1. Advisors & Attorneys

Professional Advisors: Let's Work Together

By working with the Maine Community Foundation, you can craft philanthropy plans that suit your clients’ individual financial situations and fulfill their deepest intentions for charitable giving. We can help you either behind the scenes or at the table with your clients.

Today, many attorneys, accountants, financial planners, and other professional advisors work with the Maine Community Foundation. Our goal is to help advisors help their clients.

We can provide you:

Solutions for your clients: scenarios that demonstrate common situations your clients face and possible ways you can help them.

Starting the conversation: questions and responses you can use to start discussion about philanthropy with your clients.

Mechanics of giving: the information you need to help your clients develop and execute a personal philanthropic plan through the Maine Community Foundation, including a library of forms and drafting language you can adapt as needed.

Tools and resources: Materials you can download for use with your clients.

Our financial record: Information about our fees and investment performance, audited financial statements, and federal tax returns.

Please contact Jennifer Richard, senior director of gift planning, at (207) 412-0833 or by e-mail at jrichard@mainecf.org if you would like more information.

Starting the Conversation

As a professional advisor, you play an important role in helping your clients achieve their charitable wishes. It may not enter your mind when you are advising your clients, but research shows that your clients are waiting for you to ask.

Your clients are increasing their knowledge about charitable giving options. They expect you, their advisor, to help create innovative, comprehensive financial plans that take care of their families, minimize taxes, and, more importantly, reflect their values.

It is most productive to approach the subject in a way that generates a thoughtful rather than a reactive response. Consider incorporating questions like these in the course of your normal discussions with clients:

  • Have you ever thought about what kind of personal legacy you want to leave?
  • What principles have guided the way you’ve lived your life? Raised your family? Run your business?
  • Do you currently volunteer at or financially support any charitable organizations, such as a house of worship, your alma mater, or a local arts association, social service agency, or civic group?
  • Are you interested in supporting such organizations after your death?

Another option is to share with your clients a piece we developed called Deciding to Give. This handout includes 12 basic questions that can be given before or after a client meeting and directs your client to talk further with you, their trusted advisor.

And if for some reason you’re not comfortable raising these questions -- don’t worry, we are. We’re just a phone call or a click away. Contact Jennifer Richard, senior director of gift planning, at (207) 761-2440 or by e-mail at jrichard@mainecf.org.

Mechanics of Giving

In this section, you’ll find information that you can use to help your clients develop and execute personal philanthropy strategies through the Maine Community Foundation, including:

In the Tools section, you will find a library of gift forms, handouts for your clients, and instructions for transferring gifts to the community foundation.

For further information, contact Jennifer Richard, senior director of gift planning, at (207) 761-2440 or by e-mail at jrichard@mainecf.org.

Investing in Maine

The community foundation's publication Invest in Maine - Nine Stories of Giving shows the inspiration to give comes from different sources -- from a loved one, a special place, or a particular passion -- and highlights the foresight and vision of nine donors who are investing in Maine's future.