This toolkit, developed by Community Foundations of Canada, provides a full range of information and tools to help you in your work with clients, and to learn more about community foundations.

Ways to Give

Stock/Securities

The system employed by Hamilton Community Foundation for the receiving, recording and handling of gifts of securities is designed to ensure:

• transactions are handled efficiently and effectively in a timely and professional manner
• all items received are captured accurately in the financial records
• all items received are safely transferred to the custodian

Please contact the Hamilton Community Foundation for information regarding the procedures involved regarding a donation of Appreciated Securities to Hamilton Community Foundation. We will gladly answer your questions and assist you with the necessary steps and documentation.

Form of securities:

A gift of securities may be made either by an electronic transfer or, when the owner has paper certificates, by physically handing over these documents.

Generally, the donor's broker 'holds' the shares. There are no actual certificates as all the records are computerized. A transfer is 'simply' a shift from the donor's account to the Foundation's.

Sometimes, the shares may be in the form of paper certificates registered in the owner's name. In these cases, to the make the gift, the change in owner must be registered. This can be arranged through contact with the Vice President, Finance and Administration at Hamilton Community Foundation. For security reasons, please do not sign the back of the paper certificate form.

Donation Receipt

The value of the donation receipt will be established as the closing price on the date the transfer takes place. The charitable donation receipt is issued by the Foundation.

Sale of Securities

It is the policy of the Hamilton Community Foundation to confer with our professional investment managers to determine the disposition of any securities received by gift. If the securities are sold, proceeds from disposition of the securities net of any fees will be the gift to the fund.

Fund Agreement

As with any gift to the Community Foundation, the staff will work with the donor (and his/her advisors) to develop a written agreement setting out terms that will enable achievement of the donor's philanthropic objectives in establishing a fund at HCF.