Bob Mundy, financial planner and co-founder of Legacy Preservation, a company that captures family legacies through book or digital formats, believes that gratitude and a desire to be remembered are at the core of philanthropic giving. Together with his wife, Bob has established a journalism scholarship at the Foundation, which annually supports a student staff member of The Lance newspaper at Westside High School.
How did you first come to work with the Omaha Community Foundation?
There are two answers to this question. My primary career has been as a planner, working with clients and their advisors to coordinate their business, estate, and insurance planning. Often, for nearly any sized estate, the Omaha Community Foundation is a resource and an alternative for both living and testamentary charitable giving.
Answer number two involves the personal planning of myself and my wife Maggie. We have a very strong conviction in the importance of a free press and our son Chris Mundy and grandson Max Griffith both had wonderful journalism experiences at Westside [High School]. Thus, we established a journalism scholarship.
How have you been able to partner with the Foundation in service to your clients?
OCF serves an advisor’s clients in several ways: As a backroom technical source, as an educational resource, and as an ultimate long-term administrator for philanthropic funding and distribution of a client’s charitable gifts.
Describe your experiences as part of the Chartered Advisor in Philanthropy (CAP®) program. How has it impacted your work with your clients?
The Chartered Advisor in Philanthropy® program enables the participants to better understand the perspectives of the non-profit community and the various planning disciplines. It helps stimulate a more collaborative planning process. And, the curriculum is great (and massive).
What have you found most valuable in working with the Foundation?
I have great confidence in the folks at the Omaha Community Foundation, in their nuts and bolts knowledge, their independence and objectivity, their awareness of the nuances of family dynamics, their commitment to confidentiality, and in their communication skills.
Tell us more about why you decided to establish your scholarship at the Foundation?
For all the reasons previously noted and one other: continuity and stability. An individual organization, or a museum or even a school district can change or even cease to exist and so we wanted the permanence and flexibility that an Omaha Community Foundation represents.
Tell us about your company, Legacy Preservation, and how you started it?
Legacy Preservation is the brainchild of my partners Jim Fogarty, David Harding and myself (our fourth partner, John Dechant joined us 2008). All of us knew or knew of individuals and families who had interesting stories that were untold. We knew that was also true for businesses. Our job is to help our clients capture these stories in a hardbound book for current and future generations and often for friends and sometimes for business colleagues.
Why do you think it’s important for families to preserve their legacy in writing?
Among other things, including the telling of family history and stories, Legacy books can help pass down values, ethical beliefs, and spiritual convictions. They are life-affirming, honor family members, describe the culture of the times and are a gift to current and future generations.
In your experience, how have you seen individuals considering their legacy impact their philanthropic giving?
I believe gratitude for their own good fortune along with a desire to be remembered is at the core of philanthropic giving.
Check out the Advisor Resources page to access a toolkit with information for advisors and their clients, including legacy giving planning.