Donor Advised Fund

You may already have a donor advised fund (DAF), or you may be thinking about setting up one. With a DAF, you make your charitable gifts to a single entity that controls the DAF, known as the sponsoring organization, and then make recommendations to the sponsoring organization for further charitable grants from your fund.

This gives you the flexibility to recommend how much and how often money is granted to the American Museum of Natural History and other qualified charities by simply making recommendations to the DAF’s sponsoring organization, rather than facilitating individual donations to multiple charities yourself. You can recommend a one-time grant to make an immediate impact or recurring grants to use your DAF as a tool for future charitable gifts. We hope you will consider putting your DAF dollars to work at the Museum.

You can also create a lasting legacy by naming the Museum beneficiary of the entire DAF; or create a family legacy of giving by naming your loved ones as your successor so they can continue recommending grants to charitable organizations. You could accomplish both of those goals by naming charities such as the Museum as beneficiaries for a percentage of the fund and naming your loved ones as your successor for distributing the rest. Contact your fund administrator for a beneficiary form.

It is important to contact your fund administrator to explore the tax advantages of their DAF, the fees involved, and any limitations on how gifts from the DAF are used. Please contact the Museum to determine if a new or existing DAF is the best way for you to support the Museum’s work and achieve your specific goals.

DAF Basics

Still learning about DAFs? Discover the ease of opening a donor advised fund—plus the advantages you’ll enjoy—with your FREE guide Centralize Your Giving With Donor Advised Funds.