Gift acceptance policy
River’s Wish Animal Sanctuary solicits and accepts gifts for purposes that will help the organization further and fulfill its mission.
The following policies and guidelines govern acceptance of gifts made to River’s Wish Animal Sanctuary for the benefit of any of its operations, programs or services.
All gift and pledge commitments, regardless of size, designation, or gift type will be respectfully considered and gratefully accepted except in the instances where a gift may be contrary to River’s Wish Animal Sanctuary’s best interests, or outside the scope of River’s Wish Animal Sanctuary’s mission. Certain size limitations may, however, apply to certain designations of gifts (e.g., designations as endowed funds or donor-advised funds), as described in policies applicable to those designations. Further, River’s Wish Animal Sanctuary reserves the right to accept or reject any gift. River’s Wish Animal Sanctuary will provide assistance to potential donors to discuss River’s Wish Animal Sanctuary’s priorities, the donor’s interest, and the various ways to give.
Restrictions on Gifts—River’s Wish Animal Sanctuary will not accept gifts that (a) would result in River’s Wish Animal Sanctuary violating its corporate charter, (b) would result in River’s Wish Animal Sanctuary losing its status as an IRC § 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization, (c) are too difficult or too expensive to administer in relation to their value, (d) would result in any unacceptable consequences for River’s Wish Animal Sanctuary or (e) are for purposes outside River’s Wish Animal Sanctuary’s mission.
Decisions on the restrictive nature of a gift, and its acceptance or refusal, shall be made by the Board of Directors, in consultation with the Executive Director.
Gifts Generally Accepted Without Review
Cash--Cash gifts are acceptable in any form, including by check, money order, credit card, or on-line. Donors wishing to make a gift by credit card must provide the card type (e.g., Visa, MasterCard, American Express), card number, expiration date, and name of the card holder as it appears on the credit card. River’s Wish Animal Sanctuary does not maintain or store credit card information and all processing is done through third part financial payment processors such as PayPal or Square.
Vehicles--River’s Wish Animal Sanctuary accepts the donation of vehicles through our partner Car Easy. All parts of the transaction are handled through the professional partner organization, with funds coming to River’s Wish per the agreement with this partner.
Marketable Securities—Marketable securities may be transferred electronically to an account maintained at one or more brokerage firms or delivered physically with the transferor's endorsement or signed stock power (with appropriate signature guarantees) attached. All marketable securities will be sold promptly upon receipt unless otherwise directed by the Board of Directors. In some cases, marketable securities may be restricted, for example, by applicable securities laws or the terms of the proposed gift; in such instances the decision whether to accept the restricted securities shall be made by the Executive Committee.
Bequests and Beneficiary Designations under Revocable Trusts, Life Insurance Policies, Commercial Annuities and Retirement Plans--Donors are encouraged to make bequests to River’s Wish Animal Sanctuary under their wills, and to name River’s Wish Animal Sanctuary as the beneficiary under trusts, life insurance policies, commercial annuities and retirement plans.
Charitable Remainder Trusts—River’s Wish Animal Sanctuary will accept designation as a remainder beneficiary of charitable remainder trusts.
Charitable Lead Trusts--River’s Wish Animal Sanctuary will accept designation as an income beneficiary of charitable lead trusts.
Gifts Accepted Subject to Prior Review
Certain forms of gifts or donated properties may be subject to review prior to acceptance. Examples of gifts subject to prior review include, but are not limited to:
Tangible Personal Property--The Board of Directors shall review and determine whether to accept any gifts of tangible personal property in light of the following considerations: does the property further the organization’s mission? Is the property marketable? Are there any unacceptable restrictions imposed on the property? Are there any carrying costs for the property for which the organization may be responsible? Is the title/provenance of the property clear?
Life Insurance--River’s Wish Animal Sanctuary will accept gifts of life insurance where River’s Wish Animal Sanctuary is named as both beneficiary and irrevocable owner of the insurance policy. The donor must agree to pay, before due, any future premium payments owing on the policy.
