We’re part of Remember a Charity in your Will Week

Every day people do fantastic things for charitable causes like ours – sky diving, mountain climbing or marathon bike rides to name a few.

Leaving a gift in your will is much less extreme but an equally legendary act. That’s why we are taking part in Remember a Charity in your Will Week.

Writing a will is one of the most important things you will ever do. After you’ve taken care of your loved ones, you too can do something legendary by including a gift for our charity. All gifts, large or small make a difference.

As it is Remember a Charity in your Will Week we would like to take this opportunity to acknowledge the generosity and kindness of one of our recent legacy donors, Cynthia Steventon from Devon, a long time annuitant of The Furniture Makers’ Company. The gift left to us in her will enabled us to help someone else from the industry who found themselves in need.

Read on for the story about Grace, who benefitted from Cynthia’s generous legacy:

Until recently Grace, 57, who suffers from numerous health conditions and is currently unable to work, lived with her two adult daughters and her grandson. In 2014 both daughters left the family home, the youngest leaving her son behind in Grace’s care. As a result she lost 25 per cent of her housing allowance and quickly fell into rent arrears.

The local council offered to move her to a smaller one bedroom property that she could afford, but the rules meant that first Grace had to significantly reduce her outstanding rent arrears, which she was unable to do.

Subsequently the council decided to repossess her flat and were in the final stages of the process when The Furniture Makers’ Company stepped in to support her with a grant and advice on other areas, such as how to apply for guardianship of her grandson so she could claim child benefit for him.

This grant, enabled by generous donors such as Cynthia Steventon, came as a huge relief to Grace who was at risk of becoming homeless.

“I am excited and I thank God for this good news. 

“My prayers are answered, because I prayed like never before; and I even asked a friend to join me in weekly prayers until my breakthrough came and it is here at the end.”   Grace, London

As a long time annuitant herself, Cynthia was aware of the benefits of helping people on low incomes. Though she was unable to make a gift of this kind in her lifetime, she chose to thank the charity by asking for a gift to be made from her estate after she passed away. We hope that she would be pleased with the difference her grant has made.

The Company would like to thank Cynthia and all those who have, or plan to, remember our charity in their will.  It truly is a legendary act.

Click here for more details on how you can remember our charity in your will.

We are proud to be a member charity of Remember a Charity in your Will and support Remember a Charity in your Will Week, 7-13 September

Remember A Charity www.rememberacharity.org.uk was formed in 2000 and now has over 140 member charities, working together to encourage more people to leave a gift to charity in their Will.  Legacies form the foundation of charities in the UK.  Many charities depend on legacies, without them, they would not exist.

Remember A Charity is the Institute of Fundraising’s long-term campaign to increase legacy giving to charities.