Shane and Melanie were devout believers and members of their church and had been committed tithers for many years. God had blessed their business and they were seeking to make the shift from success to significance. They had traded their days for dollars, and now wanted to trade their dollars for days. When Melanie’s mother died, she inherited the 250 acre family farm, valued at approximately $4 million. She and her husband did not need the money, nor did they need additional income.

When Pastor Smith announced that First Church was beginning a Capital Campaign, Cory and Miranda did not have the cash flow available to make what they believed to be a sacrificial pledge. When they met with their financial advisor, she suggested that they consider establishing a Charitable Lead Trust (CLT) that could be funded with rapidly appreciating stock. The trust would pay income to the Church for an established period of time and fulfill their desire to pledge the campaign.

Roy and Carol had been lifelong members of their Church, and were deeply invested in its ministry. They served the ministry and generously shared their financial support. When their Pastor shared the vision for a new opportunity to meet the needs of people far from God, the faithful couple began to pray. They looked at their checkbook as well as their assets, and determined that the best way to support the church’s opportunity was to give the church a rental property that they no longer wanted or needed. They gave the property directly to the church, who in turn were able to convert the property into cash and direct those funds as the couple intended.

Al and Ellen were faced with a tax challenge. They owned $500,000 worth of appreciated stock that they wanted to sell, but faced substantial capital gains tax if they were to do so. They did not need additional income, but wanted to create a legacy through charitable giving that would impact their community and their community of faith.