Lake Waramaug Task Force - Supporting LWTF

Supporting LWTF
Donations | Legacy Gifts to LWTF | Land Preservation



Donations to the LWTF
The vital, ongoing operations of the Lake Waramaug Task Force are funded exclusively through generous, annual donations from concerned residents around the lake, within its watershed area and throughout the region.
These donors recognize that the lakes are complex environmental organisms and that water quality cannot be taken for granted.
Lake Waramaug is faced with challenges that have been identified and must be continually monitored and contained (algae, phosphorus). In addition, and equally challenging, are new threats (such as invasive species and pollution from unchecked development) that must be anticipated, researched and combated on scientific, educational and political fronts.

...the lake's water quality cannot be taken for granted...
The Task Force is extremely grateful to our donors, without whom its important work could not be done, and we ask all who care about Lake Waramaug to join their numbers.
The Lake Waramaug Task Force is a qualified 501 (c) (3) non-profit organization and all donations are fully tax deductible. Donations may be mailed to:

The Lake Waramaug Task Force, Inc.
19 Sackett Hill Road
Warren, CT 06754

Questions concerning Task Force initiatives may be directed to:

Thomas A. J. McGowan
Chairman and Executive Director
(860)868-0331

Legacy Gifts to LWTF
Each year the Lake Waramaug Task Force receives many generous cash gifts that support our ongoing operating costs. However, we would be remiss if we also did not ask you to consider some other possibilities:

Your Will. Please consider a gift to the Task Force in your will or living trust. It can be a specific bequest of cash, stock or other property, or your gift could be a percentage of your remaining estate after specific bequests have been made.

Charitable Remainder Trust. You may also transfer assets to a Charitable Remainder Trust and receive income from the Trust, as well as a charitable deduction for a portion of the assets transferred. The annual income distributed by the Trust must be at least 5 percent of the value of the Trust assets. The Task Force will receive the remaining Trust property upon your death.



Charitable Lead Trust. Again, you'll receive a charitable deduction for a portion of the assets transferred to a Charitable Lead Trust. The Task Force receives a fixed amount of annual income from the Trust for a specific period of time, after which the remaining Trust property is distributed to your other designated beneficiaries.

IRA or Pension Plan. You may name the Task Force as a beneficiary (or percentage beneficiary) in your IRA, profit-sharing plan or pension plan. Your plan administrator can provide you with the appropriate form.

Life Insurance. You may name the Task Force as a beneficiary (or percentage beneficiary) in a life insurance policy. This is one technique in which a relatively modest contribution (the policy premium) can result in a substantial charitable gift.

Conservation Easements. If your property is within the Lake Waramaug watershed, the Task Force would be pleased to hold a conservation easement on this property to limit its future development. A conservation easement can also be granted in your will.

Real Estate with Retained Life Estate. Real estate in any location may be conveyed to the Task Force as a charitable gift, with a life estate reserved by you for your lifetime use.

Note: Please see your attorney or financial advisor for professional assistance. We are a duly qualified 501 (c) (3) organization and should be shown in any legal document as: Lake Waramaug Task Force, Inc.

Land Preservation
Among the most generous, effective and lasting gifts that can be made to the Lake Waramaug community and its environmental health are gifts of land and conservation easements. There are still undeveloped parcels of land on the lake and many more in the immediate vicinity and in locations throughout the watershed that may be critical to water quality due to their proximity to feeder streams.

...making sure the land is preserved as undeveloped land in perpetuity.
Land within the watershed, when developed without a carefully researched environmental plan, can be seriously detrimental to lake water. This is due to the sheer volume of pollutants and nutrients introduced into the ground and also to the increased percentage of impervious surfaces (roofs, driveways, etc.) which can funnel unfiltered water more directly into the lake.


You may wish to give a parcel of land outright to the Task Force. Or you may wish to retain ownership of your land and grant a conservation easement to the Task Force, effectively charging the Task Force with enforcing that easement and making sure the land is preserved as undeveloped land in perpetuity. Or, as some of your neighbors have done, you may wish to donate a parcel of land to a local land trust, then grant a conservation easement on that land to the Task Force.
Local land trust organizations you may contact include the Warren Land Trust, Kent Land Trust, Steep Rock Land Trust in Washington and Weantinoge Heritage, a regional land trust based in New Milford. A sample conservation easement, which can be customized to meet your specific concerns, can be provided to you upon request.
The donation of land or a conservation easement to a duly qualified land trust or conservation organization is likely to result in significant tax savings. In brief, the fair market value of your donation is a tax deduction you may take. Normally the maxiumum is 30% of adjusted gross income, but this has been increased to 50% for gifts of conservation easements made in 2006 and 2007. If the tax benefits from a gift are not fully realized in the first year, the balance may "roll over" allowing normally another five years of tax deductions. This "roll over" period also has been increased to a total of 16 years for gifts of conservation easements given in 2006 and 2007.
Needless to say, prospective donors should consult their attorneys and financial advisors. Information from the Task Force may be obtained by writing or calling:

Thomas A. J. McGowan
Chairman and Executive Director
Lake Waramaug Task Force
19 Sackett Hill Road
Warren, CT 06754
(860)868-0331

Thank you!

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