Real Estate--All gifts of real estate are subject to review by the Board of Directors. Prior to acceptance of any gift of real estate other than a personal residence, River’s Wish Animal Sanctuary shall require an initial environmental review by a qualified environmental firm. In the event that the initial review reveals a potential problem, the organization may retain a qualified environmental firm to conduct an environmental audit. Criteria for acceptance of gifts of real estate include: Is the property useful for the organization’s purposes? Is the property readily marketable? Are there covenants, conditions, restrictions, reservations, easements, encumbrances or other limitations associated with the property? Are there carrying costs (including insurance, property taxes, mortgages, notes, or the like) or maintenance expenses associated with the property? Does the environmental review or audit reflect that the property is damaged or otherwise requires remediation?
Use of Legal Counsel--River’s Wish Animal Sanctuary will seek the advice of legal counsel in matters relating to acceptance of gifts when appropriate. Review by counsel is recommended for:
Independent Legal/Tax Advice--River’s Wish Animal Sanctuary urges all prospective donors to seek the assistance of personal legal and financial advisors in matters relating to their gifts, including the resulting tax and estate planning consequences. River’s Wish Animal Sanctuary will not provide advice about the tax, legal implications or other treatment of gifts.
Confidentiality--All information concerning donors and prospective donors will be confidential. No information will be released (distributed, sold, or shared) to the general public without securing the prior written or electronic permission of the donor. All donative instruments will be deemed confidential to the extent permitted by law. However, a donor may authorize public announcement of any feature of an agreement. All files will be made available to the Internal Revenue Service (the “IRS”) if required or advisable with respect to any IRS audit. All other requests for information will be honored only if the donor approves the release of information, or if current law requires release of the information.
The following policies and guidelines govern acceptance of gifts made to River’s Wish Animal Sanctuary for the benefit of any of its operations, programs or services.
All gift and pledge commitments, regardless of size, designation, or gift type will be respectfully considered and gratefully accepted except in the instances where a gift may be contrary to River’s Wish Animal Sanctuary’s best interests, or outside the scope of River’s Wish Animal Sanctuary’s mission. Certain size limitations may, however, apply to certain designations of gifts (e.g., designations as endowed funds or donor-advised funds), as described in policies applicable to those designations. Further, River’s Wish Animal Sanctuary reserves the right to accept or reject any gift. River’s Wish Animal Sanctuary will provide assistance to potential donors to discuss River’s Wish Animal Sanctuary’s priorities, the donor’s interest, and the various ways to give.
Restrictions on Gifts—River’s Wish Animal Sanctuary will not accept gifts that (a) would result in River’s Wish Animal Sanctuary violating its corporate charter, (b) would result in River’s Wish Animal Sanctuary losing its status as an IRC § 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization, (c) are too difficult or too expensive to administer in relation to their value, (d) would result in any unacceptable consequences for River’s Wish Animal Sanctuary or (e) are for purposes outside River’s Wish Animal Sanctuary’s mission.
Decisions on the restrictive nature of a gift, and its acceptance or refusal, shall be made by the Board of Directors, in consultation with the Executive Director.
Gifts Generally Accepted Without Review
Cash--Cash gifts are acceptable in any form, including by check, money order, credit card, or on-line. Donors wishing to make a gift by credit card must provide the card type (e.g., Visa, MasterCard, American Express), card number, expiration date, and name of the card holder as it appears on the credit card. River’s Wish Animal Sanctuary does not maintain or store credit card information and all processing is done through third part financial payment processors such as PayPal or Square.
Vehicles--River’s Wish Animal Sanctuary accepts the donation of vehicles through our partner Car Easy. All parts of the transaction are handled through the professional partner organization, with funds coming to River’s Wish per the agreement with this partner.
