Planning for 2023 Year-End Giving

November 13, 2023
Planning for 2023 Year-End Giving

It’s giving season!

As we approach the end of the year, our team at Greater Horizons is all-in to help philanthropists establish new charitable funds, contribute to their funds and process year-end grants to nonprofits.

Here are our tips for giving this year-end.

Opening a New Charitable Fund at Greater Horizons

We’re here to help donors open new donor-advised funds and other charitable investment accounts at any time. If you’d like to establish a new fund in this calendar year, we ask that you start the process before Friday, Dec. 22. If you or your clients find yourselves in a special situation at the last minute, we will be available to assist on short notice.

Open a Donor-Advised Fund

If you’d like to explore our other offerings, check out the other types of charitable accounts you can use to maximize and organize your charitable donations.

Giving to a Fund at Greater Horizons

If your charitable fund’s assets are invested separately in a financial advisor managed account, please work with your financial advisor to contribute to your fund in accordance with these deadlines. Financial advisors should email advisorservices@greaterhorizons.org to notify Greater Horizons of incoming contributions. 

If you plan to contribute to a donor-advised fund or other charitable investment account at Greater Horizons and would like to qualify for a 2023 tax deduction, we must receive assets by Dec. 31. Use these important dates when contributing to your fund:

Contribution Type Info to Know
Mutual Funds  

Mutual funds may take up to six weeks to process. We suggest initiating requests by Monday, Nov. 20. Please contact contribute@greaterhorizons.org for instructions.

 

Stocks and Other Publicly Traded Securities  

Stocks and other securities can take up to two weeks to process, so we suggest initiating the contribution by Monday, Dec. 11.

If your fund’s assets are invested in Greater Horizons’ investment pools, complete a short online form to receive our instructions. When you fill out the form, it will also notify our team of your intent to contribute publicly traded securities to your fund.

If you fund’s assets are invested separately in a financial advisor managed account, the financial advisors should email advisorservices@greaterhorizons.org to notify Greater Horizons of incoming contributions.

 

Wire Transfers or ACH  

For us to receive the cash by Sunday, Dec. 31, we suggest initiating the transfer before Thursday, Dec. 28, and taking your bank’s processing time into consideration.

If your fund’s assets are invested in Greater Horizons’ investment pools, complete a short online form to receive our instructions. When you fill out the form, it will also notify our team of your intent to contribute via wire transfer or ACH to help us process contributions quickly.

If you fund’s assets are invested separately in a financial advisor managed account, the financial advisors should email advisorservices@greaterhorizons.org to notify Greater Horizons of incoming contributions.

 

Checks  

Checks must be postmarked by Sunday, Dec. 31.
Plan ahead: Since USPS will be closed on Sunday, Dec. 31, checks must be postmarked on or before Saturday, Dec. 30. If you are using another mail service, check their guidelines for mailing to ensure it meets the Dec. 31 postmark deadline.

If you plan to contribute to your fund via check, complete a short online form for our mailing instructions. Make checks payable to Greater Horizons, noting your six-digit fund ID on the memo line.

Our mailing address for contributions changed earlier this year. While we’ll still process contributions delivered to our Kansas City office, we ask that you update our mailing address for contributions to our lockbox:

Greater Horizons
PO Box 505661
St. Louis, MO 63150-505661

 

Credit or Debit Card  

Using the online portal, you can contribute to your fund anytime with your credit or debit card. Log in to the online portal, choose the name of your fund, and complete the form under the Contribute to Fund tab. If you need help accessing the online portal or giving with a credit or debit card, contact Donor Services at support@greaterhorizons.org or 866.627.3440.

 

 

Granting from Your Charitable Fund

If you would like your grants to make it to your favorite nonprofits before the year ends, please submit your grant requests as soon as possible to allow ample processing and delivery time. We recommend using the online portal for easy granting, but you can always contact Donor Services at support@greaterhorizons.org or 866.627.3440 for help.

Donor-Advised Fund Grant Guidelines

Many nonprofits have year-end fundraising goals, which you may be inclined to help them meet. The good news is that since you’ve already received a tax deduction when contributing to your fund, the timing of your grantmaking is entirely up to you!

 

Contact Donor Services for Assistance

Our Donor Services team is available to take your calls and answer your emails with questions about your charitable fund. You can reach our team Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Central at support@greaterhorizons.org or 866.627.3440.

Need help logging in to or navigating the online portal?

Watch our short tutorial, which covers accessing your charitable fund online to view your fund activity, review your giving history and recommend grants to your favorite nonprofits. Donor Services is also here to help.

 

Our Holiday Special Hours

Our team is taking time off to enjoy the following days:

  • Wednesday, November 22 at 12 p.m. Central
  • Thursday, November 23
  • Friday, November 24
  • Monday, December 25
  • Monday, January 1

If you need help while we’re away, you are welcome to still contact us. We’ll respond to you as quickly as possible.

 

Giving Season Tips for Spreading Your Generosity

When gathering with your loved ones this holiday season, you can practice intentionality when spreading your generosity. Here are a few helpful places to start for inspiration:

Our Philanthropic Advisors have decades of experience helping individuals, families and others explore, consider and document their charitable goals and priorities. We specialize in facilitating family meetings to establish charitable giving roadmaps as well as private, customized educational programming. If you’re gathering this holiday season and would like to utilize our philanthropic advising services, contact our team at info@greaterhorizons.org.

 

From all of us at Greater Horizons, thank you for choosing us as your partner in charitable giving.