Date: Tue, 03 Jun 1997 08:28:19 -0700 From: Eros Publishing Subject: Press Release HOW YOU CAN HELP THE LEATHER ARCHIVES AND MUSEUM THROUGH ESTATE PLANNING by A. SPENCER BERGSTEDT, ESQ. ATTORNEY AT LAW copyright October 19, 1995 In 1995 I wrote and published an article on estate planning for members of the leather community. I still believe that you can never be too prepared when in comes to your estate planning. One of the greatest things about having a proper estate plan is that you can effect a great impact on the lives you leave behind by the way in which you dispose of your estate. Unfortunately, there are many leatherfolk who are not planning ahead and our entire community is suffering losses of untold value as a result. WHY PLAN NOW? A majority of American's die without a Will. The state in which you live will likely not recognize your partner, family of choice, friends or charity of choice without you providing explicit instructions to do so. When we die, our assets and liabilities comprise our "probate estate". This is the property that will be divided amongst our heirs through the probate process. The way in which we ensure that our property goes where we want it to go, is by executing a legal Will. A Will is the way in which you make gifts of your life's work in a way that recognizes your values and desires. A Will does a number of things. One, it allows you to designate who will be handling the settling of your estate, the executor/personal representative. Two, it allows you to designate where and to whom your property goes. If you don't have a Will at your death, the executor can be anyone who petitions the court to act as executor. Further, your estate will be divided amongst your blood relations (if any) according to the laws of descent in your state. If you have no living blood relatives, your estate goes into escheat and becomes owned by the state. Too many leatherfolk are dying without Wills. In fact, 60% of the overall U.S. population is dying without Wills. As a result, much of our leather history is being lost to blood relations who may simply throw away a lifetime of leathers, photos, toys, club colors, etc.. I can cite many leather men and women who have died in the past few years who's histories would have been welcome additions to the Leather Archives and Museum. Each of us, can however, do something to prevent this from happening. One, make out a Will. Ensure that your leather history becomes part of the legacy for future generations of leather folk by leaving all or a portion of your leather history to the Archives. All it takes is a simple clause in your Will. Two, leave a cash donation to the Archives. This can either be by bequest in your Will or by naming the Archives as a beneficiary of your life insurance policy(s), Charitable Trusts, and/or Retirement Plans. Money can help the Archives in a number of ways, by funding the operations of the Archives, helping to acquire space for the Museum or assisting the Archives in acquiring the histories through estate sales of those who don't get a Will or who don't change their Wills to name the Archives. If you are concerned about blood relations discovering your leather life upon your death, you can do a number of things: 1) you can make out your Will and appoint an executor who is familiar with your leather life, leaving him/her written instructions on how to handle your leathers, toys, books, etc.. Make sure that this person is also noted on your Powers of Attorney and is easily accessible, so that if you happen to die unexpectedly, your designated person is ready to deal with your leather items. 2) You can always make donations to the Archives and Museum during your lifetime. This may be especially useful to you if you are ill and are not expected to recover. Making donations is as easy as contacting the Archives and Museum regarding your gift. 3) You can box up the items you'd like to donate with some sort of identifying mark put on the boxes. In your Will, you could leave instructions that said boxes be donated to the Leather Archives and Museum without opening them - however, I strongly suggest that if doing so, you assign a cash value to the items in the boxes, as their value must be accounted for in the valuation of your probate estate upon your death. It really is easy to get a Will done. There are a number of easy to use computer software programs designed to help you draft a Will, as well as other estate planning documents. However, I strongly advise that you consult with an attorney in your state (and possibly as a CPA as well) in order to ensure that your Will is drafted soundly and legally executed and to effect the maximum amount of tax advantage as well. Most attorney's will provide you with a free consultation and the charges for a simple Will should be nominal. Do yourself, your chosen family and the leather community a favor - plan ahead and get your Will done today. Your donations and gifts will, of course, be tax deductible as the Leather Archives and Museum is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization.