Doug Flanders, As a teacher and fundraiser, Doug Flanders knows the difference that money and education can make in a person s life. As a life-long member of The United Church of Canada, Doug also knows the powerful impact that faith and the Church can have in transforming lives.

I was most fortunate to have been raised in a home where faith and philanthropy actively went hand in hand, says Doug. One of my earliest childhood memories is seeing my dad on a Saturday evening getting the offering envelope ready for Sunday morning worship. That image and increasingly its significance have stayed with me over the years as have so many of the good values that were instilled in me in that small-town Ontario home.

When revising his estate plans recently, Doug wanted to ensure that some of the organizations he supports in life would continue to receive his ongoing support after his death. The United Church of Canada Foundation provided a perfect solution. Doug established a personal endowment fund within the Foundation. Annually, he makes gifts to this fund to build its capital and, on his death the bulk of his estate will go to the fund to be permanently endowed within the Foundation. Annual investment income from his fund will be used to support several organizations in perpetuity, including his home church, Trinity United in Ingersoll, and his current congregation, Metropolitan United in Toronto.

Doug is grateful that the Foundation offers such a secure investment home for his estate and takes satisfaction in knowing that organizations he has valued in life will receive annual gifts for generations to come.

Ethel Lapp, The United Church of Canada has been a basic and important part of all my life. From Mission Band at age six to the UCW now, I have been a part of it.

Having watched my mother take her part in church activities over the years, I was very glad to have the opportunity to contribute in her memory to The United Church of Canada Foundation at its beginning.

And again, since my husband was a United Church of Canada minister serving six pastorates and two Christian Educations jobs during his ministry, I was happy to be able to create a Personal Endowment in his memory. The earnings will go toward assistance for students training for ministry. These contributions let me be a part of the future of The United Church of Canada.

Francis and Marion Graves, Marion and I have been married for more than 50 years. During our married life we have moved frequently. The local United Church congregation has always been a place to begin to become involved in the community. Indeed as we have become a part of the community, the church and its congregation has become the anchor and focal point of our involvement.

After our children matured and left home we, especially Marion, had more time for community work and we became involved in the wider Church. At first, we were involved at the Presbytery and Conference levels, then the national council of the United Church for several years.

It is perhaps natural then, that we see The United Church of Canada Foundation as a vehicle to give back to the community the Canada-wide community that has been so good to us.

*Marion Graves passed away March 16, 2007.

You've planned carefully for your own financial future. Now you can plan your future gifts to God's mission as well. Contact The United Church of Canada Foundation by email fdn@united-church.ca or call 1 866 340-8223 (toll free).