PDF Print E-mail

Ways to Give

Copernicus Lodge Foundation is grateful for the generous support from our donors. Every gift is a valued investment, because it ensures that Copernicus Lodge can offer the highest quality care and services for our seniors. Together, we can give our seniors the hope and caring communities that they deserve. Each donation, whatever the amount, can make a real difference to the quality of life of our seniors.

The Foundation welcomes and encourages donations of all kinds:

Cash Gifts

Gifts of cash, whether paid by cheque, money order, credit card or cash itself, are the most common gifts to the Foundation. A cash gift may be a one-time gift or a long-term pledge broken down in payments over a period of time. The Foundation issues a charitable donation tax receipt for each donation.

To donate a cash gift to the Foundation, mail a cheque or money order, made out to the Copernicus Lodge Foundation, to:

Copernicus Lodge Foundation
66 Roncesvalles Ave.
Toronto, ON M6R 3A7

Or donate over the phone by credit card: (416) 536-7122 ext 252

You can also drop by in person: we're located right across from the elevators on the main floor of the Long Term Care building.

 

Monthly Giving

Monthly gifts are primarily given by cheque, but can also be donated by cash (in person only!), or by credit card (VISA or MasterCard). A tax receipt will be issued at the end of each year (ex. For donations given January through December 2011, a tax receipt will be issued at the end of December 2011 for that year’s contributions). Please fill out our Monthly Giving form if you wish to donate to the Foundation monthly; this will make it much easier for us to keep track of your commitment.

 

Life Insurance

A gift of life insurance can provide a significant future gift to the Foundation at a very modest, present cost to you.

There are two options:

  • Donate life insurance today: If you assign the policy to Copernicus Lodge Foundation, you'll be deemed to have disposed of the policy (which under Canadian tax law means the cash surrender value of the policy). The result of this may be a gain upon the transfer of the policy to the charity (this will be taxed as regular income, not as a capital gain). However, you will be entitled to a donation tax credit for the fair market value of the policy. This tax credit should eliminate the tax that might otherwise result from the gain mentioned above. Any premiums you continue to pay on the policy after assigning it to the Copernicus Lodge Foundation will be tax credited. This option may work to your advantage: any gain from the transfer of the policy to us is calculated using the cash surrender value of the policy as the definition of the value of the policy, and your donation receipt will be calculated based on the fair market value of the policy, which may be different than the cash surrender value. If your policy has no cash surrender value, there won't be a taxable gain on the transfer of the policy to us, but there may be a value for purposes of calculating the donation tax credit.
  • Donate life insurance upon death: If you keep the ownership of your policy and name the Copernicus Lodge Foundation as the beneficiary, you will be entitled to a donation tax credit in the year of your death for the death benefit that is paid out to us. This can mean a higher tax credit than what you might get by donating the policy today. You won't get the tax credit until the year of death, though, and you won't be entitled to a tax credit for the premiums you pay on the policy between now and your date of death.

Which option is better? Well, that depends on whether you want a smaller amount of tax relief today or greater tax relief on death. If you choose the second option, you’ll want to be sure that you have sufficient income in the year of death, and the immediately prior year, to absorb the full donation tax credits you’ll be able to claim. If the insurance policy is big enough, and your income is low enough, you may not get the full tax relief in the year of death.

Please use the Gift Confirmation form to donate life insurance to the Foundation.

 

Gifts-In-Kind

A gift-in-kind is a donation of tangible property such as art, books or equipment. Tangible property must be appraised to determine fair market value. The donor will receive a charitable donation tax receipt for fair market value. Please call the Foundation if you wish to make a gift-in-kind donation: (416) 536-7122 ext. 252, or fill out the Gift-in-Kind donation form.