Where does charitable giving fit into your financial plan? For many families, the answer is nowhere in particular. Charitable giving happens in December, in a hurry, disconnected from the careful planning that guides all other financial decisions.  

It doesn’t have to work that way. When a community foundation joins your team of professional advisors – financial planners, accountants, and estate attorneys – giving becomes part of the plan rather than an afterthought to it. 

At Park City Community Foundation, we’ve seen firsthand how much stronger a giving plan becomes when your wealth team and your community foundation work together. This isn’t about replacing the advisors you already trust. It’s about giving them a partner who knows the local landscape, the causes that matter in Park City and Summit County, and the charitable tools that can make your giving go further. 

Why This Partnership Matters 

Financial planners, accountants, and estate attorneys are often the first people to hear about a client’s charitable intentions, sometimes before those intentions are even fully formed. A 2025 study by Bank of America, conducted in partnership with the Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy, found that 81% of affluent households gave to charity in 2024. Philanthropy is clearly already part of the financial picture for many families. 

The opportunity is in the conversation. Research from The Philanthropic Initiative’s 2026 Study of the Philanthropic Conversation found that 88% of high-net-worth clients consider it important to discuss philanthropy with their advisor, and 80% say advisors have a responsibility to raise the topic. Advisors are meeting the need and raising the topic – 90% now say it’s their standard practice, up from 80% in 2018 – but many say they want more support integrating a client’s charitable goals into their wealth plan.  

What they often need is a resource that can turn the conversation into a concrete, tax-smart, and personally meaningful plan. That’s where Park City Community Foundation comes in. 

What a Community Foundation Brings to the Table 

Think of the Community Foundation as an extension of your advisory team. When your financial planner, accountant, or estate attorney loops us in, we can help: 

• Select the right giving vehicle, whether that’s a donor-advised fund, a charitable remainder trust, a designated fund, or a gift of appreciated stock or real estate. 

• Maximize tax efficiency within the broader financial and estate plan your advisor is already building. 

• Connect giving to local impact, from affordable housing to education to healthcare to arts and culture, so clients can build their legacy in their community. 

• Support multigenerational giving, helping families build a philanthropic legacy that involves children and grandchildren, not just a single gift. 

Your advisors continue to manage your assets and build upon your existing relationship. We simply bring the philanthropic expertise and local knowledge that rounds out your plan. 

A Real Difference for Donors 

Bringing your advisors and the Community Foundation together makes giving simpler. Instead of a charitable gift being a side conversation squeezed in during tax season, it becomes a coordinated part of your overall financial and estate strategy – timed well, structured well, and aligned with what you care about. 

For our community, the effect compounds. Well-timed, well- structured gifts tend to be larger and more sustainable, and they often open the door to conversations about legacy giving that might not have happened otherwise. 

Starting the Conversation 

If you already have a financial planner, accountant, and/or estate attorney, the next step is simple: let them know you’re thinking about charitable giving and ask whether they’ve worked with a community foundation before. If they haven’t, we’re glad to introduce ourselves. And if you’re an advisor reading this, we’d welcome the chance to be a resource and help you help your clients give well. 

Community foundations exist because generosity is most powerful when we come together in support the places and organizations we care about. Pairing your professional team with Park City Community Foundation is one of the simplest ways to make sure your giving reflects not just your financial plan, but your values, and leaves a lasting mark on the place you call home. 

Interested in connecting your advisor with the Community Foundation? Reach out to Alexis Brown, VP of Development, at alexis@parkcitycf.org – we’d love to start the conversation.