we are today.

Reaching Forward LLC

Family Giving Plan 1


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Taking the First Steps: The Setting

Creating a Great Discussion

Creating an atmosphere that is open to all ideas is vital. Approach

the conversations in a brainstorming style, allowing all ideas to

come forth, ones you agree with and ones you may not personallyembrace. This is difficult for those who know where they want to go

and want to get there quickly. For those who tend to hold back their

real thoughts; allow plenty of time. In working through the family

giving plan, you will address topics that if discussed in an open

forum will have great power to build understanding, insight and

ultimately appreciation for the varied and unique views and voices

within the family.

Tactically speaking, record what is shared. Allow value to be as-

signed to each individuals opinions. Recording or restating will ex-

press value for each thought and idea. You may want to record

thoughts using a whiteboard or have someone record notes during

the discussion.

Some families prefer having a moderator or close family friend to

facilitate the conversation. Some families choose to have the con-

versation while away at a family retreat or at the beginning of the

year during overall family goal setting or planning time. Choose a

location where family members will have time to listen & contribute

without distraction.

Establishing the family discussion as a tradition early in the familys history, sets the family giving discussion as a

favorite family activity and can guide their thoughts and behaviors over the course of the year and ultimately into

adulthood. Consider ways to make the interaction fun and inviting. One family we talked with made giving into a

game. By assigning a numeric value to pennies, each family member was given a stack of pennies to allocate to

organizations they liked. They not only had input, but had fun looking for organizations and participating in the

activity. Including videos or movies that talk about values and giving can help set the tone. See

www.reachingforwardllc.com for a list and links to videos. Generous Giving (www.generousgiving.org) is a great

resource for giving stories. A new organization, Ilikegiving.com also provides short video stories of the joys of

giving.

Think of your discussion as a river of water. The questions are the banks of the river, providing context for the

discussions. The water represents the conversation itself. The conversation will likely hit rapids, drops and

cascades over rocks as well as slow sections. Keeping the conversation flowing and it will yield the collaborative

input from the family necessary to discern and record your familys unique giving plan.

When my parents asked for my thoughts and my opinions, as a 14 year old, I felt respected. I felt valued.They invited my ideas and I was able to introduce new organizations into our family giving.

Now as a 30 year old parent, Im trying to do the same thing by including our children in our family values and giving discussions.

Imprinted on Our Heart

For God so loved He gave....

When we were born, God created us inHis image. His imprint on our heartscompels us to give, because He first

gave to us. So, when we give, we reflectthe Creators glory. Giving becomes amiraculous exchange shedding light onboth the giver and the receiver.

For God so loved He gave, therefore, wegive.

nnn




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Family Experiences & Beliefs

Experiences Talking through individuals perspectives of life experiences often sheds light on the variedviewpoints and ultimately can galvanize the family in what is valued, which will ultimately guide meaningful

living and giving. Discussion questions: How has your familys past shaped your family today? What

struggles have made the family stronger? What are you grateful for? Record the familys thoughts below.

AS A FAMILY, WE HAVE EXPERIENCED................................

..................................................................................................................................................................

..................................................................................................................................................................

..................................................................................................................................................................

..................................................................................................................................................................

..................................................................................................................................................................

..................................................................................................................................................................

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Beliefs Laying a solid foundation of your beliefs is essential in developing your convictions. Assurance of

our convictions allows us to live courageous and intentional lives. Consider the following discussion

questions: What does your family believe about how resources are to be used? What do you believe in

regards to how one is to steward resources (inclusive of financial capital, social capital, intellectual capital,

human capital, etc)? What beliefs did you see the previous generation live out and do you agree with those

beliefs? Record the familys thoughts below.

WE BELIEVE........................................................................

..................................................................................................................................................................

..................................................................................................................................................................

..................................................................................................................................................................

..................................................................................................................................................................

..................................................................................................................................................................

..................................................................................................................................................................

