Quick Tip: Don't Forget to Customize Your PGM and PGM Anywhere Software

Customizing the organization information in Planned Giving Manager and PGM Anywhere is one of the most important things you can do to make your software most effective. This information appears in all of the charts, diagrams and narratives that you select when creating proposals.

In PGM, to enter or update this information, follow these steps:

1. Choose Customize in the toolbar at the top, then select Organization Information from the menu. Click Edit.
2. Fill in the first screen, then click Next.
3. Repeat step 2 for each screen until you fill in the last screen, then click Done.
4. Choose File in the toolbar, then select Save Configuration. Click Save to save your changes.

Congratulations! Your output will now include complete organization information.

In PGM Anywhere, follow these steps:

1. Choose Customize in the icon bar at the top, then select Organizations in the navigation bar on the left. Click Edit.
2. You will see several sections to update. Open each one by clicking anywhere on the title bar for the section.
3. Fill in each section.
4. When done, click Save at the bottom of any section to save all of your changes.

That’s it! Your output will now include complete organization information.

Marketing Corner: Reminder to Thank Donors

“How can I thank you, let me count the ways!”

Not exactly what Elizabeth Barrett Browning wrote in her poem, but it should be a mantra for every fundraiser. It’s important to thank donors at times other than when they have just made a gift. The Thanksgiving season is an ideal time to once again say “thank you.” Be creative. Are you an educational institution where the dining hall had a favorite seasonal dessert? Send the recipe. Or are you a community health care organization where the care provided enables healthy families to have joyful Thanksgiving dinners? Send words of gratitude from those whose lives have benefitted. Perhaps a donor will think: “How can I further support you, let me learn the ways.” That’s the time for a planned giving discussion.

2017 Update of Authoritative CGA Manual

We have updated Charitable Gift Annuities: The Complete Resource Manual for 2017. In addition to being the go-to resource for all your gift annuity questions, the CGA Manual comes with handy prototypes for you to use or adapt as you wish, such as legal agreements, state-specific documents, and sample letters.  Note that prototype materials will be sent to print subscribers via email starting with this update.

Electronic CGA Manual subscribers can expect to receive the update shortly.  If you are a hard copy CGA Manual subscriber, you will receive your update in late November or early December. To learn more about or purchase the CGA Manual, visit the CGA Manual page on the PG Calc website.

If you have any questions, please contact Client Services at support@pgcalc.com or call 888-474-2252.  

Where's Zombie Contest Winner!

We have a winner!  The Hoag Hospital Foundation submitted a photo that was clever and creative, and really celebrated Zombie's joy in searching for brains!

Receiving honorable mention for their wonderful entries were Harvard Law School, Unitarian Universalist Association, and Catholic Relief Services.

We would like to thank the winner, and all the participants who took the time to help Zombie realize the dream of finding brains in all manner of locations and situations.

Our winner will receive a year of FREE Planned Giving Manager service, as well as our gratitude for being a loyal client.

GiftWrap 4.2.12 Has Been Released

GftWrap 4.2.12 was released to production on November 11.  This release incorporates a number of new features, including the following:

• Enhanced bequest gift reporting
• Security enhancements, including support for optional two-factor authentication
• Enhancements to reporting for all life income gifts
• Enhanced verification to ensure data integrity

In addition, this release includes a variety of bug fixes, ensuring the ongoing stability and reliability of the GiftWrap application.

For a complete description of all enhancements and bug fixes, see the GiftWrap 4.2.12 Release Notes.

If you would like hands-on experience with our GiftWrap application, sign up for a free GiftWrap evaluation.  Click on the Free Trial tab.

Time to Sign Up for PG Calc's 2018 Webinars

Our monthly Webinar line-up for 2018 is set! In addition to sessions led by experts on our staff, we will be offering Webinars by outstanding guest presenters Russell James, Craig Smith, Laura Hansen Dean, and Erik Dryburgh. We are also thrilled to welcome back Craig Wruck in July to lead his 4-session Fundamentals of Planned Giving course.

Each 90-minute Webinar will offer valuable practical advice and insights on a topic of interest to gift planners, as well as a paper and slides that are yours to keep. Our Webinars are a bargain at just $95/session, no matter how many people watch at your end. Sign up for all twelve, and get 25% off the regular price!

Valuation Rate for Young PIFs Set for 2018

The valuation rate for determining the deduction for a gift to a pooled income fund ordinarily is based on the fund’s own investment experience. It equals the highest return of the fund over the past three taxable years. For funds that have not yet accumulated three taxable years of investment experience – young funds – the IRS assigns a valuation rate. It is based on an adjusted annual average of the monthly IRS discount rate over the past three years. In 2017, the valuation rate for gifts to young funds was 1.2%. In 2018, it will be 1.4%. This means that gifts to young funds will earn a slightly smaller deduction next year compared to this year. Nevertheless, this rate remains extremely low and the deduction for gifts to young pooled income funds remains extremely high.

Cardinal Glennon Children's Foundation Succeeds with Help from PG Calc

Cardinal Glennon Children's Foundation, in support of SSM Health Cardinal Glennon Children's Hospital, the only freestanding Catholic pediatric hospital in the country, established its first charitable gift annuity in 1985. The staff has been using PG Calc’s GiftWrap gift administration software to support these gifts. While the establishment of new annuities has declined slightly, historically the number of charitable gift annuities that have been established by loyal donors is approaching 2,000, with more than 800 active annuities at this time.

Rose Brower, Cardinal Glennon’s Director of Planned Giving, had these observations:

“PG Calc’s GiftWrap offers powerful reporting options for annuities, allowing us to provide informative and comprehensive reports to the oversight committees, the finance department, and external auditors. Further, PG Calc Client Services staff has always provided professional, prompt, and comprehensive responses to questions, simple and complex alike. PG Calc’s training sessions are excellent and address operational, legal, and financial implications. Over the years, Tina Yelle, PG Calc VP of Client Services, has competently guided me through these packages under several complex scenarios. Her work style is delightful and easy to follow.

"Most recently, Ellen Rakatansky, PG Calc Senior Business Analyst, has been particularly helpful in navigating the finance department through a step-by-step setup implementation of the GiftWrap payment module, cutting payment processing time in half, ensuring reliable electronic payments, and enhancing remittance advices to include the list of annuities with respective payments.

"We are grateful to have the PG Calc team as our provider and are confident in its products and support.”

Learn more about Cardinal Glennon Children's Foundation.

Learn more about GiftWrap.