The LCMS Foundation Promise

Who are we?
The LCMS Foundation is The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod’s primary organization that provides Lutheran donors with charitable expertise and opportunities to ensure that families are provided for and beloved ministries are supported.

What do we do?
Unlike other charitable foundations, our purpose is not to provide grants for ministries. Rather, we help Christians create their own lifetime plans for giving. We do this through our experienced gift planning specialists, who help you use your God-given resources to achieve financial security and preserve more of your estate for people you love and ministries that are special to you.

What’s our promise?
The Foundation is the only LCMS organization that offers comprehensive charitable expertise and services to help you plan and direct your passion for giving to family and all ministries of the church today, tomorrow and forever.

What can we do for you?
No matter what your age or financial circumstance, we can help. Being a faithful steward of God’s blessings is a lifetime service, not something you begin at age 60. Every year we help thousands of faithful donors like you provide for their families and support hundreds of Lutheran ministries through direct gifts, donor advised funds, gift annuities, wills, endowments and trusts.

The Foundation staff will help you create a lifetime plan for giving that best suits your financial needs and your desire to provide for your family and your favorite ministries.

What have we done for others?
Since 1958, the LCMS Foundation has helped fellow Christians and LCMS organizations achieve financial and ministry goals. In 2004, the Foundation assisted Christians to touch lives and support the Lord’s work through more than 145,000 gifts to 588 ministries. These gifts provide more than $52.9 million in direct and matured gifts today as well as more than $321 million in managed charitable gifts that will be distributed in the future.
For example:
1. We assist thousands of Lutherans with direct gifts in support of emergency relief efforts, Christian education and outreach in the name of our Lord and Savior.
2. John and Mary were tired of caring for the two rental properties they had for many years. The LCMS Foundation team assisted them with gifting the rental properties into a Unitrust. The Unitrust will pay them an income for the rest of their lives, give them a charitable deduction to use against their present income taxes and allow them to provide a wonderful gift to the local Lutheran High School that their son attended, in training to become an LCMS pastor. They are excited about the way they were able to transfer the blessings entrusted to them with this special ministry.
3. Joe and Dorothy were blessed with local bank stock that they inherited. Over the years, it had grown tremendously. They chose a Donor Advised Fund to reduce their estate tax liability. Now they review the many opportunities to help start new mission and ministries through their Gift Planning Counselor. They make new direct gifts each year to ministries from the Fund. They have been doing this for several years and have truly received the grace of giving as they advance these special ministries through their gifts. The million dollars they put into the Donor Advised Fund regained its initial value through stock growth within six months. They are excited to be able to designate another ministry gift next year.
4. We also assist individuals with gift planning options that allow for direct tax deductions today, payments for the rest of their lives and gifts to as many ministries as they designate in the future. Alma, at age 90, chose to establish a Gift Annuity in order that she could leave a gift to her local congregation. She is presently in a retirement home and converted a CD generating 2.4% income into a Gift Annuity providing an 11.3% income for the rest of her life. The increase in income for her care was important to her and so is the opportunity to leave a gift to influence her community with renewed ministry when she is with her Savior.
5. Bill and Sharon were blessed with three successful children. They have always strived to be good stewards of God’s blessings and live as encouraging Christian examples for their children. Now that their children are grown, they would like to designate a gift to their congregation that sustained them through so many family experiences. However, they were concerned about their future asset needs as well as their children and their families. Recently, they shared with their children their desire to leave a bequest gift. It will allow them to leave a gift to their beloved ministry in the name of their children. The bequest will give them the comfort of knowing that during their lives the assets would be still available for family needs or as a direct gift to the ministry at any time. After meeting with a Foundation Gift Counselor and their attorney, Bill and Sharon listed their congregation in their Christian will.
How much will it cost?
There are no upfront costs to the donors we serve. Processing and consulting costs are covered through our partnership with the ministries that receive your gifts and through the funds that are managed on your and their behalf. As a non-profit organization, the LCMS Foundation collects only a nominal fee for gift planning services, keeping administrative expenses to a minimum.

The biggest cost faced by every Christian steward is in hesitating. Every gift made in the name of our Lord and Savior has great potential to help change a heart ... a mind ... a soul ... a life today, tomorrow and forever.