Episode Overview

Title: Planned Giving Explained: How to Leave a Lasting Legacy
Podcast: The Fundraising Masterminds Podcast (Episode 109)
Date: November 12, 2025
Hosts: Jason Galisinski and Jim Dempsey
Guest: Eric Fleshood, CEO of Crew Foundation

This episode delivers a deep-dive introduction to planned giving for nonprofit leaders. Designed to demystify the concept, it explores why every nonprofit—no matter the size—should understand and embrace asset-based giving to secure transformational gifts and long-term sustainability. Drawing on decades of experience, guest Eric Fleshood breaks down complex ideas into practical steps, while the hosts guide the discussion toward immediate application for nonprofit leaders.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. The Basics of Planned Giving

• Planned giving is often misunderstood; at its core, it’s about facilitating gifts from donors’ wealth or assets, not just cash ([05:14], Eric).
  • Notable insight: According to the IRS, 99% of America's wealth is in assets, not cash ([00:10], Eric; [27:56], Eric).
• Planned giving campaigns focus on assets like stocks, real estate, retirement accounts, and business interests ([06:03], Eric).
  • “When you start talking about giving assets, it does take more planning…than it does with just stroking a check or swiping your credit card.” ([06:03], Eric)

2. Planned Giving Terminology and Language

• The term planned giving “has lost its saltiness,” says Eric; alternatives like “gifts of net worth” or “asset giving” are more meaningful ([07:01], Eric).
  • “On our team, we use terms like 'gifts of net worth.' We talk about asset giving.” ([07:01], Eric)

3. Who Should Consider Planned Giving and When?

• Even small organizations with a modest donor base can and should begin conversations about planned giving ([08:05], Eric).
  • Stock gifts and estate gifts (bequests through wills/trusts) are accessible entry points and can yield significant returns ([08:05], Eric).
  • Universities and hospitals conduct these campaigns routinely—faith-based organizations are urged to catch up ([09:05], Eric).

4. Identifying Donors for Asset-Based Giving

• Research your donor base to identify those with businesses, real estate, stocks, or significant retirement assets ([10:40], Eric).
• Make asset-acceptance visible: “If you simply let people know that you can accept [stock] as a gift...can yield a lot of benefits.” ([10:02], Eric)

5. Demystifying Complex Gifts: Businesses, Real Estate & More

• Donating part of a business: Nonprofits typically take a non-controlling, non-voting interest—they don’t run the business ([13:48], Eric).
  • “There are ways to structure the gift so [the donor] can still run the business, do what they do best...[and] the charity...receive[s] gifts in a tax-free zone.” ([13:48], Eric)
• Partial-gift strategy: Donors can give a portion of an asset, such as 30% of a vacation home, and receive dramatic tax advantages (possibly a zero net tax on the sale) ([15:16], Eric).

Memorable Metaphor ([11:47]):

“These assets are like orange trees...as soon as you go to sell, Uncle Sam’s going to take 10, 20, 30, even up to 50%. But what if you could put your orange grove in a protected environment, a tax-free zone?...That’s why you don’t want to sell before you give.” – Eric ([11:47])

6. The Power of Retirement Assets and Qualified Charitable Distributions (QCDs)

• QCDs allow supporters age 70½ or older to donate directly from their IRA, fulfill required distributions, and avoid taxes ([16:08], Eric).
  • “A QCD…allows them to send [the money] directly from their IRA account to your charity and not pay a dime of income tax on that.” ([16:08], Eric)
  • Limit is up to $108,000 per year ([17:04], Eric)
• QCDs are often much larger than typical cash gifts or credit card donations ([17:43], Eric).

Sample Approach to Donor ([18:27]):

“Jim, I wanted to let you know of a benefit to you…Givers at your age with IRA assets can give in a particular way called a qualified charitable distribution…you can use it to do your giving and it won’t increase your taxable income by one penny.” – Eric ([18:27])

7. How to Get Started: Partnering with Professionals

• Stock gifts, QCDs, and bequests can often be handled internally; for complex gifts (business/real estate), partner with foundations or advisors ([19:53], Eric).
  • “There are foundations, I’m willing to bet very near you…that can partner and help you get off the ground with this.”
  • “Community foundations can do this. Other Christian foundations…Even larger churches…” ([19:53], Eric)

8. Other Entry-Level Planned Giving Tools

• Charitable Gift Annuities: Enable donors to receive income for life from an asset; after their passing, what remains benefits the charity ([21:33], Eric).
  • “There are tools that allow a donor to essentially give away the same asset twice.” ([21:43], Eric)

