FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
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Q. What is the history of the Foundation?
The UPUMC Foundation was founded on October 14, 1983 as a Texas nonprofit corporation. TheFoundation was founded to amass a corpus of assets which would be invested to generate income forthe benefit of the church. In addition to an initial gift of $25,000 from Freeman Ragan, there havebeen testamentary gifts from members who have died. Some of these gifts have created specialpurpose funds and are governed by the specific language of the decedents will. There are otherspecial purpose funds that have been established by Letters of Understanding between the Donorsand the Foundation trustees. There are presently 19 Funds valued at over $2.4 million, and 3 MineralFunds that comprise the total assets of the Foundation.
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Q. Can we use Foundation assets to retire our debt?
No. All Foundation assets are held in designated special purpose funds. Proceeds of these funds can only be used for the purpose originally established for each fund.
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Q. Is the Foundation income a line item in the church's operating budget?
Yes. The church forecasts anticipated gifts from the Foundation and includes that projection in itsincome estimate for the next operating budget year.
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Q. Who manages the Foundation's money, where is it invested and howmuch do we pay in fees?
From its inception, all Foundation assets were invested in fixed rate bond funds at Texas MethodistFoundation (TMF). Over time, the investment return at TMF declined to less than one percent per year.In August 2013, Luther King Capital Management was selected by the trustees to manage Foundationinvestments. The following table provides a summary of investment management fees. in 2018, theFoundation paid a fee of $16,078 to LKCM.
INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT FEE SCHEDULE
Equities and Cash Equivalent0.75% on the first $2,000,000
0.50% on the next $73,000,000
0.35% on the next $75,000,000
0.25% over $150,000,000
Fixed Income
0.50% on the first $2,000,000
0.35% on the next $3,000,000
0.25% over $5,000,000
Annual Minimum Fee: $15,000
Luther King utilizes Charles Schwab for all brokerage services and client transactions. A $4.95 brokercommission is charged by Charles Schwab for each transaction.
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Q. What is the Foundation's asset allocation target for investment of its funds?
To achieve its investment objective, the Foundation trustees divided Fund investments into two parts:a 70% equity allocation target and a 30% fixed income allocation target.
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Q. What is the Foundation's target return on investment? What is theactual performance for the last five years?
The Foundation currently has an 8% long term target for return on its investments. Following areactual annual performance results:
Year Performance
2012: 1.5% (TMF)
2013: 0.7% (Jan-Aug-TMF)
2013: 1.7% (Sept-Dec-LKCM)
2014: 4.7% (LKCM)
2015: -0.7% (LKCM)
2016: 8.1% (LKCM)
2017: 13.7% (LKCM)
2018: -.6% (LKCM)
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Q. What has been the growth since the Foundation was started in 1983?
The Foundation was started in 1983 with a gift of $25,000. On August 16, 2013, $1,729,925 was transferred from TMF to the new Charles Schwab Account. Today, there is $2,356,455 in the account, an increase of $626,530 (+36.2%) from donations, growth and earnings.
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Q. How do you determine the trailing 3-year average for annual distributions?
The distribution policy is targeted at 4 to 5% of the trailing 3-year average value of the Fund as of December 31. This trailing 3-year average is determined by taking the sum of the previous three 12/31 Fund balances divided by 3.
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Q. Is an annual distribution made if the investments do not make enough money during the year?
The Foundation Trustees evaluate Fund performance at the end of each year to determine the amount that will be distributed. In addition to the 3-year trailing average, the Trustees evaluate current and forecasted market conditions. In the event that past market performance is below expectation and future market trends are negative, the Trustees may elect to decrease the amount of money being distributed, including the option of not making a distribution.
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Q. What were the Foundation's distributions in 2018?
UPUMC Operating Budget
$67,104
Mission Projects
$1,344
Scholarships
$13,281
Youth Ministry
$1,457
Waco Methodist Home
$7015
CC Young
$5,558
TOTAL Distributions
$95,759
