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Leave a gift to Surf Life Saving in your Will

You can choose to leave a set amount of money or a percentage of your estate to Surf Life Saving

A gift is a financial donation that you intend to make after your passing. It can be made to an individual or an organisation such as Surf Life Saving.

Our heroes of the beach have a lifelong impact on the lives that they save – that is their lifesaving legacy.

We have partnered with Safewill. As part of their support of the Surf Life Saving Foundation, Safewill are offering 500 free Wills to Surf Life Saving Foundation supporters to help them protect their loved ones.

You can create your Will online today with no cost to you. Safewill's legal team will review your Will to ensure your wishes are properly documented and protected. To get started today, simply click the link below.

CREATE YOUR FREE WILL

It's important to make your intentions clear

You can choose to leave a set amount of money or you can leave a percentage of your estate to Surf Life Saving. Sometimes people choose to leave the ‘residual’ amount – this means that after all your other wishes are attended to, whatever is left will be donated or bequeathed to your charity of choice.

You need to make your intentions clear when preparing or updating your Will. Deciding to leave a gift in your Will is giving one of the greatest gifts possible. When you select Surf Life Saving as a beneficiary, this act of generosity will help save the lives of many people who get into trouble in the surf for years to come.

How will my gift help?

By leaving a gift in your Will to Surf Life Saving, you are creating your very own lifesaving legacy; potentially saving lives even after you have gone. That is an exceptionally powerful gift to give to us, and the people we help.

Your gift can either go directly to your favourite Surf Life Saving Club to equip and train future surf lifesavers, or you may have a more focused idea - like assisting with Nipper training and associated programs, or a multitude of other needs. We can always assist you should you have specific ideas for where you would like your gift to go.

Including Surf Life Saving in your Will is an incredible testament to your vision for the future and the deep care you have for your community.

Surf Life Legacy

Surf Life Legacy has been specifically set up for active, non-active and social members of a Surf Life Saving Club who wish to ensure their club is a future beneficiary in their Will. Those involved in the program are known as ‘Legends of the Surf’, acknowledging the profound impact of their lifesaving legacy. For further information on this program, speak to your Club President or Club Administrator. You can also contact the Surf Life Saving Foundation’s Supporter Relations Officer, Reginia Goode on 0436 680 090 or [email protected].

How should I word my Will?

If you have not yet made a Will, you should know that there are a number of different ways to make a gift in your Will - known as legacies or bequests. To help you choose the one that suits you best, we have provided a list of the most common forms of bequests, together with a brief explanation of each one.

You can review the different types of gifts that you can leave in the boxes below. We also share the correct wording for your Will for each of the options, so that you can simply copy it.

A gift of a fixed percentage of your estate (often known as a “proportional legacy”) allows you to nominate a specific percentage of your estate to the Surf Life Saving Foundation. A legacy of this kind does not depend on your estate being of any set value or size and it is flexible enough to allow for changes in the composition of your assets or financial situation. No matter how your estate changes, whether it grows or decreases in value, your decision as to the proportions will always remain the same.

The correct wording for such a gift is: “I [Your Name] give and bequeath to the Surf Life Saving Foundation, free of all duties, ___% of my estate and I direct that the receipt of the Treasurer or other Proper Officer of the Foundation shall be sufficient discharge to my Executor for the Bequest which is to be applied to the general purposes of the Surf Life Saving Foundation”

A gift of a specific sum of money or specific assets in the form of property, shares or articles of value (known as a “specific legacy”) enables you to have the full use of your assets during your lifetime. An advantage of this form of bequest is that it gives you the comfort of being certain about exactly how your estate will be divided. This is a common legacy, however certain considerations need to be taken into account. Firstly, when you make your will you have no way of knowing what the value of your estate will be. Secondly, with inflation, the value of your gift may change. In order to maintain the value of your gift you may need to revise your will on a regular basis.