..................................................................................................................................................................

..................................................................................................................................................................

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Family Values

Values Next, consider what the family values as a result of experiences and beliefs. Below is a list to getyou started. Choose three to six values from the box below, or write in your own. You might have each

family member rank their top six and then look for commonalities.

AS A FAMILY WE VALUE

Acceptance

Accomplish-

mentAchievement

Adaptability

Adventure

Altruism

Assertiveness

Beauty

Belonging

Care for Others

Charity

Comfort

Commitment

Compassion

Completion

Confidence

Connection

Cooperation

Creativity

Curiosity

Dependability

Discipleship

Discipline

DiversityDreaming

Economy

Education

Effectiveness

Efficiency

Empathy

Encouragement

Entrepreneur-

ship

Evangelism

Excellence

Fairness

Faith

Fitness

Flexibility

Freedom

Frugality

Grace

Gratitude

Growth

Guidance

HappinessHarmony

Health

Holiness

Honesty

Honor

Hope

Humility

Humor

Imagination

Impact

Independence

Ingenuity

Inspiration

Integrity

Intelligence

Joy

Justice

Knowledge

Leadership

Longevity

Loyalty

Making A Dif-ference

Openness

Optimism

Order

Originality

Passion

Peace

Pragmatism

Precision

Preparedness

Recognition

Resourceful-

ness

Rest

Sacrifice

Security

Self-control

Self-reliance

Selflessness

Simplicity

Skillfulness

SpunkStillness

Structure

Support

Sympathy

Traditionalism

Tranquility

Trust

Trustworthiness

Unity

Utility

Virtue

Winning

Wittiness

Wonder

Youthfulness

Zeal

.................

.................

.................

.........

.........................

.........................




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Family InterestsNext, lets consider your familys unique interests and contribution. Based upon the giftedness of individual

family members how could the community be impacted because your family exists? What legacy will your family

leave?

Inventory Record your unique family interests and abilities. Typically, at this point one or more themes begin toemerge and often complementary abilities become recognizable. Each one is an individual and therefore you

might not have perfect alignment. Allow for individual expression.

O UR FAM ILY HA S BE EN GI FT ED IN TH E FO LL OW IN GAREAS........................................................................................................................

............................................................................................................

Dream Discuss the following questions: If our family could make a real difference with the resources we have,what would it be? What help would be given? What disease would be addressed? Who would be helped? What

are those areas that the family desires to see change? How will we prioritize the options?

WE WOULD LIKE TO HAVE AN IMPACT IN THE FOLLOWING

AREAS.................................................................................................

...........................................................................................................

GETTING OUR HANDS DIRTY: WAYS YOU CAN GIVE OF YOUR TIME.CHOOSE THOSE THAT ARE OF INTEREST TO YOUR FAMILY.

_____Board Membership_____ Volunteering as a Family at a Local Charity_____ Individual Participation with a Charity_____ Launching a New Initiative at a Charity_____ Partnering with a Charity thru a Family Business_____ Family Trips to Visit a Charity

_____ Influencing Others to Participate in Charity_____ Hosting an Event for a Charity_____ Starting a Family Foundation




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Family InterestsInviting your children into the conversation shows that you value their thoughts and ideas. As one adult ex-

pressed, when my parents asked me as a fourteen year old, where Id like to give, I felt respected and val-

ued. It caused me to begin to take greater responsibility for what God was entrusting to me. Thats when I

began to introduce new charities to my family.

You might ask your children, depending upon their age, to keep their eyes open for needs over a period of

time or let them research an area of interest or to read a book (such as The Hole in Our Gospel by Richard

Stearns or Radical by David Platt) before you come together to discuss.

One family we talked with provides an incentive to read certain books, while another family poses it as a re-

quirement for adult children before receiving their inheritance. Intentionally prioritizing great input into your

childrens hearts and minds at all ages of their lives is the key.

