What to do with $ I don’t want

[Anonymous]

spend $5k on an investigator to find a descendant of the plantation and just give them the money. That seems like a more equitable reallocation of the funds than to give to some bloated non-profit allegedly helping people of color when they're mostly paying for their posh furniture. don't go the non-profit route. Most of them are corrupt and self-interested.

[Anonymous]

I haven't inherited a lump sum to donate, but I've learned that some of my ancestors were slave owners in Mississippi and Arkansas. So I look on DonorsChoose for teachers to help in those communities and small charities/schools that I can donate to directly.

You're a good person, OP

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:With all due respect, you're crazy.

Are you a good person? Don't you live by precepts of earth-friendly stewardship, and teach your children to respect all peoples? Don't you want to build generational wealth for these kids whom you have raised to be caring citizens of the world?

If I were you, I would take the money, and when your children are older, gift it to them in several batches so they can invest when young.
Investing early is how I became wealthy in middle age. Buy and hold is an excellent strategy for stocks, but it takes time to come to fruition.

Here’s how well-off lots of descendants of wealthy former slavers are: they have so many advantages in life and so much wealth that they can give away $225K and it’s no real hit to their bottom line.

OP here again. Exactly. We aren’t rich like my great greats were, but we’re plenty comfortable. We’re comfortable enough to be able to decline that money because it feels dirty. We work for our money, and I’d love for others to be able to be in our shoes.

I love these ideas. Especially the donor advised funds. Anonymous is great. Thanks for the great ideas.

OP, I work with high net worth individuals as a grantmaker; I've done this work for many, many years. I agree with the ideas to 'hold' it for a period of time (perhaps a year), and you can always put some or all of it in a donor advised fund if you need to 'park' the money somewhere and don't want to be 'tempted' to spend it. You might think about making some 'small experimental' grants for a year and seeing how it goes. Are you a reader? I can recommend some books you could get to help you think about the legacy work here. You might also want to spend a few thousand of that money to hire someone to talk with you and help you plan how to spend it in an impactful way. That person could also be your 'go between' if you want to truly remain much more anonymous.

In the realm of donor advised funds, the cheapest fees are usually at Schwab. You could also see if there is a local community foundation in your geographical area and invest the funds in a DAF at the local community foundation. They may have a staffperson you can consult with there, who can help guide you on doing your giving (without hiring someone extra). you have to know that when you set up a DAF, they have a vested interest in getting you to keep money in the DAF/not spend it down.

OP here. Yes would appreciate book recommendations, thank you! I guess I thought this amount is too small to set up something lasting under my own control. It isn’t millions of dollars. On the other hand, surely it can help some people. Thank you for all of this information. Very helpful!

If you want to distribute it over a period of time, a DAF is actaully perfect for you. You can spend it over a period of time. DAFs often begin at $10k or $20k minimums, so the amount you have is definitly accepted. The corpus can be invested (and ideally continue to grow or at the least get interest) if you are not deploying it to the field all at one. I really disagree with the posters saying to do 'stealth philanthorpy' or find a descendent and just give that person money. For a vareity of reasons, that is problematic IMHO.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I would donate the money to a cause overseas where you get more bang for your buck. Throwing money at some of these problems in the US isn't going to change anything.

The NAACP’s Legal Defense Fund, mentioned above, absolutely has changed things.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:With all due respect, you're crazy.

Are you a good person? Don't you live by precepts of earth-friendly stewardship, and teach your children to respect all peoples? Don't you want to build generational wealth for these kids whom you have raised to be caring citizens of the world?

If I were you, I would take the money, and when your children are older, gift it to them in several batches so they can invest when young.
Investing early is how I became wealthy in middle age. Buy and hold is an excellent strategy for stocks, but it takes time to come to fruition.

Here’s how well-off lots of descendants of wealthy former slavers are: they have so many advantages in life and so much wealth that they can give away $225K and it’s no real hit to their bottom line.

OP here again. Exactly. We aren’t rich like my great greats were, but we’re plenty comfortable. We’re comfortable enough to be able to decline that money because it feels dirty. We work for our money, and I’d love for others to be able to be in our shoes.

I love these ideas. Especially the donor advised funds. Anonymous is great. Thanks for the great ideas.

OP, I work with high net worth individuals as a grantmaker; I've done this work for many, many years. I agree with the ideas to 'hold' it for a period of time (perhaps a year), and you can always put some or all of it in a donor advised fund if you need to 'park' the money somewhere and don't want to be 'tempted' to spend it. You might think about making some 'small experimental' grants for a year and seeing how it goes. Are you a reader? I can recommend some books you could get to help you think about the legacy work here. You might also want to spend a few thousand of that money to hire someone to talk with you and help you plan how to spend it in an impactful way. That person could also be your 'go between' if you want to truly remain much more anonymous.

