How to contribute to the project!

[Heather]

Anna (banannak) will be collecting the money. She would prefer for you to send her a check (or money order I guess), which she will log in and deposit, but she's also set up a Paypal account that people can send money to if they prefer (Banannak99@yahoo.com). She says she will need notice of when payment is due, because in Paypal, she would have to either request that a check be sent to her or have it deposited into her checking account.

Anna will be posting a mailing address where you can send your checks in this post shortly.

If anyone wants to discuss any money issues (setting up a fund, etc), please contact Anna. I'm not doing anything with the money part of this at all.

Please keep this thread to only the donation/money issue. Everything else goes in the Project Planning Thread #2:
pub1.ezboard.com/fmichell...2505.topic (http://pub1.ezboard.com/fmichellekwanforummkfanchat.showMessageRange?topic ID=12505.topic)

I'm editing to post the link directly to how to donate:
pub1.ezboard.com/fmichell...2878.topic (http://pub1.ezboard.com/fmichellekwanforummkfanchat.showMessage?topicID=12 878.topic)

[SusanaDalia]

One question.... Can we specify how much we want going to the medal and how much to the charity project with our contributions?

[barbnf]

Anna, I would like to contact you and give you my 800#, if you will provide me your e-mail address, I can e-mail you the number to call me so we can discuss the tax-deductibility of contributions and the possibility of setting up a fund for the loooonnnnngg term ... such that tax-deductibility will enable larger contributions and the larger the contributions, the more we can do to honor Michelle ... enduring ... longer term ... that is what I hope others envision for this "project" ...

[Dolphine]

I still would like to send a check separately for the charitable donations. I understand the troubles to collect so many different checks, but usually most non-profit organizations do not mind receiving small amount of contributions separately and they credit each person/donor an appropriate tax deduction. Also, if Anna or someone write one check to whatever the organization to make a donation, that person (or whoever's SS# on the acct) will receive a quite large amount (probably $2000 or more) of tax deductions and I don't think it is legal. As for setting up a trust fund account for the MKF, who's tax id # are we going to use? This also involves tax issues. If we keep the account to build up some funds in a long term and earns interest, who's liable to pay taxes on the earnings? Also after making a donation as a group to a charity, who gets the tax credit?

If we're making contributions to CMN, Diane O already has a system set up to make donations in honor of MK. I don't have a link to her site, but I'm sure someone can provide us a link. If we're making donations to any other organizations, we should set up a system just like Diane did for us, so each person will receive an appropriate tax credit. I understand that some people will not care to deduct $25 or $50 on your tax return, but if you make a $50 donation to 10 different organizations throughout the year, it's $500/year. Maybe we can contact Diane O for some help on this part??? Just a thought.

[Icare]

Thank you Anna for collecting money for MKF, and thank you Barbnf for the great idea of setting up a tax deductible fund. ITA that this is the worthwhile thing to do for the fund and for the larger donors. It will make it more legit and more enduring, and it is the real and easy vehicle to make the contribution bigger.

I am looking forward to see this happening.

[leon]

barbnf -- I’m not sure I’m on the same page as you are. I think it is great you're trying to increase the amount people might be willing to contribute to the project but am not sure it matters that much. The only portion that ought to be deductible is what’s left over (if any) after the purchase of the medal. If once this project is finished and someone wants to set up or Michelle sets up a fund (ala Kristi’s Foundation) for charity work, that would be terriffic. Today’s project is to give Michelle a gift and, if any is left over, give the money to charity. Not sure we wouldn’t be misleading people at this juncture to emphasize the charity aspect, which to my understanding is incidental to the gift.
If we spend 80% on the gift and 20% donated to charity, then a person donating $100.00 could deduct $20.00 (20%) on his or her tax return. Even in a high tax bracket (say 30%) you’d only save $6.00 in taxes. That’s at high tax rates, lower rates you save much less. If we spend 95% of the proceeds on the gift, only 5% is deductible. At a 30% tax rate you couldn’t even get a Big Mac with your savings.
At the end of the project, the “treasurer” can give us all the percentage of proceeds donated to a qualified 501 charity, that would be sufficient to qualify for a charitable deduction for that percentage of our contribution.
There is no ethical way to construe the total cost of the gift as a tax deductible contribution. It is a gift. It is not right for us to think the government should the pay a percentage of it through tax deductions. It is not a contribution to charity. I think it wrong to even try to characterize it to be like contibutions to needy people, churches, scholarship funds, etc. Michelle doesn’t need charity and this is not charity. Many of us feel that right now more than ever she needs an overt expression of our love and our celebration of her lifetime of gifts to us.
Any surplus, yes it should go to a qualified charity and yes for those who can, they should take the tax deduction.
Let not over complicate this or make it something that it is not.
leon

