In This Issue

Welcome to the first edition of the Legacy News. This newsletter is designed to introduce you to the Temple Legacy Project and provide you with ongoing information about how you can be a part of this exciting and historic initiative.

In this issue you will find
articles by Rabbi Lerner, Victor Goldbloom and Joel Goldberg that address the importance of the project for our Temple’s future. Read how you can use an insurance policy to leave a significant legacy at a very modest cost.

Finally, you will find answers to some commonly asked questions about the Temple Legacy Project.


Did you know…

•On April 11, 1883 Temple held its first Annual meeting

•The first “Temple Emanu-El” (Stanley and Cyprus Streets) was dedicated on September 16th, 1892

•In 1893 the membership increased by over 20% - to 57 from 47 the year before.

 The Temple Legacy Project
and its Objectives

Our Temple has been built on the commitment of our members for over one hundred and nineteen years to establish and maintain our congregation as a vibrant and dynamic spiritual community, and the voice of Reform Judaism in Montreal.

In launching our Legacy Campaign, we have two main objectives.

Our first objective is financial. In building our endowment through the Jewish Community Foundation or our Temple Endowment Fund, we are strengthening our congregation and solidifying our future. By building our endowment we secure our congregation over time and increase our resources to further reach out to our members and to our community.

Our second objective is to provide to each of our members an opportunity to join their legacy and that of their families to the enduring and universal legacy of Temple Emanu-El-Beth Sholom. Temple is our community, and our gateway to becoming part of the great tradition and ongoing movement of Judaism. When we make a legacy gift, we strengthen our congregation and further join our individual legacies to the legacy and future of Temple.

Our campaign is not a solicitation for urgent current or capital needs. We are inviting all of our members to make a deferred gift to Temple, and to consider the impact which each of us can make through the alternatives and techniques of planned giving.

Over the coming months, our Legacy Committee will be meeting with groups and individuals to discuss the possibilities and opportunities of a legacy gift. We are fortunate to have Legacy Committee members with great commitment and expertise. Our members to date are Terri Allister, Howard Echenberg, Gerald Frankel, Marc Gold, Dr. Victor Goldbloom, Alan Knopp, David Mizrahi, Mark Oppenheim, Dr. Robert Oppenheimer, Carol Ostrow, Norman Rapkin, Julia Reitman, Brahms E. Silver and Murray Yaffe, and we have all been active and engaged in planning our campaign and in providing us all with an opportunity to participate.

Our Legacy Campaign is also a challenge to each of us individually to consider what we can do. Over the coming months I ask you on behalf of the congregation and our Legacy Committee to commit to that reflection.

My family and I together with others in our congregation, have begun that process and we have committed to make a legacy gift. Over the coming months please join us in our reflection and our commitment.

Joel Goldberg
Chair, Temple Legacy Project
There are times we need to give until it hurts.
There are times to give until it feels good.

When Israel has an emergency, we give until it hurts in order to save the future of the Jewish people. In such situations, we know that Israel has immediate priority. We also know that the long-term Jewish future of Montreal is a priority. We want a vibrant community, for it will help to anchor our families in unity and guarantee our own sense of belonging and inspiration. To insure the Jewish future of Montreal requires planning, but it also requires a kind of giving that can be done more slowly and deliberately. Best of all, it can be done so advantageously for our estates and taxes that we can give until it feels good.

The Legacy Project is our way of making possible precisely this combination: insuring the future of Temple while allowing you to give until it feels good. To accomplish this, we are prepared to make available to you and to your advisors the best counsel in the areas of law, taxation, and finance. You'll not find more knowledgeable people in the Jewish community, than those in the Jewish Community Foundation. You can feel good about the financial wisdom available to you, and you can feel good about the wisdom of carefully planned giving to Temple, where we've been meeting Montreal's Jewish religious and educational needs for 120 years. We're here for the long term and for the long-term benefit of Jewish life.

