Recently, I helped a client prepare for a multimillion-dollar donor conversation.

Most of our preparation focused on the immediate ask: the project, the amount, the donor’s history with the organization and how the opportunity should be presented.

But conversations like these always remind me of a bigger question:

Are we simply asking donors to fund today’s needs, or are we inviting them to shape the organization’s future?

That question became even more important when I read the newly released Giving USA 2026 report.

Americans gave a record $617.2 billion to charitable organizations in 2025. Giving grew 5.7 percent overall, even amid economic uncertainty and concerns about household finances.

But the headline does not tell the whole story.

The real growth came from bequests

Charitable bequests reached approximately $62.2 billion, an increase of nearly 20 percent over the previous year. That increase accounted for roughly one-third of the total growth in charitable giving during 2025.

Individuals still contributed 64 percent of all charitable dollars. When bequests are included, living and deceased individuals accounted for approximately 74 percent of all giving.

The message for nonprofit leaders is clear:

Your long-term financial strength will be built through relationships with people, not simply through grants, corporate partnerships or annual campaigns.

Yet many organizations still do not have a meaningful planned-giving strategy.

They wait until a donor brings it up.

They bury planned giving somewhere on the website.

They assume only extremely wealthy people leave charitable gifts.

Or they avoid the conversation because talking about estates and death feels uncomfortable.

That hesitation could cost your organization millions of dollars over time.

Planned gifts begin long before the estate documents

The donor who eventually leaves your organization a significant gift may not be your largest donor today.

It may be the person who has faithfully given $50 every month for 20 years.

It may be the volunteer who deeply understands your mission.

It may be the former board member who considers your organization part of their life’s story.

Planned giving is not primarily a legal strategy. It is a relationship strategy.

Before someone includes your organization in their will, they must believe three things:

1. The mission will still matter in the future.
2. The organization will steward the gift responsibly.
3. Their contribution will create a legacy worth leaving.

Those beliefs are built through years of clear communication, meaningful stewardship and organizational trust.

What nonprofit leaders should do now

Start by identifying your most loyal donors, not merely your wealthiest ones. Look at longevity, consistency, volunteer involvement and emotional connection to the mission.

Begin telling stories about legacy. Show supporters what could be possible 10, 20 or 50 years from now because someone chose to invest beyond their lifetime.

Make planned giving visible and normal. It should appear in donor communications, conversations, your website and your overall development strategy.

Most importantly, do not delegate every donor relationship to the development department.

Leaders must help people see the future.

Fundraisers can explain the giving options. Attorneys can prepare the documents. But organizational leaders must articulate the vision that makes someone want to leave a legacy.

The Giving USA report is encouraging. Generosity is alive and well.

But the organizations that benefit most from the coming transfer of wealth will not be the ones that suddenly launch a planned-giving page.

They will be the ones that have spent years earning the kind of trust that outlives the donor.

Tomorrow’s transformational gift begins with today’s relationship.

If your organization needs a stronger strategy for individual, major or legacy giving, Let’s talk.