[skatingfan5]

Leon: I think that there have been several issues raised wrt contributing money for this project. I know that I (and several other people) have inquired if it would be possible to specify how much of our contribution would go towards the medal project and how much towards the charity -- perhaps even by writing two separate checks, if necessary. I would be willing to contribute a certain amount towards the medal -- but I would also be willing to contribute probably at least twice that $ amount to the charity. So for me, it matters if it will be possible to do this. Just saying that "leftover" $ will go towards whatever charity we designate would mean that I would likely be contributing a smaller amount.

Perhaps it would be possible if we can agree on the charity before donations are collected to send checks to Anna that are made out to her for the medal and another check that is made out directly to the charity. That way, when she sends the donations to the charity, they would have a record of the individual donors and the amount they contributed. Or perhaps a single check with an itemized list of donors would be sufficient? For me the tax-deductible status would be less of an issue because I doubt that I'd be contributing enough to make it worth my while to report; for others, this would/could be a concern.

I'll be calling the NWTM in another hour, and I may have more information about costs, but based on what others have reported so far, the estimated costs of the medal would be approx. $1800-$2000 and the amount "pledged" in the contributions poll is well over $4000, so the medal/charity ratio is probably more like 50:50. I realize that not everyone who said they would contribute is likely to do so -- but the highest category was $50+ and the estimates were calculated assuming $50 -- many have said that they would be contributing more than that, so I think that we will definitely have more than 20% of the funds we collect going to the charity.

At the very least, I'll be sending a check towards the medal portion as soon as Anna posts the address. Thanks, Anna, for taking on this big responsibility -- I think it's great of you to do so!

[iloveskating]

I agree with Leon & Dolphine. Purchasing a medal or other gift for Michelle is not a charitable endeavor & should not characterized as such. If anyone wants to make a charitable donation in Michelle's name, that can be done directly by that individual to the organization. Then the tax deduction can be taken appropriately. I don't think we are ready to set up a long-term foundation in Michelle's name. There are lots of other issues associated with that. There is more to it than just filling out the paperwork.

[Banannak]

I would like to keep this as simple as possible. Most donations will be under $50 and I really don't think much of a tax break would given. I agree with Leon that the medal should be the main focus. Frankly - anyone can make a donation to charity in the name of Michelle Kwan - to the CMN or to the Memorial Fund, and you can do it on your own and get any tax break you are entitled to. I will accept donations specifically for charity - if that is what you would like to contribute, which will be dealt with after the medal is purchased. Just enclose a note letting me know how you would like to designate the funds.

I will post an address very soon - I need to go over to the Post Office at lunch time:)

If anyone needs to contact me directly - Banannak99@yahoo.com will work :)

Thanks and let's make this a pleasant experience!

Anna

[Raquellina]

Thank you, BanannaK! I know you don't take this responsibility lightly!

And as always, thanks, Heather! I appreciate the thought and effort you put into finding someone to undertake this money aspect.

[iloveskating]

Yes, THANK YOU Anna! This is a lot of work for you!

(PS If you are renting a PO box for this project, which I recommend, I feel that you should be reimbursed for your costs from the monies donated.)

[badhairday]

thanks for taking your time to collect the medal and donation funds. Please do let us know where to send the money...

[probativev]

Thanks Anna, you can expect my contribution.

Alexa

[Terri]

Just adding my thanks to Anna and everyone else involved in the project.

