The Legacy Society

About the Legacy Society

The Legacy Society of the Diocese of Georgia was formed in 2005 to provide on-going education and support to parishes and congregations regarding planned giving activity. Its members are people in the Diocese who, as good stewards, have made a planned gift to their parish, to the Diocese, or to an Episcopal organization within the Diocese. By making a planned gift to one of these three entities, and making it known, one is automatically a member of The Legacy Society of the Diocese of Georgia.

The Legacy Society encourages every member of the Diocese to consider how one’s spiritual wealth is intertwined with financial wealth, and to look beyond one’s current financial patterns to include his or her parish, an Episcopal organization within the Diocese, or the Diocese itself, in the estate planning process. Gifts can take many forms and can be made for any amount- no gift is too small!

If you have already made a planned gift to your parish, we hope you will let it be known by completing the enrolmment form and submitting it first to the entity to which you made your planned gift, and then to the Diocesan office. If you have not yet made a planned gift, we hope you will – your committment will ensure that our congregations will have the resources to build up the Body of Christ for decades to come!

Should you have questions about making a planned gift to your congregation, the Diocese, or an organization within the Diocese, or about how your congregation can start its own planned giving program, please contact Canon Katie Easterlin in the Diocesan office at 912.236.4279.

For Parishes

Planned giving programs are crucial to the long-term vitality of our work for God’s mission. Thus, they must be a part of every parish’s stewardship development plan. They hold enormous potential to help ensure that we will have the mission resources we need for generations to come. To our parishioners, they offer the opportunity to make a final affirmation of their Christian Faith and in the process remind us all that everything in this world belongs to God. Despite the fact that we are in the midst of the largest inter-generational transfer of wealth in U.S. history, fewer than one in ten persons leaves a gift to charity in their will or trust. Research shows why they have never considered it: They haven’t been asked. We need to change that trend in the Diocese of Georgia. We need to start asking our parishioners to remember their church in their estate planning process and to offer a simple and convenient vehicle for them to do so.

It is the goal to have an established planned giving program in every parish in the Diocese of Georgia. In order to assist parishes, below is a link to a user friendly guide to establishing a planned giving program as well as a set of sample required documents. Should you have questions about the manual or documents, or need assistance, please contact Canon Katie Easterlin in the Diocesan office at 912.236.4279.

NOTE: Neither the author, the publisher, nor the Episcopal Diocese of Georgia is engaged in legal or tax advisory service. For advice or assistance in specific cases or whether to make certain a contemplated gift fits well into your overall circumstances and planning, the services of an attorney or other professional advisor should be obtained.

Once you have made a planned gift to your congregation, the Diocese, or an Episcopal organization within the Diocese, you are automatically eligible to be a member of The Legacy Society of The Diocese of Georgia.