Children are our most precious resource, needing loving care
and attention. For the extremely vulnerable and marginalized children and youth
we serve, planning for their future and creating opportunities for them is
critical if we are to make a difference in their lives and build a better
community for us all. One of the most effective ways we are able to do this is
through planned gifts.
A planned gift allows you to create a legacy that will live
on and provide hope for the future to an unimaginable number of children and
youth in great need. They also allow you to plan for your family, and your
future, while maximizing tax and estate benefits. Planned gifts come in many
forms and include bequests, endowments, securities, Canada Pension Plan
benefits, life insurance policies, RRSPs and RRIFs.
For some, the decision to make a planned gift can be the
result of personal financial planning, a reaction to a positive event or
perhaps a desire to help children in need. As in the case of Jim and Judy
Patterson, it is often a combination.
Jim and Judy’s interest in child welfare began in 1969 with
the adoption of their first daughter. From sitting on different child welfare
committees and Jim’s role as chair of the board of the Children’s Aid Society
of Toronto, the Pattersons were eventually led to the Children’s Aid
Foundation, where Jim was the chair of our board from 1997 to 1999.
As long-standing annual donors, the Pattersons’ desire to
continue helping children and youth in need led to the inclusion of the
Children’s Aid Foundation in their estate planning. “Our insurance agent showed
us how to convert our annual donations into annual policy premiums. There was
no need for discussion or lengthy deliberation, it was just a smart thing to
do,” said Jim. “We get a tax receipt and the Foundation will receive a lump sum
on my passing.”
The Pattersons' granddaughters enjoying some reading
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Having been exposed to opera and ballet at a young age only
through the Ed Sullivan Show, Jim has a place in his heart for live arts
performances and cultural activities, a passion that the Pattersons instilled
in their own children. “Parents can feed their bodies, good schools feed their
minds, but we can round out children by feeding their souls and broadening
their horizons,” said Jim. The Patterson’s belief that arts and culture enrich
the lives of children and youth was the driving force behind the establishment
of the Patterson Arts Fund at the Foundation, which provides children in care
with the same opportunities to experience arts and culture as their own
children and grandchildren have had. “Children in care deserve no less and it’s
this belief which led us to start the Patterson Arts Fund.”
“There is no greater contribution that anyone can make than
to give a child a better future,” said Jim. With the commitment of supporters
like Jim and Judy Patterson, the Children’s Aid Foundation has been doing just
that for the past 30 years.
If you would like to learn more about planned
giving or how you can leave a legacy gift, please contact Michele Clemo at
mclemo@cafdn.org or at 416-923-0924 x232.
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