The correct wording for such a gift is: “I [Your Name] give and bequeath to the Surf Life Saving Foundation, free of all duties, the following (whichever is applicable): - the sum of $___ - Property (details) - Or other assets (details) and I direct that the receipt of the Treasurer or other Proper Officer of the Foundation shall be sufficient discharge to my Executor for the Bequest which is to be applied to the general purposes of the Surf Life Saving Foundation”

A gift of a remainder of your estate (often known as a “residuary bequest”) allows you to make specific gifts to family and friends and leave the whole or portion of what remains of your estate to the Surf Life Saving Foundation.

The correct wording for such a gift is: “I [Your Name] devise and bequeath to the Surf Life Saving Foundation, free of all duties the residue of my Estate and I direct that the receipt of the Treasurer or other Proper Officer of the Foundation shall be sufficient discharge to my Executor for the Bequest which is to be applied to the general purposes of the Surf Life Saving Foundation”

Often this refers to the whole of the Estate. This is a “contingent gift” in that the money or property that you nominate will only pass to the Surf Life Saving Foundation if the primary beneficiary does not survive you. In this instance we strongly suggest you seek professional legal advice to ensure your wishes are detailed correctly.

A Life Estate may be created in real property or in personal property. It is a term used to describe ownership of an asset for the duration of the person’s life. The owner of a Life Estate is called a ‘life tenant’. The life tenant has the right to possession and enjoyment of the asset and its income until their death. Once the life tenant dies, ownership of the asset goes to the ‘remainderman’. Most often this is a charity such as the Surf Life Saving Foundation, who is entitled to take the asset upon the termination of a Life Estate. In this instance we strongly suggest you seek professional legal advice to ensure your wishes are detailed correctly.

You can use a Trust to make a gift to the Surf Life Saving Foundation through your Will. Firstly, you may choose to create a fund which entitles a friend or family member to receive the interest from the fund during their lifetime. Upon their death the fund can pass to the Surf Life Saving Foundation. Alternatively, you may prefer the Surf Life Saving Foundation to receive the interest on the fund for a specified number of years. After this period the fund then passes to a nominated beneficiary. We recommend that specific legal advice be sought to establish a Trust and to ensure the wording of your Will is appropriate for your chosen Trust circumstances.

You may nominate a specific Surf Life Saving program to benefit from your gift, for example, rescue equipment. Gifts for specific rescue equipment are often difficult as the cost of the equipment is likely to change between nominating the gift and the gift being realised. Where there is a difference, Surf Life Saving will do its best to ensure the intent of the gift is still achieved.

The correct wording for such a gift is: “I wish to give and bequeath to the Surf Life Saving Foundation the sum of $________ specifically for: (whichever is applicable) - Rescue equipment, and/or - Education programs for surf lifesavers, and/or - Community surf safety programs, and/or - Research and development and I direct that the receipt of the Treasurer or other Proper Officer of the Foundation shall be sufficient discharge to my Executor for the Bequest which is to be applied to the general purposes of the Surf Life Saving Foundation”

You may wish to benefit a specific Surf Life Saving Club from your estate. In such cases, all of your gift will benefit the nominated club, and the Surf Life Saving Foundation acts to ensure your gift has the maximum long term benefit through its national buying power and investment options.

The correct wording for such a gift is: “I wish to give the sum of $________ to the Surf Life Saving Foundation specifically for ____ Surf Life Saving Club, and I direct that the receipt of the Treasurer or other Proper Officer of the Foundation shall be sufficient discharge to my Executor for the Bequest which is to be applied to the general purposes of the Surf Life Saving Foundation”

If you already have a Will and you would like to make a simple addition, you may add a Codicil to your existing Will. A Codicil is a legal term for a document that forms part of your Will. If you make a Codicil, you simply need to use the same wording as you would use if you were writing a new Will. In all of the above cases, it is best you seek legal advice and have your Will prepared by a professional entity or your State Public Trustee. For any queries, contact us.

Make an enquiry

If you have any further questions about leaving a gift in you Will, please contact us using the form below.

Alternatively, you can contact Reginia Goode on 0436 680 090 or [email protected]