- Direct Gifts to Charities
A substantial one-time or annual gift to a foundation, museum or other charitable organization or cause. A direct donation to a charity of your choice provides immediate income and estate tax benefits and guarantees that the gift goes to that charity.
- Donor Advised Fund
A flexible charitable giving vehicle with benefits similar to a private foundation, but without the administrative burden. The Northern Trust Charitable Giving Program, a donor advised fund, offers a simple and flexible way for you to make a difference while streamlining your charitable giving. A donor advised fund allows you to take an active role in recommending grants to your favorite nonprofit organizations.
- Charitable Remainder Trust
A trust that makes payments to you or your individual beneficiaries and provides a gift to charity. When you create a Charitable Remainder Trust, you will place cash or appreciated assets in trust that eventually pass on to a specified charity, either at your death or at the death of the beneficiary. Until that time, the trust pays either you or your beneficiary a stream of income.
- Charitable Lead Trust
A trust that makes payments to one or more charitable organizations and passes wealth on to individual beneficiaries. A Charitable Lead Trust allows you to provide a stream of payments to charity for the term of the trust, and the remaining assets then pass to future generations, incurring minimal or no transfer taxes. Typically, this type of trust is funded with assets you do not currently need, but wish to keep in your family.
- Private Foundations
A time-tested means of fulfilling a commitment to charitable giving allowing you to contribute to a number of charities over time while reducing estate and income taxes. Administering a foundation can be a complex and time-consuming task. For many of our clients, Northern Trust handles administration and portfolio management as a trustee or investment manager, while family members retain control of the philanthropic activity.
- Supporting Organization
A charitable giving vehicle that allows you to turn your long standing involvement with a public charity into your legacy. A Supporting Organization is a wholly charitable vehicle that is used to support a specific public charity over time. Unlike a Private Foundation, your gifts to a Supporting Organization are not limited to cash and publicly traded stocks, bonds and mutual fund shares, but can include such assets as real estate and closely held stock.
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Marguerite Griffin |
Marguerite Griffin
As national director of philanthropic services, Marguerite is responsible for the delivery and growth of Northern Trust's philanthropic services to Personal Financial Services clients. She specializes in administering charitable trusts and private foundations and counsels clients regarding charitable giving and grant-making practices. Marguerite was most recently a senior trust administrator and relationship manager in the Personal Trust Administration Department where she was responsible for the administration of large, complex trusts for individuals and families, including irrevocable trusts, family limited partnerships, charitable trusts and supporting organizations. Her duties involved working with sophisticated estate plans, sensitive family situations and complex property transfers.
Prior to joining Northern Trust in 1999, Marguerite was a vice president and trust administrator within the private clients division of Bank One (now Chase). She also practiced law as an associate with Vedder, Price, Kaufman & Kammholz where she specialized in estate planning, nonprofit organization law, charitable trusts and private foundations.
Marguerite received her bachelor’s degree from Washington University in St. Louis, her law degree from Northwestern University School and is a Certified Trust and Financial Advisor. She is a member of the Chicago Bar Association and the Chicago Estate Planning Council and is admitted to practice before the Illinois Supreme Court. Marguerite has received recognition from Chicago United as a 2007 Business Leader of Color.
She is an active volunteer, advisor and board member with several charitable and cultural institutions, including The Art Institute of Chicago, The Chicago Symphony Orchestra, The Chicago Community Trust, The Ravinia Festival and the WFMT/WTTW Planned Giving Committee and the Donors Forum.
Marguerite’s areas of specific expertise include:
- Strategic planning
- International grantmaking
- Arts and culture
- Giving best practices
- Community foundations
- Mission-related investing
- Capital and endowment campaigns
- Donor relations
- Fundraising strategies
- Board governance issues
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