Naming Opportunities

Here at The Center for Discovery we have some wonderful examples of naming opportunities. In March 2007 we opened the Janet and Gerald Carrus Institute which was made possible through their generous gift to The Center. Other naming opportunity examples include generous gifts from Carol Turchin-Monderer and Ben Monderer, who have chosen to name the therapeutic pool at the Discovery Learning Center through their gift. Our Equine Assisted Program was named through a generous gift from John R. Milligan. The transformational gift of Nelly and Michael Arougheti, given to name the Big Barn Center for Environmental Health and Education, as a tribute to the late film director Michael Ritchie, Nelly’s step-father, was most recently added to the list. Nelly’s brother, Billy, is an adult resident at The Center.

Deferred Gifts

There are many ways that a donor can support the Center for Discovery. One way is through Deferred Gifts. The Center welcomes bequests as well as gifts of retirement plans, life income plans and life insurance. Deferred gifts offer donors special tax advantages.

One recent donor made a generous pledge to The Center through a planned giving vehicle – Charitable Gift Annuities (CGA).

What is a Charitable Gift Annuity? It is a plan that can provide for your future while at the same time helping The Center tremendously. It is a legal contractual agreement between the donor and The Center which specifies payments to the donor as lifetime income at a guaranteed rate. Upon death, the remaining original gift principal will be available to The Center. A minimum gift of $10,000 or greater is required to fund a CGA. The donor will also receive a charitable deduction for the gift portion of the annuity and realize an income tax savings. You should consult with your tax advisor to determine if a CGA would work for you as you consider your support of The Center for Discovery.

Dr. Jordan and Randy Glaser have chosen to support the Endowment Campaign through a series of CGA’s and they have made a generous commitment of $250,000 to our current campaign. When asked what attracted them to consider CGA’s as the method for their support, Jordan offered several key points including:

• CGA’s allowed them flexibility in their support
• It benefits their own retirement planning
• Their gift can be fulfilled over a period of time
• Offers them options for making future gifts after retirement
• A win-win way to support and help sustain the future of The Center.

Saretsky Family Challenge

An Idea You May Wish to Replicate Nancy and Peter Saretsky – whose daughter Heather is an adult resident at The Center for Discovery – rallied their family, friends and colleagues in a “mini-campaign” to support The Center. To demonstrate their commitment, they encouraged others to give, promising to match dollar for dollar all gifts to from those participating in the challenge up to $125,000. To date, nearly $50,000 has been raised toward this challenge goal. Most recently, Laura Colarusso (Peter and Nancy’s daughter-in-law) has also joined the effort by encouraging friends, family and colleagues to support The Center.

Now perhaps some of you would like to follow their example for the benefit of The Center. Perhaps you might consider your own “minicampaign” with your circle of family, friends and colleagues. By doing so, you will serve as a marvelous ambassador, expanding The Center’s network of friends and supporters.

Proceeds Benefiting The Center for Discovery

Monica Belag-Forman is President of Magaschoni Apparel Group, Inc., a luxury cashmere and sportswear firm headquartered in New York City. Triennially she presents private sales, with proceeds benefiting The Center. Already her efforts have generated some $350,000. Actress Lorraine Bracco (you know her well as the psychiatrist from the Sopranos television series), having met Monica at a Magaschoni sale, has since served on the benefit committee.