For Donors
What do you want to achieve with your giving? Every day we work closely with individuals and families just like you, as well as your trusted professional advisors, to craft effective giving strategies that realize your philanthropic goals.
Connecting Your Philanthropy to Impact
We can help you achieve it.
The strength of our expertise goes to work—no matter what your philanthropic goal—to ensure your generosity can do the greatest good for our region and beyond.
Philanthropy is what we do. Our duty to donors is to make giving more effective.
Give alongside the Trust. Join with like-minded donors and the Trust itself to leverage your support for initiatives that will benefit our region for generations to come.
We will be your giving coach. What is my philanthropic purpose? Is it smarter to make charitable gifts in one larger amount or in multiple smaller doses? Can I create greater impact by funding an endowment in perpetuity or by making a bigger bet in the short term? How much control must I relinquish over how my assets are used? These and similar questions can trouble anyone who gives — and we will help you answer them all.
We Care About
What You Care About
For every interest you hold — such as education, critical needs, neighborhood investment, and more — there is a Trust community impact officer and philanthropic expert who can assist your charitable plan of action.
No financial institution can match the Trust’s depth and breadth of knowledge of Chicago nonprofit organizations. No other philanthropic entity produces as broad a survey of the local landscape as our experts do and have done for over 100 years.
Philanthropic Services
Through discussions with our team, the Trust will work with you to create the best mode of giving that is right for you.
| Collaborative Philanthropy | We believe that in collaboration, we can accelerate change to transform our region into a place where all people have the opportunity to prosper and where our region can thrive. Our collaborative philanthropy opportunities leverage the power of partnership to achieve transformational impact. |
| Corporate Philanthropy | The Trust is in a unique position to bring organizations together and lend expertise to amplify your generosity. Our deep philanthropic proficiency, regional knowledge, and connections can help catalyze your charitable impact. Download the one-pager. |
| Donor Advised Funds | Donor advised funds make your grantmaking simple and effective. Donors create a personal, named fund at any level, then make grants from the fund to charities of their choosing. The Trust provides administrative support and oversight of the investment of your assets. Learn more about applying. |
| Planning an Estate Gift | A planned gift through The Chicago Community Trust can create lasting support for the charitable areas that matter to you. A planned gift can also reduce your income tax liability. Working with your advisors, the Trust can offer you several options to create a lasting philanthropic legacy for yourself and your family. We provide expert counsel on charitable gifts that include: bequests, life insurance policies, retirement accounts, and charitable trusts or charitable gift annuities. Click here to learn more. |
| Private Foundation Conversion | For many donors, the administrative and other burdens of managing a private foundation can overshadow their primary desire to do good. A donor advised fund with the Trust offers a welcome alternative. |
| Supporting Organizations | A supporting organization can be an alternative to a private foundation. It is recognized as a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization. You may select board members to govern your investments and grantmaking policies. With a gift of $5 million or more, the supporting organization becomes an affiliate of the Trust. |
Collaborate & Connect
The Trust is a platform for change. We offer many opportunities to partner with like minded-donors, invest strategically in causes that advance racial and ethnic wealth equity, and to make measurable, meaningful impact for our region and all who call it home.
Click here to learn more about our Partnerships & Initiatives, such as Unity Fund and We Rise Together: For An Equitable & Just Recovery.
Donor Events
The Trust offers multiple opportunities to participate in discussions on philanthropy and pressing issues facing the region.
- Our “Donor Dialogues” series is a platform for donors, civic leaders, and experts to join solutions-focused conversations that explore our community’s most pressing issues, and the role of philanthropy in effecting change.
- Our “Beyond Philanthropy” panel discussions combine expert insight and personal experience to explore the strategies, the tools, and the practices that add up to effective, meaningful giving.
Forms & Resources
Our staff provides personalized service for your giving needs. In addition to helping you build a giving plan, we are here to help with making sound investments, maximizing your tax benefits, and handling the paperwork along the way.
For a directory of relevant forms and resources, click here.
We also offer donor advised fund holders 24/7 online access to add money or make grants from anywhere in the world through our online Donor Portal.
Let the philanthropic professionals of the Trust show you how giving can be made easier, more effective, and more gratifying.
Funds & Ways to Give
For every interest you hold — such as education, critical needs, neighborhood investment and hundreds more — there is a Trust community impact expert and philanthropic advisor who can assist your charitable plan of action.
ExploreForms & Resources
Our staff provides personalized service for your giving needs. In addition to helping you create a giving plan, we are here to help with making sound investments, maximizing your tax benefits and handling the paperwork along the way.
Learn More