Windfall. Divorce. Retirement. Now What?

If you represent clients over many years, you already know this truth: the most consequential financial decisions rarely happen on a planned timeline. They happen when a marriage ends, when a spouse dies, when a client walks out of the office for the last time and wonders what comes next.

Research and survey results show that many clients' most significant estate and financial planning activities are driven not by long-term intention, but by sudden change. And in those moments, even the best advice can feel like too much, too soon.

This is where charitable planning can do something the tax code alone cannot. For many clients, generosity is one of the few things that still feels familiar when everything else is in flux. A conversation about giving - who they want to help, what legacy they want to leave - can re-anchor a client in values rather than fear. It can shift them from reactive to intentional at a time when that shift matters most.

Here are three situations where we've seen it make a real difference:

1. A Change in Assets

Following a divorce settlement, a client may suddenly be holding cash, concentrated stock, or other highly appreciated assets, while also juggling lifestyle adjustments, supporting adult children, and rethinking an estate plan from scratch. When that client also wants to do something charitable but isn't sure yet where to direct a gift, a donor-advised fund (DAF) at the Community Foundation can be a natural fit. The client becomes eligible for a tax deduction when they make a contribution to a DAF, and then they can take their time to decide which charities to support and when. No rush. No pressure. Just clarity on the deduction while the rest takes shape.

2. Loss of a Spouse

A client whose spouse has recently passed may want to make a gift in their memory - something lasting and meaningful. An unrestricted fund at the Community Foundation allows that gift to serve the community for generations, responding to urgent needs as they arise rather than being locked into a single purpose. It's a way of honoring a life while trusting the community to put that generosity to work over time.

3. Stepping Into Retirement

A 74-year-old client who just retired is feeling less connected outside the workforce and wants to do something meaningful. With ample assets in retirement accounts and no need to draw on them for living expenses, this client may be an ideal candidate for a designated fund, field-of-interest fund, or testamentary fund at the Community Foundation, supporting a specific nonprofit you care about or an area of need such as arts and culture, basic needs, education, health care, etc. 

From there, the client can direct Qualified Charitable Distributions from IRAs (up to $111,000 per taxpayer in 2026) directly to the fund. Those distributions bypass adjusted gross income and count toward required minimum distributions. It's a clean, purposeful strategy that connects financial planning with something that feels genuinely good.

The next time you're sitting with a client in the middle of one of life's inevitable rough patches, remember that charitable planning offers something rare: the chance to take action that brings joy, reflects identity, and moves a client from reacting to leading. Our team is ready to help you make that introduction.

Reach out to the Community Foundation team to talk through a client situation. Sometimes the right move is simply a conversation.