In the parable of the talents (Matthew 25: 14-30), Christ encourages us to be good stewards of our assets. He encourages us to manage our assets so that they will grow and multiply. The Perpetual Fund of the First United Methodist Church was established in 1978 to carry out such a mission in the church. With contributions, gifts and bequests given to the church, the Perpetual Foundation, Board of Trustees seeks to maximize the growth of these assets to provide support for the ministries of the church. This provides the church with an endowment program that lives forever. Please consider joining the wonderful donors to this important Fund of the Church. We have had over 80 donors who have contributed from $1 to over $500,000 to this fund.

Estate Planning and Will Preparation are important events in one’s life. They provide an opportunity to give a perpetual, charitable gift to the church that keeps on giving.

Management

The Board of Trustees of the Perpetual Foundation are members of First United Methodist Church of Sarasota. The assets of the Perpetual Foundation are held in a trust fund managed by a trust company. The assets are invested in equity, fixed income, and cash asset classes. The Board of Trustees of the Perpetual Foundation meets quarterly with trust company investment managers to oversee the planning and progress of these investments.

Your Estate Planning

We encourage you to include the Perpetual Foundation of First United Methodist Church in your estate-planning decisions. You may also have other occasions where it is possible for you to make a contribution to the Foundation, e.g., memorial/tribute gifts.

Not A Replacement

A contribution to the Perpetual Foundation should not replace or decrease an annual pledge as the church is dependent upon these yearly commitments to carry out ongoing church operations.Visitor F.A.Q. page

When making a charitable gift contribution, you may want to consider other assets as well as cash. Some assets are used for gifts because of their associated tax benefit. Notable examples are assets of long-term appreciated holdings such as stocks and bonds, real estate, and tangible personal property. Please review these opportunities for gift giving to the Foundation with your tax advisor.

A gift or donation to the Foundation may be made in any manner permitted by law, in any will, trust, deed, or other written instrument legally operative to transfer title to the Trustees of First United Methodist Church of Sarasota Perpetual Foundation.

Gift Recognition

A plaque listing the names of donors or the names of persons memorialized by gifts to the Perpetual Foundation is displayed at the church. The plaque recognizes three levels of giving:

Patrons - gifts of $10,000 or more
Benefactors - gifts of $5,000 or more
Donors - gifts of $1,000 or more

Gifts may be accumulated. For example, when a series of gifts over a period of time reaches $1,000.00 the name of the donor or person memorialized will be added to the plaque.

Please Note: If you or your tax or legal counselor would like further information regarding contributions to the Perpetual Foundation of First United Methodist Church of Sarasota, please contact the Perpetual Foundation’s Chair through the church office at 941.955.0935.