All of us at Honor Flight Chicago are so appreciative of our incredible donors who make it possible for us to honor and thank our senior war heroes and inspire generations of Americans with the power of gratitude and respect. Learn more about the countless ways to donate to Honor Flight Chicago.

Lasting salute program

Our Lasting Salute program is the flagship way of giving to Honor Flight Chicago. There are multiple opportunities to give financially through the program, including simple but incredibly impactful memorial gifts. Honor Flight Chicago can also be included in an individual’s will or trust, and can also be selected for a beneficiary designation for those who do not want to commit to a will or estate gift.

Memorial gifts

Honor Flight Chicago has impacted thousands of senior war veterans since its founding. After their day of honor, many veterans confess the day was one of the most meaningful of their life. If you know someone who had a positive experience with Honor Flight Chicago, help us continue to honor them — and other veterans — by dedicating a memorial gift in their name.

Designating a gift In Memory of a loved one is as simple as donating via our online form. Click the button below and fill out the donation information. At the bottom of the form you will be able to designate the gift as being In Memory of your loved one and select a gift notification option.

Wills and trusts

Leaving a part of your estate to Honor Flight Chicago in your will or trust will enable us to continue honoring senior war veterans for years to come. It takes as little as one sentence to add Honor Flight Chicago to your will or living trust. Please see below for examples:

  • GENERAL TESTAMENTARY GIFT: SPECIFIC MONETARY AMOUNT: I hereby give and bequeath _______________________ dollars ($__________________) to Honor Flight Chicago, located at 9701 W Higgins Road, Suite 310  Rosemont, IL 60018-4703, or its successors-in-interest, to be used for general purposes.
  • GENERAL TESTAMENTARY GIFT: PERCENTAGE OF RESIDUE OF ESTATE: I hereby give and bequeath ________ percent (_____%) of the rest and residue of my estate to Honor Flight Chicago, located at 9701 W Higgins Road, Suite 310, Rosemont, IL 60018-4703, or its successors-in-interest, to be used for general purposes.

“I’ve been fortunate enough to go to schools, retirement centers and churches to speak about Honor Flight Chicago’s impact on veterans, their families and the community as a whole. It really is remarkable. That is why I decided to write Honor Flight Chicago into my will. I want to help another veteran be impacted the way I was by a remarkable organization.”

Irv Abramson, WWII veteran

Beneficiary designations

We understand that not everyone wants to commit to making a gift in their will or estate. That is why many people prefer the increased flexibility that a beneficiary designation provides. With beneficiary designations, you are able to make an impactful contribution to Honor Flight Chicago by using IRAs and other retirement plans, life insurance policies, or annuities.

It takes only three, simple steps to make this type of gift. Here’s how to name Honor Flight Chicago as a beneficiary:

  1. Contact your retirement plan administrator, insurance company, bank or financial institution for a change-of-beneficiary form.
  2. Decide what percentage (1 to 100) you would like us to receive and name us, along with the percentage you chose, on the beneficiary form.
  3. Return the completed form to your plan administrator, insurance company, bank or financial institution.

Next steps for these advanced giving options

  1. Contact Honor Flight Chicago’s administrative office at 773-227-VETS (8387) for additional information on creating a memorial gift.
  2. Seek the advice of your financial or legal advisor.
  3. If you make a memorial gift to Honor Flight Chicago through your estate, please use our legal name and federal tax ID.

Legal Name: Honor Flight Chicago Corp
Address: 9701 W Higgins Road, Suite 310  Rosemont, IL 60018-4703
Federal Tax ID Number: 26-1978570

The information on this website is not intended as legal or tax advice. Please consult an attorney or tax advisor for such information.

Simple ways to give

There are a wide range of simple gifts that can be donated to Honor Flight Chicago. The logistics are relatively easy, but the impact can be profound.

One of the easiest ways to support Honor Flight Chicago is with a cash gift. There are two primary forms of cash gifts:

An outright gift

This is the most common type of cash gift we receive at Honor Flight Chicago. A cash gift — made by check, credit card or money order — helps support our immediate needs. You will see the impact of your donation and the power of a simple act of generosity. You will also receive a federal income tax charitable deduction.