I hope you'll take the time to look over this newsletter. It explains the Legacy Project, offers a sense of the surprisingly easy ways to make a lasting gift, and tells what expertise is available to you and your advisors for advantageous, planned giving.

If I can help to connect you to the Legacy Project, or if you'd like to talk about a specific idea for your tsedaka, do not hesitate to call me at (514) 937-3575, or e-mail me, rabbi@generation.net.

Rabbi Leigh Lerner
The Executive and the Board of Temple have, by definition, a leadership role in planning the synagogue’s future and ensuring its long-term financial stability; but each member and each family can make a difference in that regard, and it is incumbent on each one of us to give that responsibility careful and constructive thought.

Endowing Temple, and making it debt-free, is an objective to which all of us can contribute, in greater or smaller measure according to our means, our time of life and our various obligations. For some years we have been able to do that through our Endowment Fund and through individual Growth Funds related to it. Now new mechanisms, tailored to our particular circumstances, are available to us through Temple’s Legacy Project.

These new mechanisms may offer tax savings, improved estate planning, or substantial growth from small investments. If we wish to ensure that our children and grandchildren will have a Temple which will enrich their lives and serve their spiritual and life-cycle needs without being a continuing financial burden upon them, we can plan now to leave them that legacy. Skilled financial planning advisors are at our disposal to show us how.

Victor C. Goldbloom, M.D.
PLANNED GIVING USING LIFE INSURANCE

A gift of life insurance may be the best way for you to achieve your philanthropic objectives while maximizing tax and other financial benefits to you and your family. It can offer you a market return on your funds, the maintenance of capital for your family, significant estate tax savings, and a substantial gift to Temple and any other Jewish organizations you may wish to support. Here’s how it works.

In its most basic form, you purchase a life insurance policy in which the Jewish Community Foundation is both the owner and beneficiary, with proceeds going to Temple and any other organizations specified by you. You then donate the premiums, which are tax deductible. After your lifetime, the Foundation receives the capital and establishes an endowment fund in your name, with interest allocated annually to Temple (and any other institution(s) or causes you have specified)

There are a number of attractive aspects to using life insurance. As the following table illustrates, a relatively small investment during your lifetime creates a significant gift for the future.

What would a $50,000 bequest of life insurance cost?

Age, gender, state of health, medical history and smoking habits, all play a role in determining your personal premium. The following sample premium are based on current “Term to 100” for Non-Smokers, with “Guaranteed Level” premiums (Guaranteed not to increase) payable Monthly, for life. You may choose from a wide array of payment or funding options, from monthly payments as above ‘for life’ or if more suitable, over a limited - pre-determined schedule of a few years or even in a single lump sum.
T-100 Non Smoker for $50,000 Life Insurance
FEMALE MALE
Age 50 $47/ month
 $60 / month
Age 60 $86/ month
 $108 /month
Age 70 $165 /month $191 /month

Moreover, there are times when the future tax benefit is greater than receiving a deduction now for premiums paid, as in the next example.


The Bequest Strategy In Action

The following scenario describes a couple with significant assets and potential tax liabilities at death.


Bill is 56 and Helen is 53 and they live in Montreal. They have registered and non-registered assets and no debt. They also have a nice home and summer cottage. And, they’ve built up a business that’s now worth $1,000,000. Here’s a list of their assets, and the potential capital gains at death.


*After the $500,000 special lifetime Capital Gains exemption for Canadian small business and Farm Property
Bill and Helen have a taxable income of $700,000 at death ($800,000 unrealized capital gains using the inclusion rate of 50% plus the income from the $300,000 RRSP). So, assuming a 50% tax rate, their total estimated expenses against their estate will be:

Capital gains taxes $200,000 ($800,000 x 50%x50%)
Income Tax (50%) on RRSPs $150,000 ($300,000 x 50%)
Executor Fees (3%) $ 75,000 ($2,500,000 x 3%)
Total payable by estate $425,000

Assets Current Value Capital Gains Unrealized Net Capital Gains
Home $ 500,000 N/A N/A
Cottage $ 200,000 $100,000 $100,000
RRSPs $ 300,000 N/A N/A
Funds $ 500,000 $300,000 $300,000
Business $1,000.000 $900,000 $400,000*
Total assets $2,500,000 $800,000

If their estate were settled today, the net value of their estate would be reduced to $2,075,000 by virtue of the $425,000 in taxes payable by the estate. But, if Bill and Helen purchased a life insurance policy in the amount of $775,000, the situation changes dramatically.