In the realm of donor advised funds, the cheapest fees are usually at Schwab. You could also see if there is a local community foundation in your geographical area and invest the funds in a DAF at the local community foundation. They may have a staffperson you can consult with there, who can help guide you on doing your giving (without hiring someone extra). you have to know that when you set up a DAF, they have a vested interest in getting you to keep money in the DAF/not spend it down.

OP here. Yes would appreciate book recommendations, thank you! I guess I thought this amount is too small to set up something lasting under my own control. It isn’t millions of dollars. On the other hand, surely it can help some people. Thank you for all of this information. Very helpful!

If you want to distribute it over a period of time, a DAF is actaully perfect for you. You can spend it over a period of time. DAFs often begin at $10k or $20k minimums, so the amount you have is definitly accepted. The corpus can be invested (and ideally continue to grow or at the least get interest) if you are not deploying it to the field all at one. I really disagree with the posters saying to do 'stealth philanthorpy' or find a descendent and just give that person money. For a vareity of reasons, that is problematic IMHO.

Also I would just add that Schwab doesn't care if you keep money in your DAF-- or they may care in the abstract but you'll never know. The only time I've ever heard from Schwab about my DAF is one time I wanted to give money to a tiny organization and they couldn't find a mailing address so they reached out to me and I reached out to the org.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I would look into health ngos like Delta Health.

I don't think that term is appropriate.

[Anonymous]

When I read a news story about someone being persecuted by the police or government, I donate to their GoFundMe.

I buy unnecessary services from small Black-owned business.

[Anonymous]

Go visit Mississippi on vacation, and give big tips at all the shops.

[Anonymous]

donate it to Howard or the Washington Jesuit Academy

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I would look into health ngos like Delta Health.

I don't think that term is appropriate.

What term? NGO? Non-governmental organization

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I would donate the money to a cause overseas where you get more bang for your buck. Throwing money at some of these problems in the US isn't going to change anything.

The NAACP’s Legal Defense Fund, mentioned above, absolutely has changed things.

This is correct. Please be aware that NAACP LDF is a separate organization from NAACP. I'd happily give money to LDF.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:When I read a news story about someone being persecuted by the police or government, I donate to their GoFundMe.

I buy unnecessary services from small Black-owned business.

Giving to random gofundme's is not really an effective use of money. It's better to give to organizations that separate the viable from nonviable claims. Or give to organizations like public defender services.

[Anonymous]

Equal Justice Initiative is a great charity to support

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I would look into health ngos like Delta Health.

I don't think that term is appropriate.

An NGO is a Non-Governmental Organization

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:With all due respect, you're crazy.

Are you a good person? Don't you live by precepts of earth-friendly stewardship, and teach your children to respect all peoples? Don't you want to build generational wealth for these kids whom you have raised to be caring citizens of the world?

If I were you, I would take the money, and when your children are older, gift it to them in several batches so they can invest when young.
Investing early is how I became wealthy in middle age. Buy and hold is an excellent strategy for stocks, but it takes time to come to fruition.

Here’s how well-off lots of descendants of wealthy former slavers are: they have so many advantages in life and so much wealth that they can give away $225K and it’s no real hit to their bottom line.

OP here again. Exactly. We aren’t rich like my great greats were, but we’re plenty comfortable. We’re comfortable enough to be able to decline that money because it feels dirty. We work for our money, and I’d love for others to be able to be in our shoes.

I love these ideas. Especially the donor advised funds. Anonymous is great. Thanks for the great ideas.

OP, I work with high net worth individuals as a grantmaker; I've done this work for many, many years. I agree with the ideas to 'hold' it for a period of time (perhaps a year), and you can always put some or all of it in a donor advised fund if you need to 'park' the money somewhere and don't want to be 'tempted' to spend it. You might think about making some 'small experimental' grants for a year and seeing how it goes. Are you a reader? I can recommend some books you could get to help you think about the legacy work here. You might also want to spend a few thousand of that money to hire someone to talk with you and help you plan how to spend it in an impactful way. That person could also be your 'go between' if you want to truly remain much more anonymous.

In the realm of donor advised funds, the cheapest fees are usually at Schwab. You could also see if there is a local community foundation in your geographical area and invest the funds in a DAF at the local community foundation. They may have a staffperson you can consult with there, who can help guide you on doing your giving (without hiring someone extra). you have to know that when you set up a DAF, they have a vested interest in getting you to keep money in the DAF/not spend it down.

OP here. Yes would appreciate book recommendations, thank you! I guess I thought this amount is too small to set up something lasting under my own control. It isn’t millions of dollars. On the other hand, surely it can help some people. Thank you for all of this information. Very helpful!

It is too small, in my opinion. Don't bother. Just donate to one place and move on with your life.