A payable on death (POD) account

With a POD bank account or certificate of deposit, you are able to name one or more individuals or charities as the beneficiary of all funds in the account. The beneficiary has no rights to the funds until after your lifetime. Until that time, you retain full control over the account and are able to use the money, adjust your beneficiary selection or close the account.

If you have money in a retirement plan at work, IRA or tax-sheltered annuity, it may be subject to federal and state estate taxes. Most of these plans contain income that has yet to be taxed, so when money is distributed, the beneficiary will owe federal and state income taxes.

However, because Honor Flight Chicago is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization, we are tax-exempt and would receive the full amount you designate for us. By choosing to contribute part or all of your retirement plan assets to Honor Flight Chicago, not only will you support our mission, but you will save your loved ones from being taxed on the proceeds.

There are a variety of ways to allocate retirement assets to Honor Flight Chicago, including:

Name us as a beneficiary of your plan

You are able to designate Honor Flight Chicago as the primary beneficiary for a percentage or specific amount.

Fund a testamentary charitable remainder trust

By setting up a charitable remainder trust with your retirement plan assets, the proceeds of the plan will go to the trust. Income from the trust is paid to a beneficiary for a set term; once the term expires, the remaining assets would go to Honor Flight Chicago. This option provides tax benefits and income benefits, and also allows you to provide your loved ones with added support.

Designate a donor advised fund

When retirement plan assets pass to your heirs, they can be subject to federal income and estate taxes. This combined income and estate tax burden can be substantial and greatly reduce the value of the intended gift. Instead, you can designate a donor advised fund as the beneficiary of all or a portion of your retirement plan assets. Your fund receives the full amount of the gift and bypasses any federal taxes.

Did you know you can name Honor Flight Chicago as the beneficiary of your bank accounts, certificates of deposit or brokerage accounts? The process is simple:

Payable on death (POD)*

A POD designation on your bank account or certificate of deposit (CD) means that you assign one or more people or charities as beneficiary of all funds once you, as the account owner, pass away. The beneficiary does not retain any rights to the funds until you are deceased. Until then, you control all funds in the account or CD and are to use the money in the bank account, adjust the beneficiary or close the account.

Transfer on death (TOD)*

A TOD designation on your brokerage or investment account indicates a specific percentage of the account will be paid to one or more people or charities after your lifetime. Just like with a POD account, the beneficiary of a TOD account does not retain rights to any funds in the account until after your lifetime. You also are able to use the money in the account, update the beneficiary or close the account.

*State laws govern payable on death accounts and transfer on death accounts. Please consult with your bank representative or investment advisor if you are considering these gifts.

Receive a tax deduction for using stocks, bonds and mutual funds as donations. When you choose to donate appreciated securities or mutual funds you have held more than one year, you have the opportunity to reduce or eliminate federal capital gains taxes on the transfer. Making this type of donation also entitles you to a federal income tax charitable deduction; the deduction is based on the fair market value of the securities at the time the transfer takes place.

  1. If you have questions, contact Honor Flight Chicago’s office at 773-227-VETS (8387) for additional information on appreciated securities.
  2. Provide the following information to your broker:

    NEW INFORMATION COMING SOON

  3. To ensure your gifts are properly received and acknowledged, please email Honor Flight Chicago at donations@honorflightchicago.org to notify us of your gift. You may contact us before or after donating securities.

The information on this website is not intended as legal or tax advice. Please consult an attorney or tax adviser for such advise.

Did you know you can donate residential, commercial or development property to Honor Flight Chicago? By doing so, you no longer have to deal with the cost and hassle of selling. Donating also eliminates the ongoing costs for insurance, maintenance and property taxes. IRS rules allows you, the donor, to take the appraised value as a charitable deduction, subject to IRS guidelines and limitations. If the property has been held for more than one year, you also escape capital gains taxes.

