What is a Donor Advised Fund?
Who is the Triskeles Foundation?
Why contribute to a Donor Advised Fund at the Triskeles Foundation rather than directly to charity?
What is the difference between setting up a Donor Advised Fund and starting my own foundation?
Who should be listed as the donor?
What is an account advisor?
What is a successor?
Can an account be named after someone besides the donor?
When is a contribution considered a charitable donation?
How quickly are contributions processed?
What types of assets can be contributed to a Triskeles Foundation Donor Advised Fund?
What is the account minimum?
How many grants can be made in a year?
What charities and nonprofits are eligible for donations?
How do I recommend a grant?

What is a Donor Advised Fund?
A Donor Advised Fund (DAF) is a charitable giving investment vehicle that an individual or family uses to make an irrevocable contribution of personal assets to a public charity, and at any time thereafter, can recommend grant distributions to qualified charitable organizations.

DAFs are administered through a public charity (Triskeles Foundation) that pools donations with other donor's gifts (as appropriate), invests them, and makes grants to charitable organizations upon the recommendations of donors.

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Who is the Triskeles Foundation?
The Triskeles Foundation is an independt public charity that helps individuals and families reach their philanthropic goals simply and effectively.

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Why contribute to a Donor Advised Fund at the Triskeles Foundation rather than directly to charity?
There are a number of benefits that a Triskeles DAF provides that direct donations to charity may not, including:

• The ability to accept and process appreciated securities.
• The capacity to receive one block of securities to benefit multiple charities.
• Create a legacy vs. providing a one-time gift.
• Separation of tax planning and charitable giving.
• Simplicity ~ single contribution can benefit multiple charities and only requires one tax substantiation letter.
  
  
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What is the difference between setting up a Donor Advised Fund and starting my own foundation?
Starting a private foundation can involve substantial start-up costs and administrative expenses, such as the yearly filing of a Form 990-PF.  But one of the most important differences is that a DAF at the Triskeles Foundation receives more favorable tax treatment than a private foundation.  DAFs allow you to take an income tax deduction up to 50% of your adjusted gross income (AGI) for cash donations and up to 30% of your AGI for appreciated securities vs. 30% for cash donations and 20% for appreciated securities, respectively, for a private foundation.

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Who should be listed as the donor?
The donor is the person or persons responsible for making the contribution(s) to the account.  If the contributions are from joint ownership, then multiple donors can be listed.  If the donor wants non-contributos to have rights to the account, they should name those individuals as account advisors.

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What is an account advisor?
An account advisor is named by the donor to have access to recommending grants on the account.  Usually a spouse or child of mature age is named as an advisor to the account.

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What is a successor?
The successor is the person identified by the donor to take over the account after the donor's death.  Multiple successors can be named to an account and depending on the donor's wishes, the account can be split equally amongst the successors, or they can share the responsibilities.  Successors can name successors to take over in the event of their death.

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Can an account be named after someone besides the donor?
Yes.  The donor may choose any name for the account.  However, we do recommend that the name reflect the donor's name and/or the main purpose of the account such as The Jones Fund.

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When is a contribution considered a charitable donation?
A contribution is complete when the asset is "out of the donor's control" and sent to a not for profit (Triskeles Foundation).

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How quickly are contributions processed?
Publicly traded stocks are usually liquidated on the same or next market day after the Triskeles Foundation receives them. Cash contributions and securities, after they are liquidated, are invested as quickly as possible.

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What types of assets can be contributed to a Triskeles Foundation Donor Advised Fund?
Cash, mutual funds and publicly traded securities that are eligible for DTC transfer can all be contributed to a DAF at the Triskeles Foundation. In the case of other securities, your investment professional should be contacted, because the transfer might take a longer amount of time, might involve additional cost, and involve special instructions. Examples include restricted stock.

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What is the account minimum?
The minimum to open an account is $10,000.

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How many grants can be made in a year?
There is no limit to the number of grants made out of an account. The minimum grant size is $250.

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What charities and nonprofits are eligible for donations?
Grants can be made to charitable organizations that are tax-exempt under Internal Revenue Code Section 501(c)(3) and public charities under IRS Section 509(a) with the context of Triskeles' mission and values.  Grants can be made to private operating foundations but cannot be made to private non-operating foundations.

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How do I recommend a grant?
Donors and designated advisors may recommend grants to qualified charitable organizations by submiting a grant recommendation.  The Triskeles Foundation will then verify that the charitable organization is eligible to receive the grant using the approved charity guidelines. (Grant Recommendation Letter on DAF Forms Page)

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