Text Box:      FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                                       CONTACT:                                                               Bill Hawkins. President, GRANDgift SYSTEMS (877) 371-4197 Toll Free (512) 371-4197 (o) (512) 371-4198 (f) (512) 470-6475 (c) Bill.Hawkins@MyGrandGift.com   New Program Draws Gifts from Smaller Donors  to Strengthen Financial Future of Private Schools   AUSTIN, TX—June 22, 2008—GRANDgift SYSTEMS has announced a new program for alumni and others wanting to leave small gifts to their schools.  “Our primary focus is on private-sector universities, colleges, seminaries and K-12 schools which are not supported by public funds.  Our purpose is to help them increase foundation, endowment and reserve funds through planned gifts from smaller donors to augment, and to rely less on, larger gifts from major donors.  Our method is one that emphasizes simplicity—both to the donor arranging the gift and to the school’s staff soliciting it”, said Bill Hawkins, president of the special division of Equitable Life & Casualty Insurance Company that markets the program.                     GRANDgift is the name of the small gift-funding life insurance policy and gift-administration service developed specifically and exclusively for the purpose of paying proceeds as gifts, in installment, over time.  Hawkins said, “Installment-payouts were an essential part of the design as we created the product.  For the smaller donor who has a deep emotional attachment to his or her school, the GRANDgift SYSTEM provides a simple way to say, ‘Thanks’ and ‘Remember me’, and—most importantly—a simple way to say it not just once with one gift, but many times, with many gifts, over many years. We designed it to be affordable and used life insurance to guarantee that the cash for the gifts would be there, even if the donor passed away prematurely.  We designed it so that they could leave gifts in honor of someone else’s name.  And we designed it with the ability for the donor to add a personal note of thanks or hope on each gift-check, because that’s what they would do, if still here, writing the checks themselves”.   Of all the financial requirements of a private school, the one with which students, parents and grand-    parents are most familiar is tuition.  That familiarity makes designation of a gift as a scholarship to help             someone else a natural thing for the donor, and a natural solicitation appeal for the school.  Donors may     choose gift amounts of as little as $100 per year, or as much as $1,0000.  This flexibility is ideal for smaller donors wanting to fund partial scholarships, and makes it affordable for virtually any budget.  Gift-checks may  be paid to the school over 10 or more years.  This payout over several years not only enables the donor to say thanks to the school many times, it also permits the school in newsletters and websites to say thanks to the donor, again and again, making the donor feel appreciated and attracting other donors to give.  Premiums be-      gin at $14 per month and are income tax deductable when arranged properly.  Donors are advised to consult their tax specialist regarding their personal situations.                These small gifts in aggregate can be significant: 100 donors each arranging $1,000 annual gifts to be paid over 10 years equals an increase in endowments of $1,000,000.    GRANDgift SYSTEMS absorbs all costs of developing and implementing the program for participating schools.  Because the idea is simple, the policy is small ($15,000 maximum) and the procedure to apply is uncomplicated, the preferred way of conducting business is by phone, mail or email from the GRANDgift Planning Center in Austin, TX, rather than by an agent visiting donors in their homes.  GRANDgifts are               available in TX and other states.                                                        # # #  For Backgrounder, click here.     To return to the previous page, click here.     To return to the Home Page, click here.     To learn more about Equitable Life & Casualty, click here     To request information, click here.                                                                        CONTACT:                                                                         Bill Hawkins. President, GRANDgift SYSTEMS (877) 371-4197 Toll Free (512) 371-4197 (o) (512) 371-4198 (f) (512) 470-6475 (c)   Bill.Hawkins@MyGrandGift.com www.MyGrandGift.com  2802 Flintrock Trace, Suite 214, Austin, TX 78738   .