The Smarter Giving Guy » classes

Class: May 25, 2010, 7:30 am, El Segundo, CA 90245

SG Guy — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 15:26:15 +0000

Ed Long will be providing a two-hour “Smarter Giving” program in El Segundo, California, for the California Society of CPAs. The meeting is open to CPAs, accountants and allied financial professionals; $25 charge (includes breakfast). CEUs available. The meeting begins at 7:30 am, and the program at 8. Contact Peter McNeil [310-753-1974] for location and more information. Read more about our classes.

Class: June 21, 2010, 7:00 pm, Rolling Hills Estates, CA 90274C

SG Guy — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 21:29:09 +0000

Ed Long will be providing a 30-minute “Do Good Better” program for the Southwest Manuscripters. The meeting is open to the public; admission is free. The meeting begins at 6:00 pm, and the program at 7. Book signing following the program. Location: Peninsula Center Library Community Room, 701 Silver Spur Road, Rolling Hills Estates, CA 90274. Read more about our classes.

Daily Breeze highlights Smarter Giving program

SG Guy — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 02:12:11 +0000

In Sunday’s edition, the Daily Breeze newspaper highlighted the Smarter Giving program. I think it’s a darn good summary of what we’re trying to accomplish.

Take a look.

Our 2009 public classes are done, looking forward to 2010!

SG Guy — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 17:26:52 +0000

I completed our 2009 calendar of public classes yesterday — with a great program for 48 energetic and interested attendees at the gorgeous Terranea Resort in Rancho Palos Verdes.

We regularly present classes for public and private groups. We list only the public classes on this site.

Sponsored by a group of charities serving the Palos Verdes Peninsula, yesterday’s 90-minute program focused on strategies for year-end giving and tax-smart use of retirement plans.

I always ask for feedback at our classes. This time I asked attendees for feedback about the class they’d just attended, and to tell us (the sponsors and me) their preferences on topics for the future. The top three topics for future classes chosen by the attendees were

Taxes and giving (income, capital gains, estate taxes) (68%)
Estate giving tools and techniques — introduction (51%)
Researching charities before I donate (51%)

I’m ready, willing and able to talk about all three — and looking forward to doing it for public and private classes in 2010.

Class: Do Good Better

SG Guy — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 21:12:06 +0000

We’ve created unique new 25- to 60-minute class, great for service clubs and other community groups that have regular speakers. Here’s our brief description:

It’s never been more important to give to charity.

As government services continue to decline, people depend more and more on charities for education, hospital, social and other needed services.

Charities depend on individuals, couples and families for more than 80% of their donated support.

It’s never been more important to be a smart giver. A smart giver,

Directs their giving to needs, causes and issues that matter most to them.

Donates to strong charities doing solid work with the dollars entrusted to them.

Avoids weak charities and those that spend more on fundraising than on their missions.

Presented by “charity insider” and nationally-known elder law attorney and nonprofit founder Ed Long, “Do Good Better” is an interactive program designed to help attendees distinguish strong from weak charities and become more strategic and confident in their giving.

Program length: 25 to 60 minutes (including Q&A) depending on the wishes of the group. For more information on this and other classes see the Classes page at www.smartergivingguy.com, or email staff@smartergivingguy.com, or call us at (310) 612-1146.

November 2009

Class: November 9, 10 am, Rancho Palos Verdes, CA 90275

Staff — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 01:27:55 +0000

We’ll be providing a 90-minute Smarter Giving program at the fabulous Terranea Resort for a group of charities serving the Palos Verdes Peninsula. We’ll focus on strategies for year-end giving and tax-smart use of retirement plans. The class is open to the public; there is no charge to attend. Call (310) 378-2278 or email rsvp@pvpef.org for reservations or more information. The sponsoring charities include Peninsula Friends of the Library, Peninsula Education Foundation, Palos Verdes Art Center, Caring House, H.E.L.P., Palos Verdes Peninsula Land Conservancy and The Norris Center for the Performing Arts.

We regularly present classes for public and private groups. We list only the public classes on this site.

Class: November 5, 2009, 6:45 pm, Rolling Hills Estates, CA 90274

Staff — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 22:05:44 +0000

We’ll be providing a 45-minute 13 Things to Know Before You Give to a Charity program for the American Association of University Women (Palos Verdes Peninsula Branch). The meeting is open to the public; admission is free. Refreshments and conversation at 6:45 pm, program at 7. Location: Peninsula Center Library Community Room, 701 Silver Spur Road, Rolling Hills Estates, CA 90274.

Class: August 6, 2009, 12:10 pm, Rolling Hills Estates, CA 90274

Staff — Sat, 25 Jul 2009 20:42:24 +0000

We’ll be providing a 30-minute 13 Things to Know Before You Give to a Charity program for the Kiwanis Club of Rolling Hills Estates as part of its August 6 luncheon meeting. The meeting is open to the public and potential new members. Call Ken Duke at 310-541-2638 for more information.

Class: August 5, 2009, 7:30 am, Rancho Palos Verdes, CA 90275

Staff — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 14:34:57 +0000

We’ll be providing a 30-minute 13 Things to Know Before You Donate to a Charity program for the Palos Verdes Peninsula Chamber of Commerce as part of its August 5 breakfast meeting. The meeting is open to the public; there is a charge to attend. Call 310-377-8111 or email office@palosverdeschamber.com for more information and reservations.

Classes – Great Comments Received

SG Guy — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 14:01:00 +0000

As part of our public and private classes, we ask attendees to take a few minutes and provide written feedback. The feedback helps us see if we’re getting our message across, and helps us create even better classes.

Recent responses to the question “what did you hear today that you’ll use . . .”

Resources for checking out organizations.
Questions to think about before giving.
Made me aware of the need to focus on what charities/causes I really believe in.
Systematic approach helpful.
Making a budget of time & $ for my giving (annually).
Research charities.
Publication 78.
Good point about total lifetime giving . . . .
Form 990.
Good research is available via the web.
How to check on charities thru tax returns.

Put them all together, and they provide an excellent summary of what our classes are all about.