THEREFORE WE WILL GIVE OUR TIME, TALENT AND TREASURE TO-WARDS......



Choose Sectors that are of interest to your

family and assign percentages to total 100%

_____% Arts and Culture

_____% Children and Youth

_____% Disaster Relief

_____% Discipleship

_____% Education

_____% Environment and Animals

_____% Evangelism

_____% Family

_____% Human Services and Medical

_____% Place of Worship

_____% Social Civic Public Policy

_____% Urban

_____% _______________________

_____% TOTAL (should be 100%)

Choose Locations that are of interest to your


_____% In our Local Community

_____% In our Region

_____% In the United States

_____% Internationally:

Countries ___________________, ___________________, ___________________, ___________________, ___________________, ___________________, ___________________._____% TOTAL (should be 100%)0

0


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AFEW HELPFULTOOLS TO BUILD

PERSPECTIVE FOR

YOUR FAMILY,ARE LISTED BE-

LOW:

Deathclock.com

Not for the faint of

heart, but certainly a

dose of reality, receive

an estimate of your

remaining days, hours

and minutes based

upon age and health.

Globalrichlist.com

receive an estimate of

where your family

ranks in the world

based upon family

income.

Family Goals

We make a living by what we get, we make a life by what we give. Sir Winston Churchill



Goals that together, we would seek to accomplish in giving resources

include:

OUR ANNUAL GIVING GOAL $.................................OR...............................%

OUR LIFETIME GIVING GOAL $.................................OR...............................%

OUR ANNUAL VOLUNTEERING GOAL ..................................................................................................................

..................................................................................

Now its time to consider what you are aiming for and set a few measurable goals. We have all heard thesaying, aim at nothing and you will probably hit it. Set realistic or stretch goals or both, it is your choice.

Use these questions to discuss giving financial resources or volunteering time. Consider the following

questions. Some families ask this questions of each one in private and come back to share together. Other

families arrive at these amounts after conversations with their financial advisors. Either way, having the

conversation brings unity and focus and direction for the family.

What amount can we give as a family? What amount would we like to give as a family?

What amount would we give if God blessed us with that amount?

What ways would we like to get involved with charities or charitable projects, either as a family or as

individuals?

What new family traditions would we like to begin?


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LIVING TOGETHER AND GIVING SEPARATELY

How many of us shared the same giving passions as our parents when we were younger? Likely,

very few of us. If we want to ignite a passion for giving in our young children or adult children, its

important to create environments where they may discover their individual interests and take steps

towards engagement. Consider a few ideas that have worked well for other families:

- Make memories for a lifetime. On your next business trip overseas, take your teenage son or

daughter along with you and spend a few extra days exploring organizations that work in the

area. Talk to non profit workers and discover what the people living there experience first hand.

Rely on each other in a foreign environment for a few days, developing a greater understanding

and appreciation for each other and your strengths and weaknesses.

- Add meaning into the week. Spend a few days of Spring Break working at a few local

organizations in your city. Involve the whole family or invite a few friends of your son or

daughter to join the adventure.

- Embrace uniquenesses. Ponder your son or daughters interests. Research organizations that

employ those interests to help others. Is it art? Consider a local organization that uses art to

teach and equip inner city youth. Invite your son or daughter to take a day off to visit and

volunteer with the organization. Is it sports? Consider a race with a group like Wounded

Warriors where they can meet men and women who have served our country with valor.

- Do something positive with the emotion. Notice the next time emotional energy comes into a

conversation with your son or daughter. Explore the source of the emotional energy and ask if

theyd like to get involved to do something about it.

- Invite intrigue into your home. Invite missions workers to stay in your home when they aretraveling through your city. Engage the family at meal time to hear stories of their experiences on

the front line.

- Sponsor life transforming experiences. Host your son or daughter to experience a volunteering

trip through a local church or school.

