Legacy Fund

Our Cathedral established a separately incorporated endowment fund in the Spring of 2005. The purpose of the endowment fund is to provide permanent financial support for our Cathedral’s ministry programs and other special needs. Gifts to the endowment are invested pursuant to a professionally designed investment strategy that targets long term returns of at least 8% and limits distributions in any given year to no more than 6% of the value of the fund. In other words, gifts to the endowment fund are effectively perpetual, and will continue to support our Cathedral and its programs long after the date of the original gift.

In this sense, our endowment fund helps to define and shape our Orthodox legacy for the future generations. For this reason, we have chosen to name our Annunciation Greek Orthodox Endowment Fund as The Annunciation Legacy Fund.

Your Annunciation Legacy Fund is described in greater detail on the following pages. In a relatively short period of time, the Annunciation Legacy Fund has become a first rate, state of the art endowment fund that includes the following key attributes:

• Professionally managed investment of all fund assets pursuant to an investment policy that (i) manage risk through diversification, (ii) seeks to achieve long term capital growth and capital preservation, and (iii) targets a five year retrun of 8% per year (after all fees and expenses).
• Annual distribution limit equal to 6% of the fund’s average value over the preceding 12 quarters.
• Separately incorporated Texas non-profit corporation with federal “tax exempt” status (contributions tax deductable).
• Separately prepared and independently audited financial statements.

The Annunciation Legacy Fund is also an excellent vehicle for the making of planed gifts that benefit our Cathedral. There are no better examples of planned gifts to our Cathedral that the gifts provided by the late Mrs. Anastasia Vasos Hill and the late Mrs. Helen Kostas Jones. In their respective wills, both of these women left the vast majority of their estates to the Cathedral. Mrs. Hill’s gift (approximately $1,200,000) is limited to providing support for “capital improvements” and Mrs. Jones’ gift (approximately $500,000) is unrestricted. At the 2006 Fall Parish Assembly meeting, the Parish Assembly approved the acceptance of these generous gifts and the placements of them into the Annunciation Legacy Fund. Both gifts have been received and are now a part of the Annunciation Legacy Fund.

The Annunciation Legacy Fund has also received memorial gifts and other cash gifts, in addition to approximately $125,000 in aggregate from the last two Greek Festivals. Whenever possible, gifts to the endowment from our Greek Festival are a wonderful way for our community to secure our Greek Orthodox heritage for future generations. Overall, the Annunciation Legacy Fund is off to a great start, with fund assets totaling approximately $2,100,000 as of August 31, 2007.

Please take a moment to review the following pages and consider investing in the future to Annunciation Legacy Fund or including it in your financial plans.

On behalf of the Board of Directors of the Annunciation Legacy Fund,
Richard K. McGee
President