The Fundraising Masterminds Podcast – Episode 110

Top 5 Planned Giving Tools Every Nonprofit Leader Should Know (feat. Eric Fleshood)
Released: November 26, 2025
Host(s): Jason Galasinski (A), Jim Dempsey (C)
Special Guest: Eric Fleshood (B), CEO of the Crew Foundation

Episode Overview

This episode dives deep into the essential planned giving strategies that nonprofit leaders should understand and deploy. With special guest Eric Fleshood, CEO of the Crew Foundation, the hosts break down the top five tools every nonprofit needs for robust planned giving—offering practical insights to help development directors tap into the $80 trillion "great wealth transfer" expected in the coming decade. The conversation tackles mindset shifts, the nuts and bolts of planned giving vehicles, and actionable advice for organizations of any size.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Scarcity Mindset in Fundraising (00:39 – 05:40)

• Context: Many nonprofit leaders feel there’s limited funding and adopt a scarcity mindset, viewing fundraising as a "necessary evil."
• Mindset Reframe:
  • Eric Fleshood encourages a shift:

    "Every day I see that the pie is massive. There is more than enough money in God's kingdom. In fact, I believe that Christians have so much wealth, the real problem is they don't feel they know how to give it away responsibly." (05:01–05:34)

• Observation: U.S. charitable giving has unparalleled incentives—recent tax laws bolster this, making America “the number one country for charity.” (05:41–05:57)

2. Top 5 Planned Giving Tools

Tool 1: Asking Good Questions (06:16 – 08:53)

• Purpose: Start with relationship-building, not technical solutions. Good questions reveal donors’ values and connect their story to your mission.
• Sample Questions:
  1. “Can you tell me the top one to three events in your life that have made you the person you are today?” (07:44)
  2. “What kind of a world do you want to leave to your children and your grandchildren?” (08:15)
• Practical Tip:
  • Eric collects 200+ questions to help donors connect heart to mission.
  • "Become a student of really good questions." (08:48)

Tool 2: Donor Advised Funds (DAFs) (09:26 – 15:41)

• Definition: A segregated gift-giving account at a charity where donors can contribute a variety of assets (cash, stock, real estate) and recommend grants to nonprofits over time.
• Why They Matter:
  • “Gifts out of donor advised funds to organizations are typically much larger than cash gifts from checking accounts or credit cards.” (12:36–12:47)
• Access:
  • DAFs have become democratized; even smaller donors can set them up with little to no starting balance.
• Teaching Legacy Giving:
  • Eric shares a story:

    “She opened up a donor advised fund for each one of her children and grandchildren and then seeded it with money from her wealth... they would have family meetings about how do we give this away responsibly?” (14:08–15:08)

Tool 3: Brokerage Accounts for Gifts of Appreciated Assets (16:02 – 17:34)

• Why Open a Brokerage Account?
  • Accept appreciated stock and mutual funds—often more valuable and beneficial for donors due to double tax benefits (income deduction and capital gains tax savings).
• Advice:
  • “Every nonprofit organization, if you haven’t set up a brokerage account, you need to for sure.” (17:16–17:22)

Tool 4: QCDs – Qualified Charitable Distributions (17:37 – 19:23)

• Definition: Gifts made directly from an IRA to a charity, available to donors aged 70 ½+.
• Benefits:
  • Satisfies required minimum distributions without tax consequences.
  • Can lower taxable income, impacting related costs (like insurance premiums).
• Resource: Crew Foundation’s website has a list of top 10 IRA custodians for initiating QCDs.

Tool 5: Bequests (19:23 – 20:38)

• Explanation: Leaving a gift to charity in a will or trust—activated after the donor’s passing.
• Significance:
  • “We are in the midst of the great wealth transfer... $80 trillion in wealth is going to pass from one generation to the next... You want to position your charitable organization to receive the charitable bequests.” (19:27–20:38)
• Action: Let donors know your nonprofit welcomes bequests and provide clear instructions on how to do it.

Implementation & Overcoming Complexity (20:38 – 23:41)

• Feeling Overwhelmed?
  • Eric reassures leaders: “These top five tools that we talked about today, you can get started without that [expert technical help]. These are reachable, accessible.” (23:23–23:34)
• Role of Leadership:
  • It’s not the nonprofit’s job to help donors set up tools (like DAFs or QCDs)—just educate, provide information, and help donors connect with resources/foundations.

The Crew Foundation’s Unique Approach (24:31 – 26:28)

• Mission: Support donors focused on the Great Commission.
• Distinctives:
  • No administrative fee on donor-advised funds—a rarity.
    • “We do not charge an administrative fee on our donor advice fund because most people do.” (25:25–25:43)
  • Alignment with donor values, minimal overhead, maximum impact.

Practical Tips & Memorable Moments

• Advice for Nonprofits:

  • Focus on identifying donors with existing DAFs rather than convincing donors to establish them.
  • Encourage DAF holders to set up recurring gifts and to include your charity in their DAF’s testamentary plans. (27:14–28:15)

• Unusual Gift Story:

  • Most exotic gift received by Crew Foundation? “A pair of Arabian horses as a gift, and they brought a pretty penny. As you can imagine, it’s a little complex, a little unusual, but, yeah. Arabian horses.” (30:27–30:41)

Notable Quotes & Insights by Timestamp

• Eric Fleshood on Mindset:

  “There is more than enough money in God’s kingdom... Christians have so much wealth, the real problem is they don’t feel they know how to give it away responsibly.” (05:01–05:34)

• On Questions:

  “When people start considering giving gifts of wealth away… you better believe it. Their heart is in there. That means the enemy’s in there, too. And so we better be reminding them of what God has done in their life.” (07:03–07:34)

• On Donor Advised Funds:

  “[DAFs] have become democratized... a young Christian, you can have one of these... It’s so versatile with types of assets that can go in the tax-free growth.” (10:05–11:51)

• On Brokerage Accounts:

  “Donors can give appreciated stock absolutely tax free. They get a double tax savings. This is why it’s so powerful.” (16:05–17:12)

• On the Great Wealth Transfer:

  “Over the next decade or so, something like $80 trillion in wealth is going to pass from one generation to the next. That means the will/trust process is going to be used to transfer that wealth... You want to position your organization to receive the charitable bequests.” (19:27–20:38)

Further Learning & Resources

• Crew Foundation:
  • Extensive resources and training videos for nonprofit leaders are available at crewfoundation.org.
  • Contact: Eric Fleshood (eric.fleshood@cru.org) for more information.
• Practical Next Steps:
  • Educate your team on these five tools.
  • Set up a brokerage account.
  • Feature clear planned giving info on your website.
  • Start asking donors deeper, transformational questions.

Closing Takeaways

• Transformational Giving:
  • Planned giving isn’t just technical—it’s personal and transformational for both donor and organization.
• Get Curious & Proactive:
  • Leaders are encouraged to “become a student of good questions” and to actively learn about non-cash giving options.
• Leverage the Tools:
  • Using these five tools expands your fundraising reach exponentially, tapping into the largest transfer of wealth in modern history.

Additional Memorable Moments

• Most Exotic Gift Story: The foundation once received a pair of Arabian horses—a reminder that virtually any valuable asset can be given if the tools are in place! (30:27–30:41)

For anyone wondering how to start, take action on the basics: set up essential accounts, educate your team, and learn meaningful questions to walk with donors as they make truly transformational gifts.