Next steps for these advanced giving options

  1. Contact Honor Flight Chicago’s administrative office at 773-227-VETS (8387) for additional information on creating a memorial gift.
  2. Seek the advice of your financial or legal advisor.
  3. If you make a memorial gift to Honor Flight Chicago through your estate, please use our legal name and federal tax ID.

Legal Name: Honor Flight Chicago Corp
Address: 9701 W Higgins Road, Suite 310  Rosemont, IL 60018-4703
Federal Tax ID Number: 26-1978570

The information on this website is not intended as legal or tax advice. Please consult an attorney or tax advisor for such information.

Advanced giving options

For years, financial planners and estate attorneys have advised their clients on using more sophisticated techniques. Today many of these are available to donors who may not need to limit their estates but would like to take advantage of the same tools.

A charitable gift annuity involves a contract between a donor and a charity, where the donor transfers cash or property to the charity in exchange for a partial tax deduction and a lifetime stream of annual income from the charity. Following the donor’s death, the charity keeps the gift.

A charitable gift annuity enables a donor to transfer cash, marketable securities or real estate to the charitable organization issuing the gift annuity in exchange for a current income tax deduction and the organization’s promise to make fixed annual payments to the donor for life. Annuity payments can begin immediately or can be deferred to some future date.

A charitable gift annuity is implemented as a contract under which a charity, in return for a transfer of cash or other property, agrees to pay a fixed sum of money for a period measured by one or two lives. The person who contributes an asset for the annuity is called the “donor”, and the person who receives payments is called the “annuitant” or “beneficiary.” Usually, the annuitant is also the donor, but this is not always true. The maximum number of annuitants is two, and payments can be made to them jointly or successively.

A charitable lead trust allows the donor to reduce beneficiaries’ taxable income by donating a portion of the trust’s income to charities and after a specified period of time, transferring the remainder of the trust to the beneficiaries.

A charitable lead trust is designed to reduce estate taxes after the donor passes away. This is accomplished by donating to charities from the estate until taxes have been reduced. Once this is accomplished, the estate is transferred to the designated beneficiaries, who typically will face much lower taxes.

A tax-exempt irrevocable trust designed to reduce the taxable income of individuals by first dispersing income to the beneficiaries of the trust for a specified period of time and then donating the remainder of the trust to the designated charities.

The idea of a charitable remainder trust is to reduce taxes. This is done by first donating assets into the trust and then having it pay the beneficiaries for a stated period of time. Once this time-frame expires, the remainder of the estate is transferred to the charities deemed as beneficiaries.

A type of estate that continues for the lifetime of the beneficiary. A life estate is a restrictive type of estate that prevents the beneficiary from selling the property that produces the income before the beneficiary’s death.

You can donate your home to Honor Flight Chicago while retaining the ability to live in the home until you pass away, at which time the home passes to Honor Flight Chicago.

Think of a donor advised fund like a charitable savings account. This type of fund provides the opportunity for you to recommend how much and how often money is granted to Honor Flight Chicago and other charities.

For example, imagine you transfer cash or other assets to a tax-exempt sponsoring organization created to manage charitable donations on your behalf. You can then recommend how much and how often money is granted. This also allows you to avoid the cost, and potential challenges, of managing a private foundation.

With a donor advised fund, you receive a federal income tax charitable deduction at the time you contribute to the account. This also allows for a centralized giving and record-keeping system in one location. Future gifts can be made to the fund as the need arises.

See your legal and financial advisor for more information on using these advanced techniques.

Next steps for these advanced giving options

  1. Contact Honor Flight Chicago’s administrative office at 773-227-VETS (8387) for additional information on creating a memorial gift.
  2. Seek the advice of your financial or legal advisor.
  3. If you make a memorial gift to Honor Flight Chicago through your estate, please use our legal name and federal tax ID.

Legal Name: Honor Flight Chicago Corp
Address: 9701 W Higgins Road, Suite 310  Rosemont, IL 60018-4703
Federal Tax ID Number: 26-1978570

The information on this website is not intended as legal or tax advice. Please consult an attorney or tax advisor for such information.