Leave a Legacy

Your gift will be invested in our shared mission of protecting prairie habitat for native species.

Once your loved ones are provided for, consider a gift in your will or trust, or by beneficiary designation. These gifts cost you nothing now. You can change your beneficiaries at any time. A great way to make a powerful statement about preserving our environment for years to come. Contributions to SPLT are fully tax-deductible.

Please let us know if you have named Southern Plains Land Trust as a beneficiary or included us in your will! We would like to thank you for your gift and tell you how much of an impact it will make. Contact us at splt@southernplains.org.

Below are details on various options to leave your legacy to SPLT.

Retirement Plan

Retirement assets, including 401(k)s and IRAs, are among the most heavily taxed, making them an ideal opportunity for charitable giving once you no longer need the assets. Income taxes to your loved ones can be as high as 35%. Since SPLT is tax exempt, SPLT is eligible to receive the full amount, bypassing any income taxes.

Continue to take regular lifetime withdrawals
Maintain flexibility to change beneficiaries at any time
Avoid potential double taxation on assets left in your account

Life Insurance Gift

Life insurance is an affordable way to leave a gift for SPLT while you receive tax savings benefits during your lifetime. Ask your insurer about a beneficiary designation form, then complete and submit the form.

Significant gift from disposable income at a fraction of the value
Immediately realize tax savings
Your donation could reduce final taxes of your estate
Insurance gifts transfer outside the estate

CDs, Bank & Brokerage Accounts

One of the easiest ways you can help preserve wild places is by making SPLT the beneficiary of a certificate of deposit, a checking or savings bank account, or brokerage account. Simply request a Pay on Death (POD) or Transfer on Death (TOD) designation form from your financial institution

Donor Advised Fund Residuals

Final distribution of contributions remaining in a Donor Advised Fund is governed by the contract you completed when you created your fund. Please consider naming SPLT as a beneficiary of your account – or for a portion of the account, leaving the remaining portion for your heirs to continue your environmental legacy.

Real Property

Many states provide for non-probate transfer of real property to a designated beneficiary. In Colorado, the process involves a one-page beneficiary deed. While a notary public and recording of the deed are required, the process otherwise couldn’t be simpler. If you feel comfortable doing it without a lawyer, the only costs are any notary fee and the deed recording fee. For more information, talk to your lawyer or search online for Colorado Revised Statutes § 15-15-401 or for Colorado beneficiary deeds.

Gifts in a Will

A gift in your will or trust is one of the easiest and most popular ways to be a champion for the environment. Just a few sentences in your will can set up the gift.

With a gift in your will or trust:

You retain control of the assets making up your gift
You can change your gift at any time and for any reason
You can direct your gift to be used for a specific purpose (be sure to check with us to make sure your gift can be used as intended)
You have no upper limit, under current law, on the estate tax deduction for your charitable gift in your will for SPLT

General Bequest

Leaves SPLT a gift of a stated sum of money in your will or trust, typically personal property or assets

Residual Bequest

Leaves a gift to SPLT of a percentage of the “rest, residue and remainder” of your estate after other bequests, debts and taxes have been paid

Specific Bequest

Leaves SPLT a specific dollar amount or stated fraction of your estate or a specified gift of property

Contingent Bequest

Leaves SPLT with a stated share of your estate, only if a spouse, partner, family member or other beneficiary does not survive you

How to make SPLT a beneficiary

To designate Southern Plains Land Trust as a beneficiary of a retirement plan, life insurance policy or other financial account, please send the following information to your advisor, or whoever manages your assets:

Southern Plains Land Trust
(Federal Tax ID 84-1470479)
P.O. Box 1016
Lamar, CO 81052

To leave your tax-deductible gift for SPLT, you can use the following language:

“I give _______________ [amount or percentage] to Southern Plains Land Trust, a Colorado nonprofit corporation, currently located at P.O. Box 1016, Lamar, CO 81052, (Attention: Gift Planning Program), Tax ID 84-1470479.”

*Before deciding about your estate plan, please consult an estate planning attorney.