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03.BFor gift officers · donor support overview

What a donor receives, walked through.

Anonymized but representative of how a gift-officer engagement actually runs from the introductory call to the donor's decision.

Referral sourceMajor-gift officer, university alumni foundation
Donor"The Johnson Family" - long-time alumni, ages 71 & 69
QuestionBest vehicle for a $2M+ gift commitment?
Asset$2,100,000 · diversified portfolio + closely-held stock
Charitable intentEstablished donors; want meaningful naming-level gift
Income horizonAlready retired; modest supplemental income desired
01

Introductory call

Week 1 · 30 min · three-way

The gift officer emails to introduce the Johnsons. We schedule a three-way call for the following week. We don't lead with vehicles - we lead with the Johnsons' goals. What do they want this gift to accomplish? What are they hoping to keep? What conversations have they already had?

Twenty minutes in, three candidates are on the table: a CRUT, a charitable gift annuity, and a split structure. We schedule next steps.

02

Modeling

Weeks 2-3 · five vehicles compared

We model five candidates: 5.0% CRUT, charitable gift annuity, outright gift, DAF, and a hybrid (partial outright + partial CRUT). For each, we project after-tax income to the Johnsons, deduction value, residual to the university, and family wealth retained.

MEMO-2026-0312 · Schedule A 10-year horizon

Five-way comparison

VehicleDeductionAnnual incomeTo charity
5.0% CRUT · life$  892,000$  105,000$ 1,400,000
CGA · 6.6%$  620,000$  138,000$  980,000
Hybrid (50/50)$ 1,500,000$   52,000$ 1,750,000
DAF · outright$ 2,100,000$      0$ 2,100,000
Direct · outright$ 2,100,000$      0$ 2,100,000
03

Recommendation memo

Week 3 · same memo to both

The memo reaches the Johnsons and the gift officer on the same day. One preferred structure, two reasonable alternatives, and an honest description of what the Johnsons give up with each.

MEMO-2026-0312 · Recommendation Johnson Family

Our recommendation

The hybrid structure - a $1.0M direct outright gift plus a $1.1M CRUT - serves the Johnsons' stated objectives best. The outright portion creates the immediate naming-level recognition; the CRUT portion provides supplemental retirement income and leaves a meaningful future remainder.

Note. If the Johnsons are willing to forgo supplemental income, a $2.1M outright gift maximizes immediate philanthropic impact and produces the largest deduction. We have modeled this as the alternative; either is defensible.
04

Decision & next steps

Week 4 · donor decides

The Johnsons select the hybrid structure. We coordinate with their attorney on the CRUT trust instrument; we hand the outright portion back to the gift officer to coordinate directly with the university's gift-processing team. Our scope closes.

If the Johnsons want us to administer the CRUT going forward, a separate annual engagement begins.

Have a donor whose gift deserves this kind of analysis?

Bring us in early. The math is cleaner before the donor has anchored on a specific vehicle.