L. Murray Thomas, M.D. Endowed Chair in Neurosurgery Donation Form

Creative Ways to Make a Donation

• Gifts by alumni and friends can make a positive impact in many ways on the Department of Neurosurgery at Wayne State University, through its research, programs, endowments, and scholarships. Carefully planning your investment in the department can stretch the value of your gift, enabling you to do much more for the neurosurgical students and faculty than you may think possible.
   
• A carefully planned gift also can benefit you and your family. Your tax savings can be substantially increased, and certain planned gifts can provide income for your lifetime or the lifetime of another individual.
   
• A cash gift or check can be used immediately in the areas to which it is designated, or a perpetual endowment can be established with gifts or pledges of $25,000 or more. This type of fund generates an annual income for a purpose designated by the donor the department, faculty support, or student scholarships.
   
• Publicly traded stocks or bonds make excellent gifts and easily can be transferred to the Department of Neurosurgery. If the securities have appreciated, you not only receive the benefit of the full fair market value as a charitable income tax deduction, but you also avoid the capital gains tax if you have owned the securities for more than one year. For assistance with a stock transfer, please contact the Wayne State University Fund Office at (313) 577-2263 or e-mail fundoffice@lists.wayne.edu.
   
• A bequest in a will or trust stipulates that the entire amount or a percentage of your estate be given to the department after your lifetime. Your bequest may be designated to a specific program, faculty endowment, or scholarship; it may also be unrestricted and used where needed most. Gifts from your estate to the Department of Neurosurgery are exempt from estate tax.
   
• Life-income gifts provide income to a donor and/or another individual, such as a spouse. The donor realizes income tax savings for the year the gift is given to the department. A charitable gift annuity, for example, provides a guaranteed income for a spouse or other loved one, and a deferred income gift annuity provides you with additional retirement income. At the end of the beneficiary's lifetime(s), the remainder is transferred to the department.
   
• Retirement fund assets would be heavily taxed if given to an individual. After your lifetime, the remainder of your retirement fund can be assigned to the Department of Neurosurgery as an unrestricted gift, or designated for a faculty endowment or student scholarship.
   
• Life insurance, in the form of an old policy no longer needed by the original beneficiary or a newly created policy to benefit the department, can be a helpful investment for the department. Small premiums now can generate a major gift in the future, and premiums for these policies may be tax deductible. Many employers provide group life insurance as a benefit, and the Department of Neurosurgery can be named for a portion of proceeds. This giving vehicle is an important one for younger donors who wish to make a leadership gift.
   
• Charitable lead trusts provide income to the department over a set number of years and then transfer assets to children or other individual(s) named by the donor. This plan enables heirs to receive assets while minimizing taxes.
   
• Other assets that may make helpful gifts while saving taxes include real estate (subject to university and department approval), closely held stock, business practices (law, medicine, etc.), partnerships, contracts, leases, royalties and patents.