Bequest Language

Bequests can take quite a few forms. You and your attorney may wish to consider the following samples as you prepare your will or trust. I. General bequest. A general bequest is one of the more popular ways to make a charitable gift by will. You simply leave a specified dollar amount to a designated charity. Example: I give DOLLAR AMOUNT to the Princeton Medical Center Foundation, to be used for its exempt purposes. II. Specific bequest. A specific bequest is another popular type of charitable bequest. With this bequest, you stipulate that a charity receives a specific piece of property. Example: I give DESCRIPTION OF PROPERTY (e.g., my residence at 123 Main Street, Borough of Princeton, State of New Jersey) to the Princeton Medical Center Foundation, to be used for its exempt purposes. III. Residuary bequest. A residuary bequest is used to give a charitable organization all of an estate owner’s property after all debts, taxes, expenses, and other bequests have been paid. Example: I give the rest, residue, and remainder of my estate to the Princeton Medical Center Foundation, to be used for its exempt purposes. IV. Percentage bequest. A bequest can be expressed as a percentage of the residuary of the estate. Example: I give THE DESIRED PERCENTAGE OF the rest, residue, and remainder of my estate to the Princeton Medical Center Foundation, to be used for its exempt purposes. V. Contingent bequest. When writing your will, trust, or other estate-planning instrument, you may wish to consider planning for the situation in which the beneficiary of a bequest dies before you or disclaims the property. In anticipation of such an occurrence, you may name the Princeton Medical Center Foundation as the alternate or contingent beneficiary. A contingent bequest ensures that the property will pass to the designated charity rather than to unintended beneficiaries. Example: If NAME OF BENEFICIARY predeceases me or disclaims any interest in DESCRIPTION OF PROPERTY, I give such property to the Princeton Medical Center Foundation, to be used for its exempt purposes. VI. Restricted bequest. The samples of bequest provisions suggested are designed to provide unrestricted gifts. You may, however, prefer to restrict your bequest to a specific purpose. For instance, if you wish to memorialize a family member or an honored colleague, you can establish a named fund that will provide support for a program in which you (or the honored person) are particularly interested. A restricted bequest should usually be made in the broadest possible terms consistent with your philanthropic interests. The fewer the restrictions on the use of a gift, the less the possibility that the purpose of your gift will become obsolete (such as by the discovery of a cure for a disease). Some of the more important restricted purposes include support of our clinic—which provides care to the uninsured and underinsured—and support of the endowment benefiting our chaplaincy programs. Some donors prefer to restrict their gifts to the endowment of the Foundation, ensuring a reliable cash flow in perpetuity. Example: I give DOLLAR AMOUNT to the Princeton Medical Center Foundation. This gift shall be held as a permanent endowment to be known as the PERSON’S NAME fund, only the income of which may be used to support the EXEMPT PURPOSE FOR WHICH THE GIFT IS TO BE USED. If the CEO and Trustees of Princeton Health determine that it is not feasible or economical to use the income of the fund for the purpose stated above, the income of the fund may be used for such exempt purposes of Princeton Health as the CEO and Trustees direct. Should You Wish to Receive Further Information The ways by which one can support the mission of Princeton Health are multitudinous. Jonathan Dressler would be delighted to aid you and your advisers in identifying your charitable giving options. Jonathan's telephone number is 609.252.8709, and his e-mail address is jdressler@princetonhcs.org. Thank you for considering a testamentary gift to the Princeton Medical Center Foundation.