Debra Ashton, a Massachusetts-based consultant and author of The Complete Guide to Planned Giving, will be in Salem May 10 to help nonprofits encourage more gifts from donors' estate plans.
Ashton will headline the program at the Salem Conference Center from 1 to 5 p.m. Joining her will be Salem legacy attorney Eden Rose Brown and Mike Egan and Bob Dernedde of the Cascade Pacific Council, Boy Scouts of America.
Mid-Valley Development Professionals (MVDP) and LEAVE A LEGACY of the Mid-Willamette Valley are presenting the program. Other sponsors are The Oregon Community Foundation and the Diamond Peak Group at Morgan Stanley Smith Barney.
"There is one type of gift that every donor can consider and every charity can promote--a testamentary gift," Ashton said. "That commonly takes the form of a bequest, but it also includes life insurance and retirement plans. In this session, we discuss how to start a bequest program, even for a small (nonprofit) or one-person shop."
Ashton also will describe how to create a major gift and endowment program. "Organizations with a small development office frequently spend most of the time on direct mail, annual giving, and foundation or corporate fund raising," she said. "This prevents the organization from laying the ground work for fiscal stability through the methodical cultivation of major prospects toward building a permanent endowment."
Ashton is best known as author of The Complete Guide to Planned Giving, first published in 1988 and now in its revised third edition. She is a frequent speaker to fund raising and estate planning groups in the US and Canada, and she consults with many organizations and charities. Her articles have appeared widely in fund raising journals nationwide. She runs Ashton Associates from Quincy, Massachusetts.
Brown, rated by Worth magazine among the top 100 lawyers in America, will discuss legal issues around bequest programs. Egan and Dernedde will describe how the Boy Scouts developed a successful bequest program in Oregon.
MVDP season-pass holders have already paid for the program, but, because an accurate headcount is needed, they are asked to notify the organization they are coming by e-mailing info@mvdp-or.org. Guests should register in advance at. Click on the "Events" tab at left and then on the program link on May 10. The fee for guests is $50.