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Caring for the Future of Sarnia-Lambton

The Future Fund’s primary goal is to provide a permanent source of sustainable income for the United Way to invest directly into programs and services in Sarnia-Lambton.

Ways To Give

What Is The Sarnia-Lambton Future Fund?

The Sarnia Lambton Future Fund Foundation is a charitable organization of local volunteers whose role is to promote non-workplace donating to the United Way, and that these contributions, often referred to as “planned gifts“,  are safely invested to provide annual, sustainable revenue to our partner agency, the United Way of Sarnia-Lambton for direct agency program investment.

Young girl drawing sushi

The United Way of Sarnia-Lambton is known for its annual fall campaign; payroll deduction, BBQs and fundraising lunches, and direct mail are all the traditional fund-raising methods that quickly come to mind when we hear those words “United Way Campaign“.

In recent years the United Way has also been involved in promoting “planned gifts“; the concept of giving through an individual’s will, but might also include donating life Insurance, appreciated assets, charitable gift annuities, etc. All have very unique tax savings. The United Way of Sarnia-Lambton’s policy is to never spend those one-time, and often large contributions, and instead invest that money to provide annual, sustainable revenue to the United Way of Sarnia-Lambton.

Over the years, this amount of money has grown to nearly $3,000,000 plus an annual inflow of over 3.5% to the United Way each and every year.

This is why the Sarnia Lambton Future Fund Foundation was developed; a group of local volunteers whose role is to promote this kind of giving and to work with financial advisors to grow the principle. This cost-effective strategy will increase that annual revenue for the United Way, enabling the United Way Board and staff to focus on the annual campaign as well as  annual funding of local programs and services, enabling the Sarnia Lambton Future Fund Foundation to focus on promoting planned giving to the United Way.

The Sarnia-Lambton Future Fund encourages Sarnia-Lambton residents to donate portions of their will and through other means to the United Way (or directly to the SLFFF), and those contributions will be invested with the SLFFF and provide that stable, sustainable revenue to the United Way for many years to come.

We encourage people in our community to Leave a Legacy, and by donating a Planned Gift to the United Way of Sarnia-Lambton, their contributions will provide annualize funding for agencies each and every year…. forever.

About Future Fund

The Future Fund focusses its activity on encouraging individuals from Sarnia-Lambton to leave a legacy and make planned gifts to the United Way including Bequests, donations through wills and donation of life Insurance policies etc., and conservatively investing those contributions to provide lasting funding to local programs and services. This allows our partner charity, the United Way of Sarnia-Lambton, to focus all its efforts on the annual fall campaign and invest those funds, and the Future Fund Foundation revenues, into impactful local programs and services.

Learn About Future Fund

Ways To Give

There are a number of ways individuals in Sarnia-Lambton can support the activities of the Sarnia-Lambton Future Fund Foundation. We encourage contributions of all types to come through the United Way, or the future fund foundation itself for all term investment so that sustainable income is realized. The most common Planned Gift” donation method is by donating bequests through wills, but other planned gifts including stocks and equities, life insurance policies, even property and charitable annuity trusts are just a few of the others.

Ways You Can Help

Impact On The community

The recent COVID-19 pandemic has affected in many ways the methods used by the United Way of Sarnia- Lambton to raise funds in his annual campaign. Fortunately, volunteer boards in the past set up the future fund foundation, which has provided ongoing, sustainable funding for the United Way that is being used for direct agency funding. Future donations through wills, etc., will have an even greater measurable impact on individuals, families, and the community at large as future generations in need will have access to much needed programs and services as a result of this stable revenue annually.

Read About Our Impact

10 Year Plus YTD Growth Chart

Annual United Way Contribution

Total Portfolio Value

10 Year Plus YTD Growth Chart
YearTotal Portfolio ValueAnnual United Way Contribution
2015$1,868,716$0
2016$1,968,047$0
2017$2,285,973$0
2018$2,176,290$18,318
2019$2,511,000$58,633
2020$2,649,474$103,865
2021$2,860,000$102,300
2022$2,517,053$158,859
2023$2,532,211$158,107
2024 YTD$2,793,978$180,799

Memorial donations made to the United Way of Sarnia-Lambton and invested with The Sarnia-Lambton Future Fund Foundation

Each year, many donors make additional, or first time, donations to the United Way of Sarnia-Lambton, in memory of a friend or loved one who recently passed.

The United Way invests those generous donations with the Sarnia-Lambton Future Fund Foundation and the investment revenue is used for direct community programming each and every year.

We want to recognize all those who have had legacy donations made on their behalf.

2024 YTD

Josie Boyles

Sue Barnes

Sarnia Elks Lodge

2023

Larry Gordon

Edward Ramsden

Kathleen McGogan

Robert Bruce Jones

Howard McIver

2022

David A Brown

Joyce Potter

Richard Needham

Bob O’Krafka

Margaret Davids

Leonard Hurren

Hear From Some Of Our Community Investment Groups

“We are proud that our grandmother made a significant donation of a life insurance policy to the United Way of Sarnia-Lambton. Members of our family have used services funded by the United Way in the past, and with our grandmother’s contribution, she is helping to ensure that those programs and services continue for future generations.”

Sophie & Annika