Before joining Everence, Elyse Kauffman spent 15 years in fundraising roles for a variety of nonprofits, in each case working to support a single organization.
As a charitable consultant for Everence Foundation, Kauffman now gets to see the fruits of her time and talents multiply, much like a good investment. She currently partners with 45 central Pennsylvania nonprofits and their donors, helping individuals maximize their generosity and helping organizations maximize their community impact.
“It’s really an inspirational position I have at Everence,” Kauffman says. “It’s joyful every day.”
As the charitable services arm of Everence Financial, the donor-advised Everence Foundation serves as a vehicle through which individuals, businesses and organizations can give to the causes they care about most. All money donated to the foundation is given to other 501(c)3 charities in the future, as directed by individual clients.
Kauffman partners with both nonprofits and their potential donors, helping donors give in a way that aligns with their values and helping nonprofits educate their donors about smarter ways to give beyond simply writing a check.
“We offer opportunities for donors to give gifts that give back now, gifts that give back later and gifts that earn income,” she says.
One way to give is with a donor-advised fund that functions like a charitable checking account into which an individual can gift money and other non-cash assets for an immediate tax deduction. They can then use the fund to make charitable gifts now or in the future.
Another giving tool is the charitable gift annuity, which offers a regular source of income and tax advantages, with the designated nonprofit receiving the funds when the donor passes away.
In the fiscal year 2021 alone, Everence Foundation clients donated over $158 million, nationally, into charitable vehicles such as donor-advised funds, trusts and charitable gift annuities, Kauffman says. That included $25 million from clients in central Pennsylvania. In that same year, foundation clients distributed more than $69 million from their accounts to over 3,000 U.S.-based charities.
“Often, gifts that come into the Everence Foundation are immediately donor-designated and requested to go back into the communities,” she says.
Creative tools for giving have become even more important since the COVID-19 pandemic, when life came to a halt and nonprofits realized they could not rely solely on golf outings, galas and other special events to fund their missions.
“They had some time to step back and say, ‘Why do we do these three events every year? Are there other things we could be doing that are more vision-focused or mission-focused that would really help with sustainability?’”
That’s where Kauffman comes in, working with nonprofits both individually and through Everence Development Gatherings to educate them on the benefits of planned giving and the importance of endowments for sustainability. Everence can also help nonprofits with the complexities of accepting non-cash donations, such as real estate.
“We come in as a partner,” she says. “We engage with donors to help them maximize their gifts through careful planning regarding timing, strategy and type of asset.
Such was the case with CrossNet Ministries, a faith-based nonprofit serving the eastern Lancaster County community with services that include a food pantry, youth center, case management, mentoring, tutoring, financial education, housing programs and more.
CrossNet began partnering with Everence a year ago to grow some of their development and advancement fundraising pieces, says director of development Carl Edwards. Working with Everence has given them the confidence to have conversations with donors about legacy planning options like charitable gift annuities and donor-advised funds, he says.
“Our organization has primarily just used fundraising events and major gift asks to fund the programming,” Edwards says. “As we think long term, we think of potential in our community.”
Edwards says he values the sense that Everence is walking beside CrossNet in its journey to help the community.
“They’ve been huge advocates and cheerleaders for our organization,” he says. “We’ve been grateful to work alongside people who don’t see us as a means but as an organization they’ve supported, backed and encouraged.”
In addition to helping faith-based organizations, Everence helps nonprofits that want to integrate their values with finances, recently partnering with Lancaster Science Factory to grow its endowment fund.
“We chose Everence for many reasons – their low fees, ability to sub-divide accounts for various purposes, and reliable rates of return,” says Emily Landis, executive director of Lancaster Science Factory. “ But more than anything, we decided to work with them because of their willingness to meet with our board members and donors, at no cost to them or the Science Factory, to discuss planned giving arrangements to benefit our organization.
Just as rewarding as supporting nonprofits in the community, Kauffman says, is helping individuals give more generously and intentionally in the process.
“It’s amazing to hear what these people want to do and what legacies they want to leave,” she says. “We take on that complexity for them so they can enjoy the joy of giving.”
Everence helps individuals, organizations and congregations integrate finances with faith through a national team of professionals. Everence offers banking, insurance and financial services with community benefits and stewardship education. For more information visit everence.com.
To read more Balance stories, click here.
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/gray/6SKX5LCOJBNK3HZYVMMY2MZT7M.jpg "Armed robbery committed next door to business robbed previous week")
