Last week, an article on InsideHigherEd.com got my attention. It told the tale of a frugal staff member at the University of New Hampshire library who passed away in 2015 and left a sizable bequest worth $4 million to the University. He was also a 1963 graduate of the school.  The University announced it would spend $2.5 million on a career center, $100,000 for the library, and $1 million for a video scoreboard for its football stadium. The $100,000 library expenditure was allegedly the only specified restriction on the gift.  Although the librarian was reported to be a University of New Hampshire football fan during the last year of his life, the school received criticism of the decision to fund the video scoreboard. Although almost all of the gift was unrestricted, some complained the planned scoreboard expenditure did not show respect for the donor and his decades of devotion to the school.  The school disagrees with this assessment and claims they received positive feedback on the gift. 

While I am not making a judgment on this circumstance, the story does provide a valuable lesson for those making planned gifts.  While charities are probably best served by unrestricted gifts, that can be directed to where they deem most needed, donors would be wise to consider specifying some direction for the potential use of the contribution, if they want their legacy to help achieve a certain type of result. If so, it would be helpful to have a discussion with the recipient organization before finalizing the bequest language, so that when the time comes, the charity can best serve the donor’s true intent while also addressing the organization’s needs. 

On a separate note, as part of our Building Trust Video Series we are pleased to provide a video that features John Walter, President & CEO, Alliance for Cancer Gene Therapy, a BBB Accredited Charity, which strives to build alliances between philanthropic individuals and organizations, and medical and academic institutions, to promote cell and gene therapy research in order to combat cancer.  

We are always working with charities to publish or update reports for donors. Visit Give.org or local BBBs to check out any charity before giving. Our recently evaluated charities include:

• ASMBA STAR Foundation
• Mexico Medical Missions
• National Tuberous Sclerosis Association  

Finally, remember to let us know by going to  https://give.org/ask-us-about-a-charity1/ if you are  interested in seeing a report on a charity not on the list and we will do our best to produce one.  

H. Art Taylor, President & CEO
BBB Wise Giving Alliance