Planned Giving
Boot Camp
Valued at over $3000.00, this eight (8) week Planned Giving Boot Camp is designed to provide you with the information and resources you need to confidently talk to your donors about how they can leave a legacy with and through your organization. There are six (6) information-packed online sessions and two (2) open forums, making sure you get your questions answered.
Each information session is accompanied by a workbook full of information and exercises you can use to cement the lessons and to help you customize it to your organization’s needs, policies, and culture.
Tuition Cost
$1950
About Your Planned Giving Boot Camp Instructor
Christopher L. McGown
Co-Founder & Principal
Chris has worked in nonprofit development for more than 30 years. He has served in every area of development, with the longest stints in Planned Giving and team leadership. He has managed a personal portfolio of donors as well as teams of professional fundraisers.
He has personally cultivated more than $95 million in planned gifts, in addition to the more than $230 million he actively worked on with his team. In addition to the array of planned giving tools, Chris has also secured more than $75 million in outright gifts as part of annual and capital campaigns.
With the belief that when the non-profit community is strengthened, every non-profit benefits, Chris has also consulted both professionally and in a volunteer capacity with a variety of non-profit organizations including special needs youth groups, character-building programs, animal care organizations, and churches.
Chris holds a bachelor’s degree in education, a master’s in psychology, a master’s in marketing, and a Juris Doctorate. His other accomplishments include being a published author, an Eagle Scout, and an all-around great guy. He lives in Louisville, Kentucky with his beautiful & patient wife,
Angela, and their youngest son; their oldest son attends college in Maine.
Weekly Online
Sessions
Start March 31st
The sessions are scheduled for eight consecutive Mondays, starting March 31, 2025.
These virtual sessions are all scheduled to last 75 minutes, starting at 3:00 p.m. (et).
Each session will be held via Zoom; we encourage all participants to turn on their camera. The meetings will be recorded; the recording will be available until the following week’s session.
The tuition cost of $1950.00 can be paid by check or credit card. Payment options are available if needed, contact Chris McGown (chris@peak9860.com) to discuss your specific needs. Payment must be received prior to the start of the first session.
Session 1
March 31, 2025 3:00 pm (et)
We get started with, of course, the foundation. We look at the policies, processes, and practices every organization needs to launch, grow, and nurture a successful planned giving program.
What is “Planned Giving”
Planned gift acceptance policies
Gift credit policies
CRM/database practices
Focus area (aka Marketing language base)
Planned Giving Societies
Session 2
April 7, 2025 3:00 pm (et)
In this session, we begin our journey in the mechanics of planned giving vehicles. But, not until we explore “why” planned giving is important and “why” donors elect to use this important giving channel. While this session is necessarily technical, it won’t be too boring. We focus our time on what matters most to the day-to-day fundraising professional.
Why planned giving is important and so attractive to donors
How the most planned gifts are made and by whom
Gifts by Will (the most common type) - Primary, Secondary, Tertiary (aka “God Forbid”)
Specific Bequests
Percentage Bequest, including why this is often the best option for your organization
Session 3
April 14, 2025 3:00 pm (et)
In this session, we continue our journey in the mechanics of planned giving vehicles with the second and third most popular gift vehicles, as well as a few other common options. Again, we will focus our time together on what matters most to the day-to-day fundraising professional.
Gifts of Life Insurance, including practices to ensure the integrity of the gift
Ownership Gifts
Beneficiary Gifts
“Wealth Replacement” Strategies (high-level look)
Gift of Retirement Assets, including policies to account for account custodian limitations
Why IRA gifts can mean more money to their family
Other Income in Respect of the Decedent gifts, include the Savings Bond pitfall
Other Payable/Transfer-On-Death Options
Session 4
April 21, 2025 3:00 pm (et)
There is only so much our brains can absorb. Sometimes it is good to step back and allow time for the pieces to fall into place.
This week, I’ll host an open meeting, an “ask me anything” session to help you put the lessons learned into context for your organization. Or, to share a concept in a new way, making certain you have what you need to understand these initial concepts.
We can also use the first part of this session to catch up on any content that got pushed due to prior time constraints.
Session 5
April 28, 2025 3:00 pm (et)
Our time together in this session will be divided into two parts: a) a high-level overview of the more complex planned giving vehicles; and b) what you need to know about these vehicles for your donor and their advisors.
Split-interest gifts
Charitable Trusts, the most common types
Pooled Income Funds
Charitable Gift Annuity
The charity’s role and donor expectations
Session 6
May 5, 2025 3:00 pm (et)
With the technical challenge overcome, we focus this session on marketing. We talk through a two-pronged approach: 1) intentional, deliberate approaches, and 2) getting your donors to “raise their hand,” to say they want to learn more.
General marketing guidance
Philosophies on information availability (how much to share with the world)
Injecting Planned Giving into existing efforts
Session 7
May 12, 2025 3:00 pm (et)
Continuing with marketing planned giving, we look to targeting marketing and dig into how to respond to marketing responses.
Intentional, deliberate, pro-active conversations
“Begin with the end in mind,” responding to donors who “raise their hand.”
Subject Matter Expert = Back-up safety = Confidence
Session 8
May 19, 2025 3:00 pm (et)
At this point, we’ve covered a lot of ground and your new knowledge is bolstering your desire to engage donors. But, you have one question we’ve not yet covered; this is your chance. This session is the final open meeting where you can “ask me anything” (related to planned giving).
Of course, this session is also our buffer to cover any topics we had to “push,” because of time challenges in earlier sessions.