YOU CAN TOO
Why make an endowment gift?

An endowment gift is a gift to an established fund that is permanently invested. When you make an endowment gift, you create a steady stream of annual income to support our good work. 

ENDOWMENT GIFT OPTIONS
An endowment gift may be designated for a specific purpose or for the area of greatest need. Please let us know if you wish to restrict the use of income from your gift for a specific program or purpose. You may wish to make the endowment gift in your honor or in memory of another person. We can help you make a gift that creates a legacy of remembrance for you and your loved ones. 

For additional information on endowment giving or to review information about our endowment plan, please contact us at 831-755-6810. We look forward to helping you create your legacy. 

MAKE A GIFT IN SUPPORT OF OUR MISSION
Ideas for Giving and Moving Forward in 2021

Our organization continues to move forward with its important work. In the midst of all that is going on, many of our friends and supporters are looking forward to the future when they can enjoy community with friends and resume their regular activities.

In response to the current situation, Congress extended some of the COVID relief tax changes to 2021. Hartnell College Foundation offers resources to help you with your tax planning and some ideas for you to consider if you are thinking about making a gift in support of our mission in 2021.

2021 Giving Incentives
The CARES Act passed in 2020 included several charitable tax provisions to encourage giving.
Congress has extended these provisions for 2021 including:
•      A deduction for charitable donors who do not itemize when filing their tax returns. If you do not itemize but make a cash gift to charity, you will be allowed to take a special tax deduction, up to $300 ($600 for joint filers), to reduce your tax liability.
•      An increase in the deduction limits up to 100% of a donor’s annual income for cash gifts (previously the deduction was capped at 60% of annual income). If you make a gift, you will be able to deduct more this year.

Donor Advised Funds
If you have a Donor Advised Fund (DAF) and wish to help us this year, you can make a gift from your DAF to support our work without affecting your personal financial security.

Charitable Gift Annuities
If you are concerned about your financial security given the ups and downs of the stock market, you may want to consider making a gift to fund a charitable gift annuity. You might be surprised by the benefits. You can exchange your low- performing stock, CDs or cash for guaranteed, lifetime fixed payments. If you make a gift of an appreciated asset, you will not have to pay capital gains when you fund the annuity. You may also benefit from a tax deduction this year and a portion of your payments could be tax-free.

Charitable Bequests
Many of our friends are updating their estate plans. If you would like to support our cause with a charitable bequest, we can help.  We. can provide you with a copy of our bequest language and estate planning attorney referral list. 

Please contact me for assistance with creating and updating your plans at (831) 444-2446 or jcruz@hartnell.edu.  

FACULTY MAKING A DIFFERENCE
Political Science Professor sees his legacy flourish

It was in 1985 that Hartnell College political science professor Paul Aschenbrenner felt it was time to start helping Hartnell students with scholarships. He found information about endowments and concluded that his goal would be to create a scholarship fund to help students in perpetuity.

Aschenbrenner started the Pennies from Heaven project that same year with a mission to collect one million pennies. This number of pennies would set up a $10,000 endowed scholarship fund and fund at least one scholarship per year using just the interest from the endowment.

What prompted the urgency to begin this project was discovering that the national debt had surpassed one-trillion dollars.  Attempting to conceptualize the idea of a trillion dollars, Aschenbrenner explained to his class that this is equal to one million times one million and encouraged the class to collect a million of something with value, which turned out to be pennies.  

Ashcenbrenner was clever in his strategy. He used the 188th anniversary of President Lincoln’s birthday (the face of our penny!) to kick off this unique effort. 

A special box made of steel and glass was specially constructed and placed in the Hartnell Student Center to collect the pennies. These pennies were collected from students and community members for over 13 years before it reached the one million mark. Fast forward to 2021, this scholarship fund has grown and for over 20 years has supplied scholarships to Hartnell College students.

“We now have nearly $60,000 in the endowment,” said Aschenbrenner. “This year, my committee and I gave three scholarships of $900 each.”

The scholarship committee (which includes former students of Aschenbrenner) likes to have close contact with the recipients. Once the applicants are selected, they are invited to Aschenbrenner’s home in Salinas for a gathering. “We like to have that personal connection,” he said. “We love to hear the students’ stories and to know how the scholarship is helping them reach their dreams.”

Aschenbrenner taught at Hartnell for 28 years and was beloved by his students and campus community. He retired almost 20 years ago, but his heart has always been with Hartnell students. He loves to travel, and his favorite place in the world is Antarctica, followed by Africa. In his spare time, he loves to volunteer at his church feeding the homeless in the area.

Thank you, Paul Aschenbrenner, for showing continued care and love toward Hartnell students and our community!

ENDOWMENT TO SCHOLARSHIP
Oldtown Salinas Foundation – paying it forward

The spirit of philanthropy seems to be in the air and has inspired entrepreneurs Joel R. Panzer and Frank Savino. Just last month, under the Oldtown Salinas Foundation, they activated an endowment to provide scholarships to Hartnell students who are children of farmers in the area.

“We see how hard these families work,” said Panzer of those who are part of the weekly Farmers Market in Oldtown Salinas. “Some of the youth we wish to support are there helping every Saturday.”

Panzer and Savino were inspired by one particular young man, Romero Lopez (pictured), who works alongside his aunt Clarabell each Saturday. “He is the type of student this scholarship will benefit in order to take him to the next level in his educational journey,” Panzer said.

This endowment will honor the memory of Debbie Savino, a supporter of Hartnell College students, and also to bring tribute to Maureen Wruck, whose support of farm workers is known throughout Monterey County.

The Oldtown Salinas Foundation is a non-profit, founded in 2000, public benefit Corporation and is not organized for the private gain of any person. It is organized under the Nonprofit Public Benefit Law for public and charitable purposes.

The specific purposes of this Corporation are to support, preserve and promote the development and rehabilitation of the historic downtown area through fundraising, holding special events, promoting the food and arts culture, operation of a Farmer’s Market, public relations efforts, marketing and promotion, grant writing and community education.

The Oldtown Salinas Foundation manages the weekly Farmers Market as part of the beautification project of Oldtown. Both Joel and Frank are at the front side of operations and are proud of how the Market has stayed open during the pandemic, providing support to farmers as well as healthy alternatives to visitors.

Joel is a member of his wife Maureen’s Planning Consultant team, and Frank is the owner of AquaBlue Spa.  They say the endowment will be supported each year with proceeds from participation in the Farmers Market.

“We have big aspirations for this endowment,” said Joel. “We want to make it stronger to support more students, especially those who are the first in their family to go to college.”