[barbnf]

Folks, please understand that the tax code allows tax avoidance ... it is neither my intent, nor desire to discuss or suggest tax evasion ...

Contributions to organizations that are "religious, charitable, educational, scientific, or literary in purpose or for the prevention of cruelty to children or animals ... fraternal orders, if the gifts are used for the above-listed purposes... veterans' and certain cultural groups ... non-profit schools, hospitals," etc. ... are deductible.

Depending on the type of entity to which the donation is made or what is contributed, you can deduct 50%, 30%, or 20% of the amount contributed ...

There are also private foundations which includes donor-advised funds etc.

Granted this would become more involved, but I believe most of us are LONG-TERM Michelle Kwan supporters ... it is certainly well within possibilities to consider a "fund" with a separate tax id such that each contributor would be able to deduct what they contributed even if we might have to separately account for the portion that would be allocated to the Medal (quite frankly, I think the Medal costs would be an includible expense of the "fund") ...

Anyway, I think if we take the time now, and make the effort now, then each "project" won't have to start from scratch each time ... we could even have an elected Board of Directors to guide the "fund" and its "projects" ... as I said before, I prefer to do things right from the get go ... if possible, I am sure I can get folks I know to help ...

If you all don't want to go down this road, then so be it ... I think it would be short-sighted to not try to address these issues now, while this "organization" still appears to be in its infancy ...

Sorry, gotta run ... I'll check back later ....

[deanna35]

Thanks so much, Anna!! If you don't mind, I'll be sending you a Paypal payment, because I know that if I didn't, I'd keep forgetting to send you a check. I'm the worst procrastinator of all time!!:lol You should be getting a notice of that either today or tomorrow.:)

[barbnf]

The 50%, 30%, and 20% relates to AGI (Adjusted Gross Income) not to the amounts contributed ... so if you contribute $100 you may deduct $100 (or an allocated portion of that amount) limited by the applicable % times your AGI ...

I should have not been in such a hurry when I posted that but I never seem to have enough time in a day ... sorry, am still busy and must rush off again ... toodles ...

[Shellie]

Anna, please re-consider using PayPal. There are quite a few lawsuits going on right now involving PayPal. They are not a bank, yet operated as one without licenses. I work for an Escrow company so I know about this. Here's one of the several articles that talks about it:

www.wired.com/news/ipo/0,...75,00.html (http://www.wired.com/news/ipo/0,1350,50375,00.html)

[probativev]

I agree with Anna on this. Anyone can make a separate donation to a charitable organization supported by Michelle on their own. I think it would be easier if we keep it simple, and send only the money that we wish to send for payment for the medal. The idea is that we can donate the LEFTOVER money to donation. So if tax deduction is a big issue for anyone, then the donation can be made personally to charity rather than through this project.

I also agree that the tax deduction issue will most likely affect only a few number of people here, as most would not be sending in enough money to qualify for deduction. If you are sending in $25 or event $50, it's really not that much benefit to report the, say $10 extra, as a charitable donation.

Alexa

[Banannak]

I signed up for PayPal at the request of several posters on another thread requesting to use their credit cards. As soon as I get approved for my P.O. Box (should be a day or two for verification) you can send in a check or money order.

Thanks,
Anna

[kwanluv]

Thanks Anna for doing this. I'll wait to send a check until you post the P.O. Box.

Thanks Again! :)

[barbnf]

Probativ, If you donate $50, you get to deduct $50 (barring someone insisting that the "donation" for the Medal would not come under the Code section) if this "fund" is properly structured ... the only limitation is if your AGI @ the relevant % is too low for the deduction to be meaningful ...

I really believe some of you underestimate the quality and calibre of posters on this Forum ... I have been observing since the Olympics and have noticed many, many posters past 50 years of age ... for many of us, a tax deduction against some fairly significant tax burdens, I think, would be welcome ... especially, if it can be coordinated to give rise to a "perpetual" MK Forum Fund as I have suggested on more than one occasion ...

