Beneficiary Designations

Make a Gift in a Few Easy Steps

Not everyone wants to commit to making a gift in their wills or estates. Some prefer the increased flexibility that a beneficiary designation provides by using:

IRAs and retirement plans
Life insurance policies
Donor advised funds
Commercial annuities

It is very simple to name a parish, school, or other entity as a beneficiary. Start by requesting a change-of-beneficiary form from your policy administrator or download the form from your provider's website. Make your desired changes and return the form to establish your gift.

See How It Works

An Example of How It Works

Couples smiling Robert and Carol treasure the financial help they've been able to give their children and a parish, school, or other entity over the years. The couple recently updated their will to leave stocks and real estate to their kids. They left a parish, school, or other entity a $75,000 IRA to be transferred following their lifetime. Because a parish, school, or other entity is tax-exempt, all $75,000 will help support our mission.

If Robert and Carol had left the IRA to their children, approximately $18,000* would have gone to pay federal income taxes—leaving only $57,000 for their family's use. Robert and Carol are happy knowing they are making the most of their hard-earned money thanks to their updated estate plan.

*Based on an assumption of a 24% marginal income tax bracket.

Fund Your Donation With:

Next Steps

Contact the administrator of your retirement plan, insurance policy or bank account for a change-of-beneficiary form, or simply download a form from your provider's website.
Decide what percentage (1 to 100) you would like a parish, school, or other entity to receive and name us, along with the percentage you chose, on the beneficiary form. Return the completed form.
Contact Jodi Halligan at 515-237-5044 or jhalligan@cfswia.org to let us know your goals for the gift so we can ensure it is used as you intend.

Legal name: Catholic Foundation of Southwest Iowa
Address: 601 Grand Avenue, Des Moines, IA 50309
Federal tax ID number: 45-5577090

Learn More

Download our FREE guide Beneficiary Designations: Easy Ways to Leave Your Legacy.