Gifts of cash provide the donor an immediate tax saving and give Columbia College funds for immediate use. A cash donation is deductible on your income tax return for the year in which it is given. If you give more than the maximum amount deductible for any year, you may deduct the excess over the next five years.

Gifts by Will

A bequest in you will is an excellent method of providing an educational legacy that continues to grow over time to benefit future generations of students.

Another method is a contingent bequest which allows you to designate that your estate go to your spouse or family if they survive you. If there are no survivors, your estate would then go to the Columbia College Foundation.

Contingent Life Insurance Designation

By naming the Columbia College Foundation as a contingent beneficiary of your life insurance policy, your gift allows the benefits of your policy to go to the Foundation if there are no surviving close family members. Your gift is easily arranged and gives you a valuable income tax charitable deduction.

Bank Account in Trust

A bank account may also be opened in trust for the Foundation. You may add or subtract from the account at any time and all interest earned is yours. In the event of death, the account would automatically be given to the Foundation

Gifts of Real Estate

A present of future gift of your personal residence, farm, vacation home, commercial property or undeveloped land offers you valuable income tax and estate tax savings. An immediate charitable tax deduction may be realized, for example, by deeding you home or other real estate to the Foundation, while retaining the right to live in the home or retain its use during your lifetime.

Other Appreciated Property

Gifts of other appreciated property, including real estate or securities, provide attractive tax benefits for the donor. The donor avoids capital gains tax on long-term holdings, and he or she may claim the full market value of the securities at the time of the transfer as a deduction to his or her income for the year in which the gift is made.

Charitable Remainder Trust

Assets of cash, securities or real estate are transferred to a trust and removed from one’s taxable estate. By law, the trust pays a fixed percentage of the trust’s assets as income to the beneficiary/donor each year (generally 5%-8%). If appreciated, long-term assets are used to fund the trust, capital gains tax otherwise due if the asset were sold is avoided.

Other Options & Contacting the Foundation

If you have questions about any of the above described plans or have a special situation you wish to discuss, please contact Coni Chavez in the President's Office at 209.588.5115

You can send email to Coni Chavez 
by clicking here:   chavezc@mail.yosemite.cc.ca.us 

Or you can send U.S. Mail to: 

Coni Chavez, Office of the College President
Columbia College Foundation Director
11600 Columbia College Drive
Sonora, CA 95370
 as well as your own advisors. We welcome the opportunity to discuss charitable gifts with you and/or your advisors.