I have offered to do all the legwork necessary to set this up for the Forum ... or if you prefer, those interested can e-mail me at barbnf@yahoo.com and I can give them my 800# after verifying their autheticity, of course, and we can do this separately, but as a group who met at this Forum ... so, if you prefer that we spin-off this "perpetual" effort, I for one, would welcome the challenge to do so ... I really would like to set up something enduring and permanent for, or in honor of Michelle Kwan ... I really think she deserves it, and quite frankly, I dream of many other things in her honor springing from such initiatives ... I can dream can't I???? (that is a rhetorical ?, by the way) .... with much Aloha, Barb

[Icare]

Well, I am not that old, :) , but old enough to have a will, and know enough people who have done their estate planning. I have wondered what I would want my money does just in case. Some just causes? yes. Michelle Kwan Fund? That certainly is interesting and catching my attention.

I can imagine there are many MKFs that have some similar estate planning experiences, and they will smile at the idea of MKF fund. I also believe that for those who spent enough money (some spent $10k) for LP in Olympics, they must have a lot of feeling toward Michelle and are warm to the MKF fund idea. Trust me, there are people who would donate a lot more if there is tax deductible status.

You know, bestowing her a platinum medal is one thing, but starting a fund under her name is significant, permanent, and we are really giving her our ultimate respect.

Just my thought. I know it is simple enough just to donate the money, but if there is someone that Heather trusts and is willing to work with Barb for the tax deductible status. I would say THANK YOU!

[TomW]

Folks, am I missing something? Didn't we vote to give both a sort of medal to Michelle and a donation to some worthy cause in her name. To me they are equally important. What's this talk about people can 'give a private donation' if they wish. We agreed to act as a group. Personally, I think a donation to her favorite charity gives more honor to Michelle than some medal, although I will contribute to both.

[TomW]

Anything less than 50/50 and I'm not interested. I would have to write 2 checks. The contribution to a worthy cause is as important as the medal.

[leon]

Maybe that's the best route . . . If we want to give Michelle a $2,000 medal, we have to collect $4,000 and Michelle picks a charity for the matching $2,000? We announce from the gitgo that 50% is going to charity. When the project is finished, an accounting of the funds is published here indicating where the money was spent and donated. Everyone then may take a tax deduction for 50% of his or her contribution. It stays simple.

If there is energy and enthusiasm to set up a permanent charitable foundation to give . . . for example - free ice skates to promising inner city children or do some really charitable deeds then set up a foundation. Nothing about what we are doing with this project should stop anyone from setting up a permanent charitable foundation to do good works in Michelle’s name.

But if one wants to set up a permanent charitable foundation, then at a minimum you would need a charter and bylaws, directors and officers. Might want to incorporate so directors and officers don’t lose their family fortunes if the foundation goes south. You need financial statements, an accountant and perhaps an outside auditor and I haven’t even mentioned an attorney. A permanent foundation would be cool but it is not something you throw together on the fly while doing what is apparently the most ambitious undertaking this Forum has ever endeavored to do to date.

We have a great project going. It is relatively simple in purpose and scope. It is not permanent. It had a beginning; we are approaching the end of the beginning. Soon production will begin, the gift is presented to Michelle, to the charity. Then its over. Next project!

[Heather]

The original poll set up did say that whatever the medal was worth, equal (or more, if there's the funds) money would go to charity. I think that's still the same idea. You can also send separate checks for the medal and the charity if you chose.

[barbnf]

icare and TomW, Pls e-mail me at barbnf@yahoo.com so I may provide you with my 800#, that way we can perhaps work together to bring to fruition a more permanent, enduring "fund" to benefit Michelle's chosen charities, or like TomW suggests to help needy children buy skates ... I like that idea ...

As for the efforts required to make this a reality ... trust me, I work with a Family Foundation that was started by an older couple who own a Drive-In in Hawaii ... they support needy students interested in studying in the culinary arts ... an awesome project from which all involved derive so much satisfaction and pleasure ...

Who said things worthwhile were easy ... so does that stop the idea ... heck, no!!!

[iloveskating]

If people want to consider establishing a separate permanent charitable foundation, that is commendable. It should be separate and distinct from the medal project, perhaps with its own thread and related polls. Let's not confuse the medal project.

