FAQs
The following questions and answers may help you to understand more about the Appeal and some of the implications of making and not making a Will:
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It is a joint appeal by the four Central Masonic Charities (CMCs), i.e. The Freemasons' Grand Charity, The Masonic Samaritan Fund, The Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution, and The Royal Masonic Trust for Girls and Boys.
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HRH the Duke of Kent is Patron of the Appeal.
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The Appeal was originally announced at the Grand Lodge Quarterly Communication in December 2006.
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To increase awareness of the “cradle to the grave” facilities and services provided by the four CMCs within our extended Masonic Family (Freemasons, Widows and Dependants).
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To promote Legacy giving, particularly to the four CMCs.
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To underline the importance of making a Will.
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A Legacy is a gift left in a Will.
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Any Legacy Gift, of whatever kind and of whatever value, large or small, will be gratefully received and faithfully applied.
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Sometimes Legacy Gifts are referred to as “Bequests”.
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The three main types are Specific gifts, Pecuniary gifts and Residuary gifts.
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A Specific gift consists of a particular named item, covering anything from a piece of jewellery to a house.
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A Pecuniary gift consists of a fixed, specified amount of money.
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A Residuary gift consists of a part, or the whole, of the residue of an estate after all other gifts have been made, and any debts, taxes and expenses have been paid.
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It is true to say that our four CMCs currently receive income from Legacies. However, research confirmed that there was strong support for an appeal that could improve the understanding and intricacies of making a Legacy within a Will.
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Income from Legacies for our four CMCs remains considerably lower than might be expected from an organisation of our size.
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Currently our four CMCs expend over £20 Million per annum and receive approximately £3 Million per annum from Legacies.
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Research suggests that we could, and perhaps should, expect to receive as much as £10 - £12 Million in Legacy Gifts per annum.
Although some charities offer Will-writing services, the Legacy Appeal asks people who decide to leave a legacy gift to do so entirely independently.
The United Grand Lodge of England covers such a large number of Freemasons that it would be impossible for us to fairly produce a list of recommended legal or financial advisors. It would be equally unfair for us to set up a Will-writing scheme with selected professionals, therefore possibly taking business away from others. Unfortunately Freemasonry is often mistakenly conceived as a sort of "secret society" for its own members and for this reason the CMCs and the Legacy Appeal have to be very careful about maintaining impartiality.
Therefore if you are considering making a Will and/or leaving a legacy gift to one of the CMCs we regret that we cannot assist you in doing so with regard to your individual circumstances, and can provide general advice only.
In theory, any adult who is of sound mind can make a valid Will. However, nothing could be more infuriating than a Will being overturned or contested due to a legal technicality, and this can easily happen as a result of making a Will without seeking the appropriate professional advice. The best way to ensure your wishes are followed is to employ a suitably qualified professional. The money spent will surely be worth the peace of mind you will get from knowing your estate will be dispensed according to your wishes after your death.
You are of course under no obligation to disclose the contents of your Will to anyone. Therefore, although it would be useful to the Legacy Appeal if you do inform us of your intention to leave a legacy gift, returning the Pledge Form is entirely optional.
If you do send us a Pledge Form you will usually receive updates on your chosen charity/charities but if you prefer not to receive these just indicate this on your Pledge Form.
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If your wish to leave a donation is not stated in a legally valid Will, no charity will be able to receive any money from your Will.
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If you have not made a Will at all you will need to arrange for one to be drawn up and to include the legacy gift.
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If you already have a Will, it is necessary to amend it to include the Legacy Gift. The Will does not need to be re-written; the legacy gift can be included by adding what is called a codicil. As with all parts of the Will-making process we recommend professional advice is sought - writing a codicil incorrectly could mean the legacy gift is never granted, and could even invalidate the original Will.
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The Legacy Appeal will send general information on request, they do however strongly recommend that independent and professional legal advice is sought to either assist or confirm your arrangements. Legacy Appeal staff cannot issue anything which could be construed as legal advice.
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Currently there is no central fund for the Masonic charities and you need to specify which of the four CMCs you wish to benefit.
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If you wish to leave a gift to more than one of the CMCs you can leave it to be shared equally between your chosen Charities.
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The Legacy Appeal is completely separate from any other fund-raising initiatives for the CMCs, including Festivals.
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A Festival appeal is asking for support today; the Legacy Appeal is asking people to make a provision in their Will for the future, which hopefully will not come into effect for a long time. Whereas Festivals are about donating now, legacy gifts are a way to continue helping those in need even after you have gone.
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When the Appeal is launched in your province, volunteers will be sought to act as LLOs (Legacy Liaison Officers). The idea is for LLOs to do short presentations at Lodges and Chapters to spread the word about the Legacy Appeal to as many brethren as possible. As well as brethren, the Appeal is directed at Masonic wives and widows, so presentations can also be made at any ladies’ events. If a LLO has been recruited to cover your local area his contact details will be advertised in your local Masonic centre.
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In London, a Legacy Appeal Representative will be appointed for every Lodge and Chapter. He should be able to provide you with information or advise you where best to get that information.
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Arrangements are being made in conjunction with Provincial Offices, to hold at least one presentation to launch the Appeal in every Province.
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We will be more than happy to send you a Legacy Pack. You can contact the Legacy Appeal Office directly on 0203 116 0114 or by e-mail at info@cmc-legacy.org or, if you would prefer an officer of your lodge to contact the Appeal for you, we suggest asking your Almoner or Charity Steward. The Legacy Pack contains information about the four CMCs as well as information about Wills and legacies, and it includes a pledge form which you can return if you do decide to leave a legacy to the CMCs.
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You should contact a suitably qualified professional to arrange the writing of your Will.
Anyone can leave a legacy gift to the CMCs. We hope that the wives, widows and dependents of Freemasons will consider leaving a legacy gift to the CMCs, as they are all potential beneficiaries.
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Every day around 2,000 people die in the UK, but only a minority have made a Will; some of which are either invalid or not up-to-date.
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Around 20 million people in the UK have not yet written a Will.
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If you don't have a Will, there are rules for deciding who inherits your assets, depending on your personal circumstances, which may not be the way you would have wished your money or possesions to be distributed.
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If there is no Will, and qualifying relatives can't be found, the estate goes to the government. The government currently receives over £25 million per year from this source – this is more than our four Charities spend on beneficiaries.