Planned giving donor highlight: Susanne Christopher
“It was so much easier than we thought it would be. All it took was a phone call to our broker.”
Susanne Christopher, longtime Portland Community College faculty and donor, and her husband David were pondering how to increase their giving to the PCC Foundation, while being mindful of recent changes in tax laws and being good stewards of their resources. She approached the PCC Foundation for ideas.
Susanne and David increased their charitable contributions through his IRA with a Qualified Charitable Distribution, or QCD.
“It was so much easier than we thought it would be. All it took was a phone call to our broker. We designated our gift directly from the IRA. The donations went right to the PCC Foundation, which reduced the size of our RMD, kept our taxable income lower and increased the amount we could give for our students,” said Susanne.
Susanne recently celebrated a birthday and is already thinking ahead to when she turns 70 1/2, the age when one is required to start taking withdrawals from their IRA.
“David and I are committed to our students and providing financial resources as we can. The QCD will be one of our strategies to donate, which feels great. We can have an even greater impact on something that is important to us, while potentially saving on our taxes. It just makes sense. I encourage others to check it out and see if it makes sense for them as well.”
If you are 70 1/2, consider how a gift to PCC from your retirement account can benefit you while increasing financial resources for PCC students.
Contact Christina Kline, Executive Director, at christina.kline@pcc.edu or 503-579-1827 to learn more.