[silliest putty]

Anna--can I send in cash? :\

[Banannak]

I agree that we should keep this simple - 1 project only - the medal with the rest of the money going to charity. I think the fund is a fine idea, and might be something that another committee of posters might be interested in exploring in the future, but we really need to remember that this is a free site - we do not pay any memberships and people tend to come and go. I know the Kulik website has a president and officers, and you pay a yearly membership fee - but I don't that was ever the avenue that Heather or Jenny wanted to take - nor is it one that I want to delve into for this project.

Banf - you seem like you have lots of expertise in this area! Perhaps you would like to start a thread and see what sort of interest there is for this as a seperate project? I'm in for this one and then I'm out - I'm like a virus!

Back to the medal - still waiting for the P.O. Box info. Such investigation/verification is needed even for a po box!!! I will start a new thread when I receive it - with the address and the Paypal info again Then I will let everyone know where we stand in the money department!!

Leon - thanks so much for your email - very good ideas!! As you can see - I will implement one of your ideas after I get the PO box and I'll see what I can do about some of the others!!

Thanks to those of you that have already donated via PayPal.

Anna

[star lily01]

Thanks Anna for agreeing to collect the money for us! I pledged to donate $25 and as soon as your P.O. Box gets set up I'll write you a check! I think that it is simpliest if we use the money first and foremost for the platinum medal that we are planning to have made being that this was the idea in the first place. While I too feel that a charity contribution can and should be made in Michelle's name, let's not forget why we started this project in the first place... to make Michelle smile! :) So everyone lets be as patient as we can with each other.... together we can and will make this work!! :D

Annette :b

[barbnf]

It's fine with me if we explore the "fund" as a separate thread or project ...

I realize we have seemingly already decided on a Medal, but just yesterday I saw our company icon in a brochure made of crystal on a marble base and I must tell you I thought it was absolutely the most beautiful thing I have seen in a long time .... it made me remember that someone -- I forget who had suggested a crystal of Michelle doing her spiral or "falling leaf" ... I could not help but think ... Wow!!! would such a crystal on a marble base make a statement and be such a beautiful gift ...

Many have questioned a Medal being toooooo Oly-like ... at first, I did not understand their concerns because I WANTED to give Michelle a symbol which said loud and clear that she was BETTER THAN GOLD .... i.e., Platinum, but on seeing this figure in that brochure, well, I just had to tell you all I gasped at the beauty ... it is truly a sight to behold ... I could not help but think that Michelle could PROUDLY display such an item in her office or her room or her living room and do so with pride -- pride that it represented a gift from so many, many people who adore and admire her for who she is and all the good that she represents and how proud we are of her as a representative of our great country ... YES, I had to at least make my feelings known after seeing that .... wow! --- simply beautiful! ....

[barbnf]

Sorry, guys, I guess I messed up a bit ... while TomW seems to understand my plans for a "fund," it was leon who suggested "skates for needy children" ... thank you both and sorry for the confusion ...

Anna, as for Paypal ... sorry but this "computer-challenged" older person needs some help ... I have not done anything by way of Paypal ... also, I am not sure your idea of two checks will work ... unless the check for the charity is made out to the charity directly ... no deduction unless properly structured ... sorry, but "conduit" status will not fly without additional efforts should anyone get audited and have to explain why they deducted a check made out to?

Additional to leon ... I may be mistaken, but I think a properly structured "fund" will give rise to much, much more than $4,000 .... I don't mean to be too "parent-like," but this idea of only x, then shut it down and move on sounds a bit "childish" to me ... why the hurry? ... anything worth doing is worth doing well in my book ...

Also, Anna, while I certainly do thank you for volunteering to collect the funds and spend your time accounting for the $$$ contributed, I think perhaps you may be underestimating the task if what I think is out there, is really out there "lurking" to see how all of this develops ... again, I think some of you think way too small and are underestimating the potential of this project ... many of us older folks do have a lot to contribute to something we believe in and all of us seem to really BELIEVE in Michelle ... trust me when I tell you that we Americans can dig deep when it comes to supporting something we BELIEVE in ... and as I said, we all seem to really, really BELIEVE in Michelle and ALL that SHE stands for ...

