Endowment Growth
The Dr Pepper Museum has established two endowment funds for the long-term benefit of the institution which now total almost $4.5 million. Earnings from the investment of the endowment’s corpus provide an ongoing stream of dollars that can be designated by the Board of Directors to many different purposes benefiting the Museum.
Contributions to the endowments may come from memorial donations, planned gifts, and restricted gifts from donors. The Board of Directors has selected professional managers to oversee the investment of the Museum’s endowment funds.
For more information about how to become a donor and donor recognition, please contact the President & CEO, Chris Dyer.
Planned Giving
The Dr Pepper Museum, as part of its ongoing development program, seeks “planned” or “estate” gifts. Planned giving is simply the process of planning to make a difference both for yourself and for a cause you believe in through a charitable gift. Planned giving is often described as “leaving a legacy” because many are created to make an impact for future generations.
The most common type of planned or estate gift is a bequest in a will. The other most common types are “life-income” gifts and gifts of life insurance. The Museum will work with the donors and their representatives to create a giving vehicle that is appropriate for each situation.
The Museum places a high value upon the friendship and welfare of any prospective donor. No program, agreement trust, contract, or commitment shall be urged upon any donor or prospective donor, which would knowingly jeopardize the donor’s interests. All information concerning donors or prospective donors, including their names, names of their beneficiaries, the amounts of gifts, sizes of estates, etc., shall be kept strictly confidential by this organization and its authorized personnel unless permission is obtained from the donor to release such information.
There are several types of planned gifts available for consideration:
| Bequest in a Will | A will is the easiest and most effective means to ensure that you fully provide for your family and your assets are distributed as you wish. You can leave a specified amount to the Dr Pepper Museum, or you can leave a percentage of the residue of your estate. A bequest allows you to make a long-term commitment without affecting your current standard of living. |
| Charitable Gift Annuity | In this type of gift, you irrevocably transfer money or securities to the Dr Pepper Museum. In exchange, we pay you (and another, or a survivor, if you like) a fixed amount annually for life. In effect, your transfer is part gift and part purchase of an annual income payment. |
| Charitable Remainder Annuity Trust | This life income plan is created by irrevocably transferring assets to a trust that pays you fixed dollar amount annually for life. You can also provide income for an additional survivor. Then, the trust principal belongs to the Museum. |
| Charitable Remainder Unitrust | This life income plan is created by irrevocably transferring assets to a trust that pays you income for life. You can also provide life income for another or a survivor. Then the trust assets become the property of the Dr Pepper Museum. |
| Life Insurance Gifts | There are many ways to make a charitable deferred gift through life insurance. For those who have life insurance coverage and no longer need the insurance to provide for family members, either gifting the policy or using the policy to make an irrevocable charitable gift is advantageous. |
| Gift of Retirement Plan | Many individuals today have large qualified retirement plans such as an IRA, 401(k), or Keogh plan. These assets have been growing tax-free for years. Once the owner begins to receive payments from the qualified plans, the distributions are taxed. The plans are also included in the owner’s taxable estate. A retirement plan may be an excellent source of funds for making a gift to the Dr Pepper Museum. One way to make a gift of your retirement plan is to create a charitable remainder trust through your will. There is no tax due because the charitable remainder trust is a tax-exempt entity. The trust will provide life income to the beneficiary with an eventual gift to the Museum. |
Memorial or Honor Gifts
Donations given in the memory or in honor of others have been designated by the Board of Directors as endowment gifts. Many donors make regular memorial donations in remembrance of birthdays, anniversaries, or in lieu of flowers. Upon making a memorial donation, a representative will be notified of the contribution you made in their loved one’s name.