Gross Estate Value today Estimated taxes Value today Upon Death
 Life insurance coverage for Upon Death
Registered charity receives $700,000 of death benefit, issues a tax receipt for $700,000 generating a tax credit for $350,000.
Estate receives $75,000 of death benefit to offset charges (executor fees)
$2,500,000 $425,000 $775,000

In result, the net value of the estate remains at $2,500,000, because the insurance proceeds and tax savings offset the taxes and charges due. And look at who benefits!

The Family / Heirs: $425,000 is restored in the Net Estate Value
The Charity: $700,000 is a noticeable donation
The Government: $ 0,000 (an enjoyable shift of priorities)

The cost to Helen and Bill would be approximately $50,000 over 5 to 10 years, which is widely offset by the tax savings. A popular vehicle would be the use of a Universal Life Policy with premiums of $10,500 payable for 5 years (assumes a return of 8% yearly on policy reserves). Alternatively, a straight term to 100 policy premium would be $4,500 per year, payable for life.

Conclusion
This example is but one of many that could be used to illustrate the benefits to you and your family of considering a legacy gift using life insurance. Members of the Jewish Community Foundation’s professional advisory committee and Temple’s experts in Planned Giving are available to meet with you and your financial planners to discuss how you can benefit most from including Charitable Giving in your financial plans.

David Mizrahi, P. Fin.
Got Questions?

We have received a number of inquiries about the Temple Legacy Project. Here are some of the commonly asked questions.

What is the Temple Legacy Project and how does it relate to the Temple Endowment Fund?

The Temple Legacy Project is our commitment to secure the financial future of Temple. We have launched this project to take advantage of the community-wide Legacy Project of the Jewish Community Foundation of Montreal. You can choose the Legacy Project of the Jewish Community Foundation as the vehicle for your gift to Temple, or you can make your gift directly to the Temple Endowment Fund. Either way, you will be helping create a legacy for generations to come.

What are the advantages of making my gift through the Legacy Project of the Jewish Community Foundation?

The major benefit is that you are able to provide for your support of a number of other Jewish organizations in addition to Temple at one time and with one plan. Since it is a community-wide program, the Legacy Project allows you to direct your philanthropy to as many institutions as you wish. Furthermore, the Jewish Community Foundation of Montreal has an experienced group of experts that are available to advise you at no cost to you. As well, your legacy gift will be recognized across the whole community, and your name will be inscribed on the Wall of Honour in the Community Campus at Cummings Square.

I am not a wealthy person. Can I still participate in the Temple Legacy Project?

Absolutely! You can create a legacy gift in an amount that is appropriate to your circumstances. In fact, there are a number of ways that you can leave a meaningful gift at a very modest cost to you. Indeed, in some cases you can create a legacy while improving your current financial position.

I would like to make a gift to the Temple Legacy Project, but I am not sure what is the best approach considering my personal situation. How do I find out more?

You have already taken the most important step – by deciding that you wish to participate by creating your legacy for Temple. The next step would be for you to speak to your personal financial adviser, one of Temple’s experts in planned giving, or one of the experts at the Jewish Community Foundation. They will be able to develop an appropriate vehicle to express your wishes.

For more information on the Temple Legacy Project, we invite you to contact one of the planned giving experts on the Temple Legacy Committee.

Terri Allister
Investors Group
(514) 426-0886		 David Mizrahi
D. Mizrahi & Associates Ltd.
(514) 939-7337		 Murray Yaffe
Murray Yaffe Insurance Services Ltd.
(514) 937-9303