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According to the UUFA Bylaws, the Endowments Acquisitions & Disbursements Committee "shall solicit, encourage, and promote gifts and bequests from all possible sources and shall make a diligent effort to develop and carry out programs for that purpose. Such solicitation shall not be conducted in competition or conflict with the regular pledge programs of the Fellowship."

January 2011 Endowment News:

IRA Rollover Gifts for 2010 and 2011--2010 deadline is January 31, 2011.

The Tax Relief Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization and Job Creation Act of 2010 permits individuals to rollover up to $100,000 from an individual retirement account ("IRA" or "Roth IRA") directly to a qualifying charity without recognizing the assets transferred to a qualifying charity, like the UUFA, as income.

Tax Relief Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization and Job Creation Act of 2010 uses the term “qualified charitable distribution” to describe an IRA charitable rollover. A qualified charitable distribution is made directly from a traditional or Roth IRA of an individual who is 70-1/2 or older to an eligible charitable organization. An individual may exclude up to $100,000 from his/her gross income for each tax year for qualified charitable distributions from IRAs.

Effective Date: This legislation is time-limited. To utilize this tax benefit for the 2010 taxable year, you must make the transfer dated (postmarked) by Jan. 31, 2011. Futhermore, donors are allowed the charitable IRA rollover option in 2011 for their 2011 Required Minimum Distribution.

To read more information and FAQs prepared by the Iowa State University Foundation, click here to go to the Foundation Web site.

Endowment Distribution Funds Available for UUFA Projects

The Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Ames (UUFA) has an Endowment fund, which is set aside to nurture our congregation today and into the future.  One provision of the Endowment policy is that a portion of the annual revenue (interest and/or dividends) from the investments can be distributed to worthy needs of the UUFA, such as programming, equipment, and maintenance.  In the past, Endowment revenue has been used to refinish the wood floor in the Fellowship Hall and to purchase some of our hymnals, our coffee maker, and our lawn mower.  The Endowment Acquisitions and Disbursements Committee does not distribute funds every year, but this year we are requesting proposals from UUFA committees and we plan to distribute ~$1,500 to fund one or more proposals.

If your committee would like to request funds, please fill out the Endowment Distribution Request form and return it to the UUFA office by Sunday, February 27, 2011.  Forms are available on the UUFA Website (see the attached PDF form at the bottom of this page), from the UUFA office or by contacting Bonnie Bowen (292-6923; bsbowen@iastate.edu).  The Endowment Committee will meet and reach a decision in March.  If your project is funded, we will request a description how much money was spent.

Endowment Acquisitions and Disbursements Committee report for 2009 (from the UUFA Annual Report May 2010)

Report written by Bonnie Bowen

The major activity of the Endowment Acquisitions & Disbursements committee this year was to host an informational “afternoon team” that featured a presentation on “Three ways to effectively give bequests to non-profits of your choice.”  The guest speaker was   Paul Caspersen, Gift Planning officer for the ISU Foundation & former branch manager at TIAA-CREF, Ames. We also published several informational articles about the Endowment in the Fellowship Newsletter.  The Endowment received two major contributions from UUFA members:  donations made in memory of Sheryl Barta and a bequest from the estate of Tom Janicki.  Contributions such as these are essential to support the growth of the UUFA Endowment and they are greatly appreciated. We decided not to distribute funds from the proceeds of the Endowment because of the decline in the financial markets.  In the past, funds have not been distributed every year.  In September 2009, Bob Anders resigned from the committee and Suzanne Zilber was appointed by the Board to complete her term; in December 2009 Phil O’Berry resigned from active service on the committee for health reasons, though he was not replaced because his term will expire in 2010 and a new member will be elected by the UUFA members.

Members April 2010:

Phil O’Berry (through 2010), Bonnie Bowen (through 2011), Suzanne Zilber (through 2012), Ginny Huntington (through 2013), Rosa Unal (through 2014).

Members July 2010:

Bonnie Bowen (through 2011), Suzanne Zilber (through 2012), Ginny Huntington (through 2013), Rosa Unal (through 2014), Duffie Lorr (through 2015).