GIVING A GIFT IN YOUR WILL

A will is the easiest, most effective way to ensure your assets are distributed according to your wishes, and to provide for the people and causes you care most about. A properly planned will can reduce or even eliminate the taxes on your estate. A will is a gift you make today for tomorrow. 

Legacy gifts are a very important source of revenue for SickKids. Historically they have contributed significantly to our ability to deliver lifesaving treatment and research, including a bequest from Toronto philanthropist J.P. Bickell that helped establish our Research Institute, where scientists created Pablum, discovered the cystic fibrosis gene, and continue to crack the code of childhood cancers and heart disease. Bequests continue to play a crucial role in advancing the SickKids vision: Healthier Children and A Better World. A charitable bequest also gives you the comfort of knowing your assets are available today, while enabling you to leave a larger gift than might be possible in your lifetime. It’s also one of the most efficient ways to give: a gift in your will can reduce, or even eliminate, the tax burden on your beneficiaries, since your estate will receive a tax receipt for your gift.

SickKids treats everything from broken arms and appendicitis to rare brain cancers and congenital heart defects. Every year, some 100,000 patients come to us from across the province, country and even the world for specialized care, while our scientists are making important medical discoveries every day. Our research breakthroughs also have implications in the adult world including expanding knowledge on diseases such as dementia and brain tumours.

For all our triumphs—clinical and research—legacy gifts have been instrumental, helping create our storied Research Institute, where scientists discovered the cystic fibrosis gene, and continue to crack the code of childhood cancers and heart disease. Legacy gifts have enabled SickKids to become a world-class leader for intensive care, organ transplants, and complex heart surgeries. It’s because of our donors that we’ve grown from a community hospital to a global leader in child health.

1. Speak to your lawyer about drafting or revising your will, an essential step to protect your family’s future and ensure that your assets are distributed according to your wishes.

2. Add the appropriate wording in your will to leave a gift to SickKids, with which our team can help you.

3. Let us know about your bequest, so we can show our appreciation and ensure your intentions are properly understood and honoured.

There are many ways to include a charity in your will, but these are the two most common:

Residual Bequest:

Commonly designated as all or a percentage of the estate’s residue, a residual bequest is made from the balance of an estate after all debts, bills and taxes have been paid and all specific and general gifts have been distributed.

Legacy Bequest (also known as specific bequest):

A legacy bequest is a gift of a specific dollar amount or asset, such as a house, car, stocks, or securities.

Other than a gift in your will, you can help SickKids by:

• Designating SickKids as the beneficiary and/or owner of a new or existing life insurance policy
• Naming SickKids as the beneficiary of your pension plan, RRSP, RRIF, or TFSA
• Setting up a charitable gift annuity or charitable remainder trust
• Making a gift of property, such as real estate, jewelry, or art
• Cemetery plots
• Gift of assets - i.e securities

Specific wording depends on the type of gift and its designation, but here are some examples:

Residual Bequest

“My estate trustees shall pay ______(all or %) of the residue of my estate to The Hospital for Sick Children Foundation, Toronto, ON, for the purpose of supporting its highest priority needs.”

Legacy Bequest

“My estate trustees shall pay the sum of $ ______ (or transfer assets with an equal value) to The Hospital for Sick Children Foundation, Toronto, ON, for the purpose of supporting its highest priority needs."

The name you should include in your will is “The Hospital for Sick Children Foundation”. The Foundation is responsible for raising money and performing estate administration on behalf of the Hospital.

No. Gifts come in all shapes and sizes, and we’re grateful for every dollar. Even 1% of your estate can make a huge difference in improving the lives of sick children and their families.

We encourage you to first consider an unrestricted donation, which gives us the flexibility to deploy funds in the areas of greatest need—and greatest promise. (We can’t predict where we will need funds down the road, nor can we know what research, projects, or funding will be underway when a gift is realized.) However, if you do decide to designate your gift to a specific area, let us know so we can help with the wording and ensure that your gift goes where you want it to.

Yes. Not only would we like to thank you, but we want to ensure that your gift is properly recognized, and that your intentions are understood and honoured. We can also provide the right wording, particularly if you’re designating your gift to a specific area. We understand that leaving a gift in your will is one of the most personally significant gifts you can make, and we will respect your wishes with regards to how much recognition or anonymity you would like.


Letting us know of your future gift is not legally binding in any way, but it does help the Hospital plan for the future when we know we have community support into the future to continue investing in child health care.

Once you let us know that you’re leaving a gift in your will to SickKids, we’ll invite you to join the J.P. Bickell Society. You’ll be recognized on the SickKids Donor Hall of Honour in the Hospital’s main corridor, either with your name or in honour of a loved one. You can also choose to remain anonymous, while retaining the many benefits of the Society, including a subscription to our newsletter SickKids Legacies and invitations to exclusive SickKids events like the J.P. Bickell annual luncheon.  If you are interested in becoming a J. P. Bickell Society member, please contact us at 416.813.8271 or legacy.giving@sickkidsfoundation.com.

Please contact Jessica John, Director, Leadership & Legacy Giving at:

Phone: 1.800.661.1083 or 416-813-6166
Email: jessica.john@sickkidsfoundation.com

Mail:
SickKids Foundation
Attn: Jessica John, Leadership & Legacy Giving Team
525 University Ave, Suite 835
Toronto, ON M5G 2L3