9. Approaching Legacy and Transformational Giving

• Focus donor conversations on values, legacy, and story ([23:32], Eric):
  • Ask: “What kind of a world do you want to leave to your children and to your grandchildren?”
  • Tap into donors’ deeper motivations and life stories, connecting your mission to their legacy ([24:49], Eric).
• Asset giving offers a richer spiritual and emotional experience, often motivating more meaningful generosity ([27:06], Eric).
  • “You are inviting the donor into a deeper spiritual experience…and they will be better off for it.” ([27:06], Eric)

10. Challenging the “Limited Pie” Mindset

• Most nonprofits focus solely on cash (the “small slice”), ignoring the much larger “pie” of assets available ([28:47], Hosts).
  • “They don’t realize, number one, God can make the pie bigger. And they also don’t realize this whole concept of asset giving.” ([29:40], Jason)
• Shift thinking from scarcity to abundance by increasing conversations and visibility around asset-based giving ([30:07], Eric).

Memorable Experiment ([30:07]):

An experiment in a grocery store showed that when people were reminded about their assets (retirement accounts, real estate), they spent more than those prompted only about cash/credit. The mindset shift increased their sense of capacity to give ([30:07], Eric).

11. Practical Tips for Events & Appeals

• Always mention stock giving and estate planning options in event appeals and response devices ([32:18], Eric).
• Simply provide a checkbox: “I am interested in/planning to make an estate gift.”
  • “Most people…who make the decision to leave a gift in their will never tell the charity.” ([32:46], Eric)

12. Donor Advised Funds (DAFs): The Gateway to Net Worth Giving

• DAFs are “segregated charitable giving accounts” which donors can direct; they unlock the potential of giving assets ([34:10], Eric).
  • “The DAF is the key tool to unlocking the donor’s net worth to actually make it giveable.” ([34:37], Eric)

Notable Quotes by Timestamp

• “Transformational giving actually doesn't occur with just cash gifts.” – Eric ([00:10], [27:44])
• “Planned giving is a term that really has lost its saltiness…But I like to think of it as giving from wealth.” – Eric ([05:14])
• “These assets are like orange trees...as soon as you go to sell...Uncle Sam’s going to take 10, 20, 30, even up to 50%. But what if you could put your orange grove in a protected environment...” – Eric ([11:47])
• “A QCD…allows them to send that directly from their IRA account to your charity and not pay a dime of income tax on that.” – Eric ([16:08])
• “There are tools that allow a donor to essentially give away the same asset twice.” – Eric ([21:43])
• “You are inviting the donor into a deeper spiritual experience…and they will be better off for it.” – Eric ([27:06])
• “According to the IRS…99% of America’s wealth is in assets.” – Eric ([27:56])
• “We have trained our givers to think about cash…We can really turn the tide as a fundraising community by elevating this conversation and helping people realize before the Lord, wow, I really have so much.” – Eric ([30:07], [31:37])
• “The DAF is the key tool to unlocking the donor’s net worth to actually make it giveable.” – Eric ([34:37])

Important Timestamps & Segments

• 00:50 - Episode theme introduced: planned giving and legacy gifts
• 03:13 - Eric Fleshood’s backstory and entry into planned giving
• 05:14 - "Planned giving" explained and reframed as asset-based giving
• 08:05 - How and when smaller organizations should start
• 11:47 - The "orange grove" asset donation analogy
• 16:08 - The importance of QCDs (IRA gifts) for donors 70.5+
• 18:27 - Sample donor conversation about QCDs
• 21:33 - Charitable gift annuities explained
• 23:32 - Leading legacy conversations with donors
• 27:56 - The cash vs assets 99:1 ratio
• 30:07 - Donor psychology and expanding the pie with asset giving
• 32:18 - Practical tips for including asset giving at events
• 34:10 - Donor Advised Funds (DAFs) as critical planned giving vehicles

Takeaways for Nonprofit Leaders

• Start talking about asset gifts now—it's not just for big organizations.
• Use accessible language (“gifts of net worth,” “asset giving”) to make the concept clear.
• Educate donors—especially those with business, real estate, or retirement assets—about methods that benefit both them and the organization.
• Remove barriers—partner with foundations and advisors for complex gifts; many entry-level asset gifts can be handled internally.
• Always mention asset-giving options at events and in direct conversations.
• Remember: Asset gifts can be transformational for both the nonprofit and the donor’s spiritual journey.

Closing Thought

“You’ve got to see Asset giving as critical...It’s that diamond in the rough that you’ve been looking for for the longest time.” — Jim Dempsey ([35:17])

Tune in for Part 2 for a deeper, practical guide to launching planned giving in your nonprofit!