The Racine Zoo relies on revenue from guest fees, memberships, and donations to flourish and grow. Support received from the community allows the Zoo to provide excellent animal care, improve facilities, and educate thousands of children each year. Like many of our endangered animals, the Zoo needs help to guarantee its future.
There are many ways to give. Your gift of money or time (through our volunteer program) will make a considerable impact on people and wildlife alike.
Here are the ways you can support the Racine Zoo:
Become a Member
Become a member of the Racine Zoo.
Become a Corporate Member
Become a corporate member of the Racine Zoo.
The Racine Zoo relies on the generosity of people just like you to survive. Please consider making a charitable donation of any size at any time of the year. You can make your gift in honor or in memory of someone special, too.
Adopt An Animal Program
With your donation, you can become a Zoo Parent with the Animals Depend on People Too (A.D.O.P.T.) Program for an animal at the Racine Zoo for an entire year. More...
Buy A Brick Program
Leave a lasting impression! Personalized bricks are the perfect gift for friends or family, or to remember a loved one. More...
In Kind Gifts (Treats, Toys, Supplies for the Animals)
The Animal Care Specialists need treats and toys for the animals. They also need some basic supplies to keep the animals' environments as tidy as possible. If you can help, click on the section you are most interested in for a complete list. More...
Volunteer Opportunities
You belong in the Zoo! Become a volunteer today! Of all the ways that a person can support Racine's number one cultural asset, becoming Zoo volunteer has to be one of the most rewarding. More...
Corporate Sponsorships
There are numerous ways to affiliate with the Zoo through corporate partnerships that provide excellent naming rights. Capital gifts, event sponsorships, educational sponsorships, and collection or habitat sponsorships rank among our top giving categories. More...
Planned Giving
Leaving a legacy is a wonderful way to plan your future along with the Racine Zoo's Kama's Legacy Circle. The Circle was named after the white tiger born at the Zoo and was created to recognize friends of the Racine Zoological Society (RZS) who have endorsed our mission by including the RZS in their estate plans or by making planned gifts. These generous individuals share our passion for wildlife and the natural world and wish to ensure the future of the Racine Zoo. They have accepted a personal responsibility over the precious resources that have so enriched all of our lives. These individuals have helped ensure that future generations will have the opportunity to have a wildlife experience that improves the bond between people and nature. Estate gifts support a wide range of donor interest:
- Conservation education programs
- Saving and caring for wildlife
- Building and renovating exhibits
- Conservation initiatives
We hope that you consider joining this special group of supporters. If you have already made provisions for the RZS in your estate plans, we encourage you to share your intentions with the Zoo so that we can welcome you as a member of Kama's Legacy Circle.
Endowing the Future
A stronger endowment is the Racine Zoo's single most important philanthropic priority and the best way to fulfill the pledge to provide the best possible animal care and improve the Zoo for generations to come. Unrestricted endowment provides the financial base to ensure that the Zoo can remain a world-class recreation, education and conservation facility.
The cost of operating a modern zoological park increases annually and will rise dramatically with each new naturalistic exhibit. Life support and enrichment systems for the animals are sophisticated. Maintenance of the naturalistic habitats and interactive learning tools is costly. The charge to educate broadly and conserve wildlife internationally must be met by employing and supporting professional staff of the highest caliber.
Exhibit endowments will enrich the lives and care of animals and support projects that delight guests.
Education and conservation endowments will ensure that funds are available to expand existing initiatives and launch new programs in these vitally important arenas.
Curator and senior staff endowments will provide the necessary prestige and permanent funding to attract and keep talented staff.
Campus and facilities endowments will enable the Zoo to invest in its physical space, ensuring that paths, exhibits, and buildings are accessible to all and making the Zoo an even more beautiful oasis in the community.
Endowments allow the Racine Zoo to delight and engage thousands of guests every year in learning about the natural world.
Guaranteed Payments for Life
Charitable giving doesn't have to be a one-way proposition. It is possible to make a charitable gift and actually have an income stream flow back to you - all while generating valuable income tax benefits.
Gift annuities are popular plans that can help you make a substantial gift to the Racine Zoo while still providing for your personal financial needs. They offer significant tax benefits and depending on the asset contributed may even increase your cash flow. You will receive income for life where a portion is most often tax-free and receive an immediate tax charitable deduction. You can also reduce your estate tax in certain cases.
Charitable gift annuity is a simple contract providing for our payment to you (and an optional second beneficiary) of a fixed income for life in return for your contribution. The gift annuity offers you the assurance of an income that will not fluctuate, and payments that are secured by all the assets of the Racine Zoo.
You will receive a charitable income tax deduction for your gift annuity, based on the full value of the assets you contributed minus the present value of the life-income interest you retained.
Many younger donors create a series of deferred gift annuities over multiple years, jointly timed to begin income payments when they retire. To fund their gifts, they use assets they've already designated for retirement savings. Their deferred gift annuities give them an income tax deduction when they most need it and secure an additional source of retirement income for their later years.
A decision to make a charitable gift should be planned according to personal needs and goals, as well as assets and charitable interest.
Please be sure to check with your attorney and tax consultant before making these decisions.
Appreciated Securities
You may wish to consider using appreciated securities to enhance your giving. The IRS still allows a notable tax break for individuals considering a charitable gift. Donors may deduct the full, fair market value of appreciated assets given to the Zoo, with no recognition of capital gains. That means that donors can leverage a large donation and charitable deduction using an asset with a small cost basis.
If you own stock, it is almost always more tax-wise to contribute stock rather than cash. This is because a gift of appreciated stock generally offers a two-fold tax savings. First, you avoid paying any capital gains tax on the increase in value of the stock. Second, you receive an income tax charitable deduction for the full fair market value of the stock at the time of the gift.
Your gift supports the Racine Zoo, helps meet the needs of school children through educational programs, improves a Zoo that promotes tourism and economic growth, continues conservation efforts and preservation of natural resources, and continues memories for generations to come.
Answering the Call
If you are interested in leaving a legacy, creating an endowment, guaranteed payments for life, appreciated securities, or becoming a sponsor for life, please call Jay Christie, President and CEO of the Racine Zoo at 262-636-9291. Or fill out the form below and click on the submit button and it will be sent directly to Jay Christie, President and CEO of the Racine Zoo.
© 2008 Racine Zoological Society