[GMAN]

Thanks! I'll definitely try to contribute some money!!

[leon]

RE: TAXES -- I feel badly so much energy is being spent on the tax issues regarding the contributions for the medal project. If you like this topic - read on -- otherwise do something fun!
I called my local United Way and they agreed with Barb that a simple declaration by Anna as to what percent went to charity would not meet the letter of the law for a charitable deduction. However, she also said that unless the amounts taken are material (like over $1000) or an unusually high percentage of the taxpayer’s income, it would be highly unlikely even in the event of a full audit that any IRS auditor would consider disallowing a deduction like that. . . . (unless you have a history of extraordinary creativity and have stretched the law in other situations) However, since we would like to satisfy the letter as well as the spirit of the law … as the eyes begin to glass over . . . there are several routes to comply with the IRS Rulings and Treas. Regs.
One would be that when Anna sends the money to the qualified charity, she provides a list of donors and addresses to the charity with the amount allocated to each donor. For contributors wanting a receipt, the charity could then send acknowledgments to each donor. Those who don’t give a rats *** about getting a tax deduction, they would be lumped under anonymous. Obviously, if people want a tax deduction, they will have to give their address to Anna with their contribution.
A second method would require Heather & Jenny to determine an IRS qualified charity now, before the contributions begin to pour in. As previously suggested, each contributor would then write two checks – one for the medal and one for the charity. The cancelled check would be their proof of contribution. The benefit of sending the contribution with the medal money is the Michelle Kwan Forum would get recognition for the total contributed while of course the tax benefit would accrue to the check writer.
If we combine the two methods, then the list to the charity would include 1) separate checks made out to the charity; 2) a list of contributors with their individual pro rata share of the total charitable contribution; and 3) the amount whose donors are happy to remain anonymous.
To keep this in perspective . . . a $50.00 contribution to medal and charity would, if 50% of the money goes to charity, net the contributor a $25.00 tax deduction --- if the person’s tax rate is 25% then they save like $6.25 in taxes!!Unless you have a high tax rate and are giving a significant amount, I would not worry too much about the tax implications. Think of it like a gift to a family member.
Ultimately, what is done will be the choice of those wonderful people who are going to do the work. Even a democracy delegates enough power to trusted individuals to get the best job done within the limitations of time, expertise and energy. We should all support their decisions and enjoy the process, progress and result of what is really quite an ambitious undertaking for such a diverse group fans.

[justsk8]

Okay, all this tax deduction stuff is going a bit over my head, but I have a question:

Can we donate for the medal and also donate more separately for charity without just donating to the charity individually? (I guess I am directing this question to Anna since she is in charge?)

I hope that we can, because I know that I would and a lot of other people have also said they would, and I think it is better if we can all donate to the charity (whichever one we choose) as a group also, and not just a bunch of us individually, because you can see what a lot of people donations add up to- in the "how much can you chip in?" thread we have over $5850!

Anna, if you do not feel like dealing with separating checks that are only for charity maybe it would be easier for them to get sent to a separate address? If it comes to that, my mailbox is open. I am not trying to step on anyone's toes here, I just really feel that we need to make separate donations an option, so just let me know what the plan is. Thanks. :)

[Dave]

A lot of long posts there and I just don't have time to read and besides I just want to give money to buy Michelle a medal and of course give the rest to charity- was there an address here yet?

[justsk8]

No Dave, no address yet, but you can donate with Paypal now if you don't want to wait. (I'm waiting for the address)

[Terri]

Still no address?

[kwanluv]

You beat me to it Terri...lol.
I was wondering about the PO Box address as well.

Kwanluv...patiently waiting to send a check. ;)

[Jimbo]

Anna,

Hello.

Whenever you have the address, please let us know.

Thank you.

[Forever Loyal]

See donation post for address

[leon]

Anna's address for donations is up at:
pub1.ezboard.com/fmichell...2878.topic (http://pub1.ezboard.com/fmichellekwanforummkfanchat.showMessage?topicID=12 878.topic)