Thank you Doug Johnston

On November 3rd, Doug announced the establishment of the Johnston Family Fund at the Nanaimo Foundation.

Doug has become one of the Foundation’s strongest advocates, in addition to joining the Nanaimo Foundation Community Engagement Committee.

How I Got Involved

My involvement with the Nanaimo Foundation began last spring when I was invited to a presentation by my long time friend and Nanaimo Foundation Board of Director, Tom Harris.

Although I was somewhat aware of the activities of the Nanaimo Foundation, I honestly did not fully appreciate how efficient this organization was. They operate out of donated office space and their administrative costs are extremely low.

I was also very impressed with their flexibility for the donors where they are provided many different alternatives on how their donations are spent.

There are numerous different endowment funds for a diverse number of purposes including the Nanaimo Museum, The Port Theatre and Legacy Funds from the BC Summer Games.

I noticed that all of these various groups are Nanaimo-based and the funds stay in the community.

What I really found exciting was the possibility of establishing my own personal family endowment with a donation of $10,000.

After listening to a presentation by Development Officer, Laurie Bienert, I was convinced and I am pleased to donate $10,000 to the Nanaimo Foundation to establish the Johnston Family Fund.

Laurie requested that I prepare a memo that hopefully, will help explain the tax benefits of donating stocks held outside of your RRSP’s and RRIF’s directly to a registered charity:

Tax Benefits of Donating Stocks

 

Lee Odgers

Lee is a certified financial planner with Freedom 55 Financial. He’s a born and bred Nanaimoite, raising two children in our beautiful city.

Lee has a strong understanding of the value of charitable giving.

Thank you, Lee for sharing the benefits of Donor Advised Funds with your clients and creating valuable support for arts and culture in our community.

We are grateful for your support of the Nanaimo Foundation!