Make a Difference by Supporting Us
Every Note Funded is a Future Shaped
CSYSA is a 501(c)(3) non-profit. Almost 90 cents of every dollar donated goes directly to student scholarships, instruments, and programming
Leave a Lasting Legacy
You can make a difference by donating in one or more of the following ways:
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Donate via credit or debit card
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Regular monthly gifts
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Using your tax refund as a donation
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Make CSYSA part of your estate plan
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Donate using your Donor Advised Fund (DAF)
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Make a Qualified Charitable Distribution (QCD) from your IRA
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Donate stock as a gift
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Donate your time as a volunteer
If you have questions about these options, please contact the CSYSA office.
Explore Legacy Giving - A Legacy Measured in Musical Excellence
Bequest in Your Will
A bequest is one of the most meaningful ways to leave a lasting legacy. By including Colorado Springs Youth Symphony in your will or living trust, you ensure that future generations of young musicians have the opportunity to flourish. Bequests can be a specific dollar amount, a percentage of your estate, or the residue after other gifts are made.
Life Insurance Gift
You can donate a paid-up life insurance policy you no longer need, or name Colorado Springs Youth Symphony as the beneficiary of a new or existing policy. This allows you to make a significant future gift at a relatively modest current cost, while potentially receiving a charitable deduction for the policy's cash value.
Charitable Remainder Trust
A Charitable Remainder Trust (CRT) allows you to transfer assets to a trust that pays you or your beneficiaries income for life or a set term. At the end of the trust period, the remaining assets pass to the Colorado Springs Youth Symphony . This strategy can provide significant tax benefits while supporting our mission.
Charitable Lead Trust
The reverse of a Charitable Remainder Trust, where the Colorado Springs Youth Symphony receives annual income for a set period, after which the remaining assets return to you or your heirs. This is ideal if you expect the trust's assets to grow significantly, as any growth beyond the fixed payment stays in the trust for your heirs.
Qualified Charitable Distribution
A QCD is a direct transfer of funds from your IRA to an eligible public charity. A QCD is different from a regular IRA withdrawal. A regular withdrawal counts as taxable income. But a QCD does not count towards your Adjusted Gross Income (AGI). You can donate to charity without raising your taxable income.
Charitable Gift Annuity
A charitable gift annuity is a lifelong contract between a donor and a qualified public charity. When a donation is made, the organization invests the gift and pays you a fixed income for life. At the end of your life, or your spouse's if you're giving as a couple, the charity is entitled to the remainder of the gift.
Donor Advised Fund (DAF)
Functions like a "philanthropic savings account" where you can contribute assets now, receive an immediate tax deduction, and recommend grants to your favorite causes over time, even posthumously. This is easily set-up with your financial institution.
Retained Life Estate
A Retained Life Estate allows you to irrevocably gift your home or vacation property to the Colorado Springs Youth Symphony while keeping the legal right to live in it or use it for the rest of your life. This is often called "keeping the keys but giving the deed"
Contact the CSYSA Office to Discuss Legacy Giving Options
Any Legacy Giving options should be discussed with your attorney and financial advisor.
Capital Campaign
Help the CSYSA expand the Kathy Loo Center for the Arts (our home) to reach more youth musicians by contributing to our Capital Campaign.
We are excited to announce that the Colorado Springs Youth Symphony Capital Campaign has been accepted into the Pikes Peak Enterprise Zone program. This means that your contribution to the capital campaign could have a significant positive impact on your tax liability while supporting a cause you care about deeply.
As a Colorado state taxpayer, you will receive a tax credit equal to 25% of monetary contributions.
Planned giving is a technique of including charitable giving in your financial plan. Currently, the federal and state governments encourage philanthropy by providing advantageous tax treatments for gifts to qualified non-profit organizations.
By incorporating planned giving in your financial plans, you may receive the maximum benefits of these tax laws. Often these tax provisions allow you to make a greater gift than you otherwise might have thought possible, while also benefiting your family and heirs. Planned giving to PYS can also provide a way to perpetuate your support of the organization beyond your lifetime, while realizing benefits for yourself today.
The type of asset and the way it is given to PYS determine the tax and financial benefits resulting from the gift. Certain planned gift arrangements may provide you with an opportunity to diversify your holdings tax free or turn highly appreciated assets into an income stream while creating a current tax deduction at the same time.
With careful planning today, you may reduce or eliminate estate, inheritance and gift taxes, allowing your family to receive a greater tax benefit from your life’s work. There are several forms of planned giving, including gifts of outright cash or securities, retirement plan assets, insurance policies, gifts designated through your will, living trusts, testamentary planned gifts, gifts for the future and gifts that provide you with a lifetime income stream. Many of these forms of giving will be discussed in greater detail in the following sections.
As with all financial decisions, a planned gift should be designated with care and should be reviewed by your attorney and/or financial advisor to ensure your gift achieves your individual goals. As tax laws change frequently, the information in this brochure should be verified with your tax advisor.
Outright Gift of Cash or Securities
A gift of appreciated securities is a popular alternative to a cash gift, because it actually saves taxes twice. If you have owned the securities for more than one year and the fair market value has increased since you purchased them, you may not only receive an income tax deduction for the full fair market value of the donated securities, but you also may avoid capital gains tax on the asset appreciation.