Planned Giving

Planned gifts are a meaningful way to leave a legacy that will help the Guggenheim Fellowship program continue to thrive.

Bequests have been essential to the Guggenheim Fellowship program since its earliest years. Senator Simon Guggenheim and his wife Olga both provided for the Guggenheim Foundation in their wills, significantly expanding upon their original act of philanthropy that created the Foundation and the Fellowship program in 1925.  Since then, planned gifts from numerous other generous individuals have built upon Senator and Mrs. Guggenheim’s initial generosity. 

Ways to Give

There are many ways to help sustain the Guggenheim Fellowship’s mission through a bequest in your Will or Trust. Your planned gift could support:

  • The overall Fellowship program
  • A broader Fellowship category, including Creative Arts, Humanities, Natural Sciences, or Social Sciences
  • A specific field of study, such as Photography, U.S. History, Biology, or Economics
  • A specific Fellowship
  • A combination of the above

Alternatives to a cash bequest include royalties, appreciated securities, retirement assets, or life insurance. You could also make the Foundation a residuary beneficiary of your estate.

For example, Philip Roth, 1959 Guggenheim Fellow in Fiction, left a cash bequest to the Foundation that has provided funding in support of writers as well as Fellowships in the Creative Arts. In addition, he bequeathed 100% of the royalties from all of his books for the benefit of the Fellowship program overall.

Please consult with your financial advisor and legal counsel to determine the options that are available to you. 

Sample Bequest Language

In estate documents, please list the Foundation’s legal name and mailing address in full as follows:

John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation
90 Park Avenue, 33rd Floor
New York, NY 10016

Below is suggested language for drafting your bequest:

“I bequeath to the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation, a nonprofit corporation currently located at 90 Park Avenue, New York, New York 10016 or its successor thereto, _________ [written amount or percentage of the estate or description of asset] for its unrestricted charitable use and purpose.”

To designate your bequest for a specific purpose:

“I bequeath to the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation, a nonprofit corporation currently located at 90 Park Avenue, New York, New York 10016 or its successor thereto, _________ [written amount or percentage of the estate or description of assets]. This gift should be used for ____________ [state purpose] if and so long as the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation determines that the need exists. If the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation shall determine at the outset or at a later time that the need does not exist, or no longer exists, or for some reason it is not possible (or prudent) to administer my gift as originally intended, then the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation may, in its sole and uncontrolled discretion, direct the use of my bequest for a purpose related as closely as possible to that stated above.”

The John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation is a tax-exempt organization described in section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. Gifts and bequests to the Foundation are fully deductible to the extent permitted by law under sections 170, 642(c), 2055, and 2522 of the Internal Revenue Code. Its Federal Tax Identification Number is 13-5673173. 

IRA Qualified Charitable Distributions

A gift in the form of an IRA Qualified Charitable Distribution must be made to the Fund for the Guggenheim Fellowships, a public charity that supports the Fellowship program:

Fund for the Guggenheim Fellowships
90 Park Avenue, 33rd Floor
New York, NY 10016

The Fund for the Guggenheim Fellowships is a tax-exempt organization described in section 501(c)(3) and a public charity under section 509(a)(1) of the Internal Revenue Code. Its Federal Tax Identification Number is 85-1338112.

Please include your name and address or instruct your IRA trustee to do so if they will be mailing the check directly. We would like to thank you but can only send you an acknowledgment if your name and address are provided along with your contribution. 

Please Let Us Know

If you have already included the Guggenheim Foundation in your estate plans, we encourage you to let us know. We would like to thank you for your generosity and ensure that your gift is used according to your wishes

For more information, please contact:

Susan Mellin
Chief Advancement Officer
sm@gf.org
212.835.9021

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