Lutheran Foundation
In 1996, the Lutheran Foundation of Upstate New York, Inc., was established to support the programs and services of Lutheran and G.A. Family Services. Through our generous donors, the Foundation provides approximately $500,000 yearly to meet the needs in our community. Our success depends on our partnership with the community. Lutheran is most grateful to our generous financial donors. Your donations help us support thousands of people in our community every year. There are a few ways you can donate to Lutheran.
Make Donations Online
By clicking either of the buttons below, you can make a secure online donation to the Lutheran Foundation.
Donate By Mail
You can send a gift through the mail. You can give in honor or in memory of a loved one, and can designate the gift to one of our specific programs. Please click here to download and print a mail-in contribution form.
Mail to:
Lutheran Foundation
715 Falconer Street
Jamestown, NY 14701
In 2007, the Touching Lives Club was created to honor our donors who give financial gifts in support of all our programs at Lutheran. Gifts can be designated to any of our programs or can be unrestricted.
Donors are recognized through membership in one of three giving clubs, representing gifts received from January 1 through December 31 of each year. The Mission Circle honors donors at the $125 to $499 level. The Vision Circle will honor donors at the $500 to $999 level, and donors giving $1,000 or more, will be members of the Leadership Circle.
At the same time, many have been very consistent givers to Lutheran and deserve recognition as well, regardless of the amount, so donors are honored for their consecutive giving at 3-5 years, 6-9 years, 10 years, or more; regardless of the gift amounts.
For a list of our most recent TLC benefactors, click here.

Types of Planned Giving
Charitable Gift Annuities
A Charitable Gift Annuity is a life-income contract between a donor(s) and the Lutheran Foundation. The donor(s) irrevocably transfers cash or negotiable securities to the Lutheran Foundation. In return, the Lutheran Foundation guarantees to pay the donor(s) fixed payments for life based on the age of the donor at the time of the gift. Under the terms of a charitable gift annuity agreement, your gift provides you with regular payments that never decrease in size or frequency, regardless of changes in the economy. Payments are backed by the assets of the Lutheran Foundation.
The ELCA Foundation (Evangelical Lutheran Church of America) administers our charitable gift annuity program, and all annuity payments are backed by the assets of the ELCA Foundation.
The Lutheran Charitable Gift Annuity can be established with a gift of $10,000, which will go to Lutheran upon the death of the donor(s) and make a lasting contribution in accordance with the donors’ philanthropic goals.
The donor(s) receive an immediate charitable contribution deduction for a portion of the gift principal based on IRS tables.
The donor receives a portion of the annuity payments tax-free based on IRS tables.
The Charitable Gift Annuity may have one beneficiary (single life) for the payments or two beneficiaries for the payments (husband and wife). The payments continue until the death of both beneficiaries.
The annuity payment often exceeds other common forms of investment, e.g. Certificates of Deposit and the payment rate is based upon an industry standard for annuities, which is a factor of the chronological age of the donor at the time of the gift.
If you do not currently need more income but are concerned that you may possibly need additional income in the future, consider a Deferred Charitable Gift Annuity. This plan allows you to receive tax benefits today, but directs that payments not begin until a future time. Your interest rate will lock in at the time you elect to begin receiving payments, resulting in a higher payout rate because rates increase with age.
Bequests
Bequests are the most commonly used means of giving a major planned gift to perpetuate the donor’s charitable interests beyond his/her lifetime. A Bequest can be in any form – cash, securities, real estate, etc. The additional benefit to the donor is a sizable estate tax deduction upon the death of the donor.
Life Insurance
Life Insurance is an especially easy way for less affluent donors to give to their favorite charity, often exceeding their means otherwise.
Annual Charity Golf Tournament
Every August, the Lutheran Foundation holds its annual charity golf tournament at the beautiful Moon Brook Country Club in Jamestown, New York. Our generous business partners and many of our staff come out to play in support of the lives we touch each year.
Whether it be through event sponsorship, individual golfer registration, or raffle donations, we owe a tremendous THANK YOU to all who support this event each year.
To learn more about this year’s tournament, click here.