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The American Red Cross is not a government agency and all Red Cross disaster assistance is free thanks to the generosity of people like you. The value of your donation is increased by the fact that the ratio of volunteer Red Cross workers to paid staff is almost 50 to one. Locally, the chapter receives less than one third of its budget from the United Way of the Quad Cities. Other funds come from donations, memberships, grants, foundations, special fundraising events and planned gifts. Donations to the Red Cross are tax deductible.

Make a Secure Online Donation

Additional ways to donate your gift to the American Red Cross:

Upcoming Special Events

Join our 1881 Society

Organize a Fundraiser for the Red Cross
        Third Party Fundraising Guidelines
        Third Party Fundraising Application

Securities

Gift by Will

Real Estate

Life Insurance

Life Income Gifts

Charitable Gift Annuity

A Charitable Remainder Trust

Honor and Memorial Gifts

Securities
Stocks and bonds that have increased in value are an excellent vehicle for charitable gifts to the American Red Cross of the Quad Cities Area. If the stocks and bonds have been held long term (as determined by law in effect at the time of the gift), it is more advantageous to the donor to give these securities directly rather than to sell them and give the proceeds from the sale. By making a gift of the appreciated securities themselves, donors may completely avoid the capital gains tax, allowing the gift to be made at a significantly lower cost while receiving a deduction for the full current fair market value.

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Gift By Will
A gift by will may take one of the following forms: A bequest of cash, securities, or property in a specific sum or by percentage. A bequest of real estate, for example, a home, farm, or ranch. A testamentary charitable remainder trust created by placing all or a portion of the estate in trust to benefit family members during their lives, with the principal to be transferred to the American Red Cross of the Quad Cities Area at the termination of the trust.

The following is the correct language to use when making a bequest to the American Red Cross of the Quad Cities Area:

"I give, devise, and bequeath to American Red Cross of the Quad Cities Area (the sum of $_______________), or (___________ percent or fraction of my estate), for the benefit of the American Red Cross of the Quad Cities Area.

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A Gift of Real Estate
A donor may make an outright gift of a personal residence, ranch, or farm to the American Red Cross of the Quad Cities Area, or may reserve the right to live in the house or to continue farming the property for as long as the donor and/or named beneficiary lives. If the gift is irrevocable, the donor may take an immediate income tax deduction based on the present value of the remainder interest to the American Red Cross of the Quad Cities Area.

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A Gift Through Life Insurance
Life insurance policies provide donors with additional ways of making generous gifts to the American Red Cross of the Quad Cities Area. A donor may name the American Red Cross of the Quad Cities Area as a beneficiary, co-beneficiary, or contingent beneficiary of an existing policy, or add the American Red Cross of the Quad Cities Area as a remainder beneficiary in case the primary beneficiaries do not survive the policy holder. A donor may give ownership of a paid-up policy to the American Red Cross of the Quad Cities Area and enjoy a tax deduction, or may purchase a policy and irrevocably name the American Red Cross of the Quad Cities Area as owner and beneficiary. If annual premiums are paid by the donor on a policy owned by the American Red Cross of the Quad Cities Area, the donor enjoys a charitable deduction in the amount of those premiums.

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Life Income Gifts
Donors are advised to consult their tax advisors. Such gifts may also result in substantial savings in estate tax and probate costs.

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Charitable Gift Annuity
A donor may transfer cash or negotiable securities to the American Red Cross of the Quad Cities Area for the purpose of setting up a Charitable Gift Annuity that assures the beneficiary a fixed income for life. The donor receives a charitable deduction in the year the gift is made. (The size of the deduction is based on the amount given, the annual income, and the age of the beneficiaries and is computed using actuarial tables.) A donor may reduce or delay capital gains tax when giving long-term securities that have risen in value.

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A Charitable Remainder Trust
A donor may create a life-income trust, which provides the donor and any beneficiaries with either a fixed income through a charitable remainder annuity trust or a variable income through a charitable remainder unitrust.

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Honor and Memorial Gifts
A meaningful way to honor a loved one or to commemorate a special occasion is through a memorial gift to the American Red Cross of the Quad Cities Area. An expression of sympathy or a celebration of a family event that takes the form of a gift to the American Red Cross of the Quad Cities Area provides a lasting remembrance. Tribute envelopes are available for all occasions. Acknowledgements will be sent to the person you are honoring.

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The following informational fliers on gifts to the American Red Cross are available from the American Red Cross of the Quad Cities Area:
 

What to Do Before Drafting or Reviewing Your Will

Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow – A Comprehensive Guide to Planned Giving

How You Benefit From Gifts of Securities
 

Other Ways You Can Help...

Secure a matching gift from your employer

Attend Picnic on the River

Donate your time and talent

Ask to receive our newsletter

For more information, contact Patti Franklin at (309) 743-2166.


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