Frequently Asked Questions

Description text goes hA philanthropic advisor helps you make more intentional decisions about your charitable giving. At COR, that might mean helping you clarify what you want your giving to accomplish, create a Giving Plan, research organizations, involve your family, or think through a larger gift. COR can also work alongside your wealth advisor, CPA, and attorney when charitable planning connects to your broader financial or estate plan.

The goal is to make philanthropy feel meaningful, manageable, and even joyful.ere

A philanthropic advisor helps when:

·  You want a clear giving strategy that reflects your values and charitable goals, and helps you decide what to support and when to say no

·  You have a donor-advised fund but are unsure how to use it effectively

·  You are considering a private foundation or another charitable vehicle

·  You are preparing for a business sale, retirement, inheritance, or other financial transition

·  You want to involve children or other family members in giving

·  You are not sure where to give, whether your giving is having the impact you hope for, or how to evaluate organizations

·  You are considering a significant charitable gift, such as an endowment or scholarship

·  You have been giving to the same organizations for a while but have not stepped back to evaluate your giving or its impact

No. COR does not use a single giving or asset threshold to determine whether philanthropic advising would be useful. COR works with individuals and families at different stages of their philanthropic journey.

We discuss your goals, the decisions you are working through, and the level of support that would be most useful. From there, COR recommends a scope based on your needs.

Yes. COR can help you think through which charitable structure best supports your goals, but we do not start with the vehicle.

We first look at what you want your philanthropy to accomplish, how involved you want to be, whether family will participate, how much administration you want to take on, and the types of giving or investments you may want to make.

From there, COR can help you compare the options and coordinate with your financial advisor, attorney, and tax professional as needed.

Learn more: Donor-Advised Fund or Private Foundation?

Strategy is our jam! COR helps you create a practical Giving Plan that turns your values and charitable goals into a clear framework for making decisions.

A Giving Plan may include:

·  Your philanthropic purpose or mission

·  Priority issue areas

·  Geographic preferences

·  Annual giving goals

·  Recommended budget allocations

·  Preferred types of support

·  Guidelines for responding to requests

·  A plan for involving family members

·  A process for reviewing and evaluating grants

COR works with you to create a plan that is practical, personal, and useful in guiding your giving throughout the year.

Your Giving Plan can be reviewed annually and evolve as your interests, priorities, family, and giving change over time.

COR conducts nonprofit research, landscape scans, and due diligence based on your interests and goals.

The questions we ask, factors we review, and way we evaluate organizations are informed by 25 years of experience in the nonprofit and philanthropy sector. COR looks beyond an organization’s mission statement and considers factors such as:

·  Programs and approach

·  Leadership and governance

·  Financial health

·  Community relationships

·  Funding needs

·  Results and impact

·  Geographic reach

·  How the opportunity fits within your broader giving portfolio

We are very thoughtful in our approach and try to ensure we are not burdening nonprofits with extra work.

COR also helps you identify opportunities locally, nationally, or internationally, based on your interests and geographic priorities, and think about how those choices fit within your broader philanthropic portfolio.

Yes. Family philanthropy is an important part of COR’s work. Family can mean children and grandchildren, siblings, cousins, in-laws, partners, chosen family, or others you want to include in your philanthropy.

COR helps create meaningful ways for people of different ages, experiences, and relationships to participate. Depending on your family, this may include:

·  Values and purpose exercises

·  Facilitated family conversations

·  Shared grantmaking and individual giving budgets

·  Helping younger family members learn how to make giving decisions

·  Clarifying family roles and responsibilities and creating a process where everyone has an opportunity to contribute their perspective

·  Exploring the different ways family members may want to contribute their time, talent, ties, testimony, and treasure

·  Creating traditions or practices that help philanthropy continue across generations

·  Planning for the future leadership or succession of a donor-advised fund, foundation, or broader charitable legacy

The goal is not to force agreement. It is to create a thoughtful process where family members can learn, participate, and contribute in ways that feel meaningful to them.

Read more: When Philanthropy Connects to the Bigger Family Picture

Many donors open a donor-advised fund for tax or administrative reasons but have not yet developed a clear plan for how they want to use it.

COR can help you:

·  Clarify the purpose of the fund

·  Decide how much you want to give now versus later

·  Identify charitable priorities

·  Research and evaluate grant opportunities

·  Involve family or other important people in the giving

·  Create a practical grantmaking approach for the year

·  Develop a spend-down plan, when appropriate

·  Think through successor planning, including naming individual successors, charitable beneficiaries, or designated charitable funds within the DAF

·  Serve as an approved proxy, when permitted by the DAF sponsor, to help draft grants and track grantmaking through the online portal

COR can also coordinate with your donor-advised fund sponsor and other professional advisors as appropriate.

Yes. COR can help you explore ways to use philanthropic capital beyond traditional grantmaking, including recoverable grants, program-related investments, mission-aligned investments, and other impact opportunities.

This can be especially valuable for donors with assets in a donor-advised fund, because charitable capital can potentially support impact while it is invested and before it is ultimately granted out. Depending on the opportunity, that might include directing investments toward mission-aligned funds, providing capital that may be repaid and reused for future charitable purposes, or supporting organizations in ways that go beyond a traditional grant.

COR helps you evaluate which approaches fit your goals and how they may work within your broader philanthropic portfolio. When appropriate, we also coordinate with your legal, tax, investment, and donor-advised fund professionals.

No. COR provides independent philanthropic strategy and advising.

COR works directly with you on your philanthropy and can also work alongside your wealth advisor, CPA, attorney, donor-advised fund sponsor, or other professionals when helpful. We do not manage investments, sell financial products, prepare tax returns, or provide legal advice.

This collaborative approach allows each advisor to bring their expertise while COR keeps the philanthropic strategy connected and moving forward.