This Wills Month, we're inviting people across Te Tauihu to think about the people, places and causes that matter most to them, and how a gift in their Will can continue making a difference for generations to come. 

Preparing a Will is about more than deciding who receives your possessions. It's an opportunity to reflect on the people, places and causes that have shaped your life. 

September is Wills Month, a reminder to review one of life's most important documents and make sure it reflects what's important to you. After providing for family and loved ones, many people also choose to leave a gift that continues supporting the community they care about. 

At Top of the South Community Foundation, we work alongside generous people who want their gift to keep making a difference. Whether your passion is helping young people, protecting our environment, supporting the arts, improving health and wellbeing, or strengthening local communities, a gift in your Will can continue supporting those causes for generations to come. 

More Than a Will

There's an old saying that a community flourishes when people plant trees under whose shade they will never sit. 

Leaving a gift in your Will is one way of planting that seed for the future. 

Your family and loved ones will always come first. Many people also choose to leave a percentage of their estate, a specific gift, or what's left after providing for family, to support the community that has given them so much throughout their lives. 

Through Top of the South Community Foundation, every gift is carefully invested and managed so it continues making a difference year after year. Rather than being spent once, your generosity becomes an ongoing source of funding for local charities and community organisations across Te Tauihu. 

It's a simple idea that creates lasting impact. 

The Gift That Keeps Giving

One of the things that makes community foundations unique is that every gift is designed to keep giving. 

Rather than being spent all at once, gifts are invested through an endowment fund. The original gift remains protected, while the investment income is distributed each year to support local charities and community organisations across Te Tauihu. 

It adds up. If you left $100,000 to Top of the South Community Foundation today, over the next 50 years more than $262,000 would be distributed back into the community, while around $175,000 would remain invested, still working for future generations. 

That's the difference between a gift that's given once, and a gift that keeps giving.

A Story of Giving 

"It's not how you start off. It's all about how you finish." - Gay Sweeney

Gay Sweeney spent her working life finding her voice, first on the airwaves, then in public relations. These days, she's telling her own story, one that includes a serious brain injury, years of learning to live differently, and a decision to leave a gift in her Will to help others facing the same journey. 

Gay has asked that her gift help fund an ongoing, part-time support role for people living with brain injury on the West Coast, somewhere she saw firsthand how easily people can be left feeling forgotten and alone. 

“I hope my gift helps negate that sense of hopelessness and isolation that people feel,” she says.

Resources

Inspired by Gay's story? 

Whether you're preparing your first Will, reviewing an existing one, or simply exploring how a gift in your Will could support the people and places you care about, these resources are a great place to start. 

Will Information Pack 

A practical guide to preparing or updating your Will, understanding the different ways you can leave a gift, and how your generosity can continue supporting Te Tauihu for generations. 

Frequently Asked Questions 

Answers to the questions we're most often asked about leaving a gift in your Will, how community foundations work, and how your gift can continue making a difference over time.

We'd Love to Talk

Leaving a gift in your Will is a personal decision, and everyone's circumstances are different. 

Whether you're just beginning to think about your Will, updating an existing one, or would simply like to understand your options, we'd love to have a conversation. 

There's no obligation, just an opportunity to talk about the people, places and causes that matter most to you, and how a gift in your Will could continue supporting your community for generations to come. 

Chelsea Routhan 

CEO, Top of the South Community Foundation 

027 205 3111 

[email protected]