Donors who wish to make endowed gifts seek institutions with a strong charitable mission, tradition and future.  Rockford Health System, the region’s oldest and largest health care institution, has been the leader in caring for area citizens since our founding in the 1880’s.  From the tiniest miracle preemie baby to our community’s remarkable centenarians – and all of us in between – Rockford Health System provides superior care to thousands of patients every day.  We touch people at times of greatest need – from the joy of bringing new life into the world, to the challenge of helping families deal with a loved one’s traumatic injury, to the focus of fighting disease after a frightening diagnosis.  We have been here for over 100 years, growing and changing with medical advances.  We are strong and our donors can be rest assured that their gifts will continue to serve many, many future generations and their health care needs. 

At Rockford Health System, our endowment donors ensure that funds are available now and in the future to help caregivers learn about new treatments and technology, to purchase new equipment or to fund specialized programs.

Through the Rockford Memorial Development Foundation, a number of named endowments already have been established to provide ongoing benefits to a variety of programs. We salute the foresight and the philanthropic spirit of our endowment donors!

Some donors bestow endowed gifts during their lifetimes, enabling them to observe the funds at work from year to year.  Others choose to fund the endowments through their estate plans as they establish a lasting legacy.

The Rockford Memorial Development Foundation invites you to consider the possibilities of creating your special legacy through an endowed gift to Rockford Health System. The Foundation offers a number of endowment programs to meet your specific interests.  We welcome your questions and ideas, and we encourage you to discuss your giving plans with your financial and tax advisors.

Named Endowed Chairs
These prestigious endowments of $500,000 or more establish funds to support the physician chairs of specific medical departments.  Carefully chosen by Rockford Health System for excellence, physicians invested with endowed chairs are greatly honored by this special distinction. Annual distributions generated by the endowment could fund the department chair’s administrative stipend or could be earmarked for special projects.  A powerful tool in physician recruitment and retention, endowed chairs are respected as a mark of the institution’s tradition of excellence and commitment to the welfare of the patient. Endowments continue in perpetuity unless otherwise specified by the donor. Donors choose the specific medical department to be endowed and the name of the endowment. 

Named Permanent Endowments
Endowed gifts of $250,000 or more establish permanent endowments, named in honor of the donor.  The donor may determine how the annual distributions from the endowed fund will be spent – whether to meet the greatest special need identified from year to year, to establish a scholarship, to benefit a particular medical department or to fulfill another specified purpose.  These endowments continue in perpetuity unless otherwise directed by the donor.  Donors choose the purpose and structure of the endowment as well as how the endowment should be identified.

Named Term Endowments
Donors may choose to create a named endowment with gifts of $25,000 or more that will provide interest income for a specific purpose for a term of years.  Donors direct the use of endowment proceeds – to meet unrestricted needs, fund a scholarship, benefit a specific medical department or other intention.  The endowment is named as the donor chooses.

Contributory Endowments
Donors may choose to contribute gifts of $1,000 or more to existing endowments managed by Rockford Health System.  Such gifts increase the endowment principal, thereby generating additional investment growth for the endowment’s specified purpose. 

Answers to Frequently Asked Questions about Endowed Giving
As you consider the possibility of endowed giving at Rockford Health System, you may have questions.  We’ve listed some commonly asked questions here, but encourage you to contact the Foundation Executive Director at any time with your specific questions or comments.

How does Rockford Health System manage its endowments?
Endowed funds are governed by the Rockford Health System investment policy and are stewarded by the Investment Committee of the Rockford Health System Board of Directors.  The endowed funds are pooled with other funds invested on behalf of the Foundation. The investments are managed by a team of professional fund managers, chosen by the investment committee for their expertise and proven performance in specific investment categories.  The Board investment committee, with the finance staff of Rockford Health System, monitors investment performance on a continuous basis.

Are there tax advantages for creating an endowment?
In general, charitable giving typically provides advantages against either current tax obligations or the taxability of your estate.  Different gift structures may yield different tax advantages.  Only a specific examination of your tax situation by a legal or financial professional, coupled with your charitable giving intentions, will determine what makes most sense for you.

Can the Foundation help me find a tax or financial advisor?
The Foundation works with a number of highly qualified attorneys and financial advisors who can provide you with expert, confidential advice about your charitable giving.  As you determine the financial structure of your gift, the Foundation can work with you to identify the ways your gift will be put to work to benefit patients.

I have an idea for an endowed program, but it doesn’t quite fit the descriptions you have listed here.
Donors have great ideas!  We’d love to talk to you and see how we might put your idea into action.  Our physicians and clinical managers can help describe the needs they see and how your gift might help.

In general how much income does an endowment generate?
The Foundation’s Endowment Policy and Distribution Guidelines* provide for an annual distribution of up to 5% of each endowed fund’s market value.  Additionally, any growth in market value over 5% will remain invested to grow the corpus of the endowment. 

The combination of a stable source of income year after year, plus the opportunity for growth is what makes endowed funds such a powerful tool for accomplishing important work over the long term!

Here’s an example of how this works:

In year one an endowed gift of $300,000 increases 7% in market value to $321,000.  So at the end of the year, 5% of that value – $16,050 – is distributed for expenditure.  That leaves $304,950 invested in the endowed fund.

Given a second year of 7% growth, the market value would increase to $326,296.50.  That year’s 5% distribution would be $16,314.83 and a total of $309,981.67 would remain invested in the endowed fund.

*For complete information, please ask for a copy of the Endowment Policy and Distribution Guidelines.  Please note, distributions will not be made if they would bring the value of the endowment below the value of the original gift.

Do endowed gifts qualify me for membership in the Triumvirate Recognition Society?
As you fund the principal of the endowment, those gifts are credited toward membership in the Triumvirate Recognition Society.  Irrevocable planned gifts also receive gift credit toward Triumvirate membership at the various levels.  Permanent Triumvirate membership is awarded to those whose cumulative gifts equal $10,000 or more.

Can you provide me with a sample agreement as I consider making an endowed gift?
Yes.  We have sample agreements available for each of the endowment programs listed in this brochure.  Also, we can draft a special agreement for your review if you have specific information you would like to include.  For a copy of a sample agreement, please contact the Foundation Executive Director.

The Rockford Memorial Development Foundation, a 501 (c) (3) not-for-profit organization, is the charitable giving arm of Rockford Health System.  Gifts to the Foundation are tax deductible to the extent of the law. 

Rockford Memorial Development Foundation
2400 N. Rockton Ave.
Rockford, IL 61103
815-971-4141

www.rockfordhealthsystem.org
e-mail: foundation@rhsnet.org