Have you ever wished you could do more to inspire your adult children to be generous and engage them in the Lord’s work?

Scripture is clear that God wants us to be generous and do good works (1 Tim. 6:17–19, 2 Cor. 9:6–15). The good news is that through a family donor advised fund at Orchard Alliance (OA), you can still disciple your children in generosity, inspire them to be rich in good deeds, and draw them closer to God by getting them involved in things that are near and dear to His heart.

A family donor advised fund (DAF) is a simple giving account under our foundation’s umbrella that your family can use for charitable giving. You receive an immediate charitable tax deduction when making gifts to your DAF, and you can name the fund anything you wish, which allows you to give anonymously. You can grant funds from the DAF to the charity you choose and in any amounts you wish, as long as the charity doesn’t conflict with Christian values. You can choose from several OA investment models, and if your DAF is in excess of $50,000, you can even have your financial advisor manage the funds for you.

I thoroughly enjoy helping couples create a family legacy of generosity using DAFs, and it has been a joy to walk them through the process. Here’s how a family DAF works:

• Your family sets up a DAF at Orchard Alliance and makes an initial donation of $10,000 or more.
• We help your family design a mission statement and goals for your DAF.
• A family meeting takes place with you and your children to review the mission and goals, explain how the DAF will operate moving forward, and answer any questions.
• You can make additional gifts to the DAF at any time.
• Your children submit grant requests for the family to prayerfully consider for specific ministries, projects, or missionaries they wish to support from the DAF. You then decide as a family which ones you’d like to fund. You can also decide whether you want your children to approve your requests. This keeps everyone actively involved in the giving process.
• You and/or your children may travel to investigate giving opportunities together. This can be an amazing opportunity to engage your children in God’s work. For example, you may go with one or more of your children to South America to see if your family would like to help expand an orphanage. (Note: Travel costs are a personal expense and cannot be financed through the DAF).
• Although the children may not be able to donate as much as you, they can also give to the fund to enhance their participation and personally experience the joy of giving.
• You can let donations build up in the DAF to fund larger projects.

To learn more about this exciting opportunity, contact us at 833.672.4255. Our team looks forward to serving your family’s giving needs.