- Giving gifts that give life. Instead of gifts during holiday season or birthdays for each other,

consider offering to your son or daughter to pick gifts from a gift catalog offered by many non

profits. Compassion, Samaritans Purse, World Vision, Heifer International and others allow you

to purchase a gift of a farm animals, or surgery or books for a child in need.

- Give your son or daughter an amount for the express purpose of helping someone else.

Encourage them to use their intuition and prayerfully keep an eye open for people they can help.

Set a date by which they each report back on their giving experience.

Be creative and tap into the unique interests of your children. Provide margin to discover together

what gets them excited about good giving. Often we find something new about ourselves in the

process.




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Putting it all together

THESMITHFAMILYGIVINGPLAN

AS A FAMILY,WE HAVE EXPERIENCEDGREATJOYS,MANYBLESSINGSANDOPPORTUNITIESTOGROWASAFAMILY. HARDSHIPDUETOFAMILYILLNESSAND

EATHHASGIVENOURFAMILYAFRESHAWARENESSOFTHEPRECIOUSGIFTOFLIFE

ANDHASPROVIDEDUSWITHAPLATFORMFORENCOURAGINGOTHERSINASIMILAR

SITUATION. WEFEELTHISISAPLATFORMTHATWESHOULDSTEWARDWELL. WEHAVE

TRAVELEDTHEWORLDASAFAMILYANDHAVEWITNESSEDFIRSTHANDTHENEEDSOF

YOUNGPEOPLEANDFEELTHISISSOMETHING FOR WHICHWEHAVEANOPPORTUNITYTO

PROVIDESUPPORT. SEVERALFAMILYMEMBERSHAVEADOPTEDCHILDREN.

WE BELIEVETHATTHEFINANCIALRESOURCES,INDIVIDUALGIFTSANDABILI-TIESANDRELATIONALCAPITALSHOULDBEMANAGEDWELLSOTHATITSUPPORTSNOT

ONLYOURFAMILYBUTTHEWORLDAROUNDUS. WEBELIEVETHATWEAREMANAGERS

ANDNOTOWNERSANDTHATWESHOULDLIVESIMPLYSOTHATOTHERSMIGHTSIMPLY

LIVE.

AS A FAMILY WE VALUECHARITY,AGROWINGFAITH,ENTREPRENEURSHIP,TEACHING/LEARNING,CREATIVITY,HEALTH

OUR FAMILY HAS BEEN GIFTED IN THE FOLLOWING AREASOURFAMILYHASAHERITAGEOFTEACHINGANDEDUCATION. SOMEFAMILYMEMBERSARE

GIFTED WRITERSANDSPEAKERS. SOMEFAMILYMEMBERSAREGIFTEDIN

ENTREPRENEURSHIP.

WE WOULD LIKE TO HAVE AN IMPACT IN THE FOLLOWING AREAS

OURLOCALCOMMUNITYWITHHOLISTICHEALTHSERVICESFORCHILDRENWHO ARE ILL

PROVIDINGACUPOFWATERINTHENAMEOFCHRIST. WEWOULDLIKETOPROVIDE

BASICNEEDSOFYOUNGPEOPLEAROUNDTHEWORLDTHATAREUNABLETOCAREFOR

THEMSELVES. WEBELIEVEITISIMPORTANTTOHAVEFUNDSSETASIDETOHELPIN

GLOBALDISASTERSAND HAVE A PREFERENCE FOR ORGANIZATIONS THAT ARE FAITH BASED.




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THEREFORE WE WILL GIVE OUR TIME, TALENT AND TREASURE

TOWARDS......

OUR ANNUAL GIVING GOAL OURGOALISTOGIVE15%OFOUR GROSSINCOME.

OVERTHENEXTFIVEYEARSWEWOULDLIKETOSTRETCHTO20%.

OUR LIFETIME GIVING GOAL SHOULDGODSOPROVIDE,WEWOULDLIKETO

GIVE$1,000,000OVEROURLIFETIME.

