Cash Gifts
Cash gifts, checks, credit cards, or other property, provide Kresge Eye Institute with much needed financial assistance. These gifts can be used immediately to the area(s) in which it is designated.
Tribute & Memorial Gifts
Tribute and memorial gifts are thoughtful ways to mark a special occasion or to honor the memory of a relative or friend. To make a memorial gift, send your contribution (along with acknowledgment information so we can notify the recipient or family) to Kresge Eye Institute. Tribute donations can be made to celebrate or remember all of life’s important milestones:
- Births and birthdays
- Weddings and anniversaries
- Graduations and retirements
- Bar or Bat Mitzvahs
- Mother’s Day or Father’s Day
- Get well, good luck, best wishes, congratulations
- Celebrating life’s successes and joys
- Simply saying “thank you”
Gifts from Estates or Trusts
A bequest in a will or trust stipulates that the entire amount or a percentage of your estate be given to the university after your lifetime. Your bequest may be designated to a research program, to a faculty endowment or scholarships, or it may be unrestricted and used where needed most. Gifts from your estate to Kresge Eye Institute are exempt from estate tax.
Life-income gifts provide income to a donor and/or another individual, such as a spouse. The donor realizes income tax savings for the year the gift is given to the university. A charitable gift annuity, for example, provides a guaranteed income for a spouse or other loved one, and a deferred income gift annuity provides you with additional retirement income. At the end of the beneficiary’s lifetime(s), the remainder is transferred to Kresge Eye Institute.
Retirement fund assets would be heavily taxed if given to an individual. After your lifetime, the remainder of your retirement fund can be designated to a research program, to the Ligon Research Center of Vision, to a faculty endowment or scholarships, or it may be unrestricted and used where needed most.
Life insurance, in the form of an old policy no longer needed by the original beneficiary or a newly created policy to benefit Kresge Eye Institute, can provide invaluable support to the institute. Small premiums now can generate a major gift in the future, and premiums for these policies may be tax deductible. Many employers provide group life insurance as a benefit, and Kresge Eye can be named for a portion of the proceeds. This giving vehicle is an important one for younger donors who wish to make a leadership gift.
Charitable lead trusts provide income to Kresge Eye over a set number of years and then transfer assets to children or other individual(s) named by the donor. This plan enables heirs to receive assets while minimizing taxes.
Endowed Gifts
Endowments provide permanent financial support to Kresge Eye Institute. A list of endowments can be seen here, and they include research support, faculty support, lectureships, and resident/fellow educational support.
Competition for the best faculty, researchers and residents/fellows is extremely high. Private endowed scholarships have enabled Kresge Eye Institute to recruit, support and retain especially talented people. By providing specially designated resources for research and teaching, endowments enable gifted faculty and researchers to excel in their particular disciplines.
When creating an endowment, you have a unique naming opportunity and the ability to make a gift in perpetuity which will create lasting impact for Kresge Eye Institute.
Contact Jon Goldstein, Kresge Eye Institute Development Officer, to discuss further at [email protected]
Current Endowment Funds
KEI currently has several established endowments that provide invaluable support to the institute. Each endowment has its own mission and goals that have been established by the donor.
UNRESTRICTED ENDOWED FUNDS
Joann L. Weber Department of Ophthalmology Endowed Fund
UNRESTRICTED EDUCATIONAL ENDOWED FUNDS
Shokoohi Family Resident & Fellow
Dr. Jampel Educational Fund
RESIDENT EDUCATION
KEI Alumni Club Fund
KEI Ophthalmology Leadership Award
Morris Barsky Fund
MEDICAL STUDENTS
Fraser Endowed Scholarship in Medicine
Dr. Shin Medical Student Research Award
Winkler Retinal Fund
AWARDS
Dr. Mahmoud Endowed Fellow Research Award
Dr. Robert S. Jampel, M.D., Ph.D. Prize – Ophthalmology
Dr. Stanley Grandon Prize
Dr. Marius Juzych Ophthalmology Resident Award
Dr. Lawrence L. Stocker Prize
Dr. Hanna Obertynski Prize Fund
Dr. Barsky Prize Fund
Dr. Allen Memorial Fund
LECTURESHIPS
Gary W. Abrams, M.D. Lectureship in Vitreoretinal Disease
Deborah A. Iverson, M.D. Lectureship for Women in Ophthalmology
Robert S. Jampel, M.D., Ph.D., Lectureship in Ophthalmology
Robert J. Netzel, M.D. Lectureship in Ophthalmology
A.D. Ruedemann, Sr., M.D. Lectureship
Dong H. Shin, M.D., Ph.D. Lectureship in Glaucoma
Michael A. Wainstock, M.D. Lectureship in New Discoveries in Ophthalmology
Zeiter Eye Medical Group Visiting Lecture
Kresge Eye Institute Clinical Translational Research Lectureship in Ophthalmology
Robert and Gerry Ligon Lectureship in Vision Research
Prechter Endowed Lectureship in Neuro–Ophthalmology
Luther L. Fry, M.D. Lectureship in Cataract Surgery
CHAIRS AND PROFESSORSHIPS
The David Barsky, M.D. Endowed Chair
Held by Mark S. Juzych, M.D., M.H.S.A.
The Robert S. Jampel, M.D., Ph.D. Endowed Chair in Ophthalmology
Held by Robert N. Frank, M.D., Ph.D.
The Dong H. Shin, M.D., Ph.D. Endowed Professorship in Ophthalmology and Glaucoma Research
Held by Bret A. Hughes, M.D.
The Edward T. and Ellen J. Dryer Endowed Professor in Vision and Blindness Research
Held by Zhuo-Hua Pan, Ph.D.
The Lawrence L. Stocker, M.D. Endowed Ophthalmology Professorship
Held by Mark S. Juzych, M.D., M.H.S.A.
RESEARCH
Ligon Research Center of Vision Endowed Fund
Fishman Retinal Research Endowed Fund
Gifts of Assets
Gifts of assets that may make helpful gifts while saving taxes include real estate (subject to university approval), closely held stock, business practices (law, medicine, etc.), partnerships, contracts, leases, royalties and patents.