Marketable Securities—Marketable securities may be transferred electronically to an account maintained at one or more brokerage firms or delivered physically with the transferor's endorsement or signed stock power (with appropriate signature guarantees) attached. All marketable securities will be sold promptly upon receipt unless otherwise directed by the Board of Directors. In some cases, marketable securities may be restricted, for example, by applicable securities laws or the terms of the proposed gift; in such instances the decision whether to accept the restricted securities shall be made by the Executive Committee.
Bequests and Beneficiary Designations under Revocable Trusts, Life Insurance Policies, Commercial Annuities and Retirement Plans--Donors are encouraged to make bequests to River’s Wish Animal Sanctuary under their wills, and to name River’s Wish Animal Sanctuary as the beneficiary under trusts, life insurance policies, commercial annuities and retirement plans.
Charitable Remainder Trusts—River’s Wish Animal Sanctuary will accept designation as a remainder beneficiary of charitable remainder trusts.
Charitable Lead Trusts--River’s Wish Animal Sanctuary will accept designation as an income beneficiary of charitable lead trusts.
Gifts Accepted Subject to Prior Review
Certain forms of gifts or donated properties may be subject to review prior to acceptance. Examples of gifts subject to prior review include, but are not limited to:
Tangible Personal Property--The Board of Directors shall review and determine whether to accept any gifts of tangible personal property in light of the following considerations: does the property further the organization’s mission? Is the property marketable? Are there any unacceptable restrictions imposed on the property? Are there any carrying costs for the property for which the organization may be responsible? Is the title/provenance of the property clear?
Life Insurance--River’s Wish Animal Sanctuary will accept gifts of life insurance where River’s Wish Animal Sanctuary is named as both beneficiary and irrevocable owner of the insurance policy. The donor must agree to pay, before due, any future premium payments owing on the policy.
Real Estate--All gifts of real estate are subject to review by the Board of Directors. Prior to acceptance of any gift of real estate other than a personal residence, River’s Wish Animal Sanctuary shall require an initial environmental review by a qualified environmental firm. In the event that the initial review reveals a potential problem, the organization may retain a qualified environmental firm to conduct an environmental audit. Criteria for acceptance of gifts of real estate include: Is the property useful for the organization’s purposes? Is the property readily marketable? Are there covenants, conditions, restrictions, reservations, easements, encumbrances or other limitations associated with the property? Are there carrying costs (including insurance, property taxes, mortgages, notes, or the like) or maintenance expenses associated with the property? Does the environmental review or audit reflect that the property is damaged or otherwise requires remediation?
Use of Legal Counsel--River’s Wish Animal Sanctuary will seek the advice of legal counsel in matters relating to acceptance of gifts when appropriate. Review by counsel is recommended for:
- Gifts of securities that are subject to restrictions or buy-sell agreements.
- Documents naming River’s Wish Animal Sanctuary as trustee or requiring River’s Wish Animal Sanctuary to act in any fiduciary capacity.
- Gifts requiring River’s Wish Animal Sanctuary to assume financial or other obligations.
- Transactions with potential conflicts of interest.
- Gifts of property which may be subject to environmental or other regulatory restrictions.
Independent Legal/Tax Advice--River’s Wish Animal Sanctuary urges all prospective donors to seek the assistance of personal legal and financial advisors in matters relating to their gifts, including the resulting tax and estate planning consequences. River’s Wish Animal Sanctuary will not provide advice about the tax, legal implications or other treatment of gifts.
Confidentiality--All information concerning donors and prospective donors will be confidential. No information will be released (distributed, sold, or shared) to the general public without securing the prior written or electronic permission of the donor. All donative instruments will be deemed confidential to the extent permitted by law. However, a donor may authorize public announcement of any feature of an agreement. All files will be made available to the Internal Revenue Service (the “IRS”) if required or advisable with respect to any IRS audit. All other requests for information will be honored only if the donor approves the release of information, or if current law requires release of the information.