OUR ANNUAL VOLUNTEERING GOALONEPROJECTPERFAMILYEVERYSIXMONTHS. WEWOULDLIKETOVISITANDWORKATONEOFTHECHARITIESWESUPPORT

INEITHERBRAZILORHAITI

_3__% Arts and Culture _10__% Children and Youth _5__% Disaster Relief _15__% Discipleship _10__% Education _2__% Environment and Animals _15__% Evangelism _5__% Family _15__% Human Services and Medical _20__% Place of Worship _0__% Social Civic Public Policy _0__% Urban _100__% TOTAL

_50__% In our Local Community _0__% In our Region _10__% In the United States _40__% Internationally: Countries

_100__% TOTAL




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THE___________GIVINGPLAN

AS A FAMILY,WE HAVE EXPERIENCED................................

.

WE BELIEVE........................................................................

AS A FAMILY WE VALUE

OUR FAMILY HAS BEEN GIFTED IN THE FOLLOWING AREAS...



OUR FAMILY WOULD LIKE TO HAVE AN IMPACT IN ...............


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THEREFORE WE WILL GIVE OUR TIME, TALENT AND TREASURE

TOWARDS.....

Choose Sectors that are of interest to your


_____% Arts and Culture

_____% Children and Youth

_____% Disaster Relief

_____% Discipleship

_____% Education

_____% Environment and Animals

_____% Evangelism

_____% Family

_____% Human Services and Medical

_____% Place of Worship

_____% Social Civic Public Policy

_____% Urban

_____% _______________________

_____% TOTAL (should be 100%)

Choose Locations that are of interest to your


_____% In our Local Community

_____% In our Region

_____% In the United States

_____% Internationally:

Countries ___________________, ___________________, ___________________, ___________________, ___________________, ___________________, ___________________._____% TOTAL (should be 100%)

Goals that together, we would seek to accomplish in giving resources include:

OUR ANNUAL GIVING GOAL $.......................OR ..........................%

OUR LIFETIME GIVING GOAL $........................OR ..........................%

OUR ANNUAL VOLUNTEERING GOAL ..........................



0

0


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Updating Your PlanYour family giving plan is a living document intended to change over time. Often you will find your plan

becomes more refined over the years as your family discussions become more informed and concentrated

around the family values. Beginning a family giving plan when the children are young will help increase the

likelihood that planning to live and give on purpose becomes part of their future behavior.

Family dynamics will impact the plan. Some families agree to segment the family giving into individual

buckets by segmenting dollar amounts or separating responsibilities. This can be easily accomplished using

donor advised funds, a tool that performs much like a charitable checking account, holding charitable dollars

that will ultimately be distributed to charity. Some projects may be completed as a family while other

projects may be managed by a few family members. Some families set aside a certain amount in matching

gifts such that if adult children give, the family will match that gift. Persevere with flexibility to find what

works best with your family dynamic.

When the family regroups, preferably at least once a year, it is ideal to bring the summary of gifts made theprevious year along with letters from people that were impacted and stories from those in the family who

volunteered. It is a time to celebrate what was accomplished!

QUESTIONS FOR ANNUAL FAMILY MEETING

What went well (either according to plan or outside plan)? Share stories of impactful moments.

What would we do differently?

What are we glad we participated in last year?

Where did we see the most impact?

What impact measures will we use to decide on additional grants in the future?

What sectors were strong and what sectors did we give less than we had anticipated?

Are there adjustments to the plan, particularly in the sector and locational percentages?

Is there a different role or level of involvement for family members?

About Reaching Forward LLC: For individuals and organizations that desire to make a difference with their resources, Reaching Forward

guides strategic implementation for maximum charitable impact. The organizations name is based upon Philippians 3: But one thing I do,

forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, we press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in

Christ Jesus.

2011 Reaching Forward LLC. Opinions expressed do not constitute legal opinion, advice or counsel.


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