Kiddo! Endowment for the Arts

The Kiddo! Endowment for the Arts was created to establish a legacy for future generations of students.

In 1986, upon the sale of a real estate donation, Kiddo! established the Kiddo! Endowment Fund with the aim of providing a perpetual source of secure funding for Kiddo! programs. In 2013, Bill Lampl took over as Executive Director of Kiddo! and as a tribute to Kiddo’s Founding Director, Trisha Garlock, he proposed renaming the fund to the Kiddo Endowment for the Arts. Since then, the fund has had an average annual growth rate of close to 5% and has a current value of nearly $7 million. Since the fund's creation, proceeds have been used to fund ongoing programs and seed promising new initiatives. Income from the Endowment currently funds approximately 12% of Kiddo!'s annual program expenses.

Please show your support by making a gift to the Endowment. Your contribution will help to sustain exemplary Kiddo!-funded programs that annually strengthen the education of all children in the Mill Valley School District.

Donate to the Endowment Today

There are numerous ways to contribute to the Kiddo! Endowment for the Arts right now:

Planned Giving Information and Resources

With some careful planning you can provide for your nearest and dearest and Kiddo! too! Planned gifts can support the future work of Kiddo! during your lifetime and beyond.

Over 70% of Americans give to charities that are important to them during their lifetime, yet only 6% provide for those organizations in their estates. Kiddo! encourages families who believe in the importance of education to invest a portion of their resources to the causes they feel are important in their lifetimes. Call Kiddo! for a referral to an estate planning attorney for an initial complimentary consultation.

For more information on the many ways to be involved, call (415) 389-7790.

Why We Give: Donor Testimonials

"We have been longtime supporters of Kiddo! We firmly believe in its vision and its mission. Kiddo! does great work and has been an integral part of our Mill Valley community for many years. Both of our sons and now our granddaughter have greatly benefited from the many educational programs that are funded by Kiddo! Our grandson will benefit in the future. We recently updated our estate planning and added Kiddo! to our gift list. It was quick and easy and was our way of supporting Mill Valley school children in the future." —Bob and Regina Canepa

Although our children graduated years ago, we still donate annually to the Kiddo! Endowment to support the Endowment's core mission of funding arts programs in perpetuity. We feel it is incumbent on those of us whose children have benefited from Kiddo! programs, to ensure that future generations of Mill Valley students will have those same wonderful opportunities. To make a more significant impact beyond our lifetime, we have also made a planned gift. We found that the easiest and most tax advantageous method for us was to name Kiddo! as the beneficiary of an existing IRA. Individual beneficiaries (including spouses) can be taxed as high as 39%, but Kiddo!, as a 501(c)3, will receive 100%! —Trisha and Jim Garlock

Gale and I remain enthusiastic about supporting KIDDO! even now with our children now longer in the MVSD K-8 system. We believe it's vitally important to support our local public schools and that it adds value to our community in so many ways. We also know what a fabulous job KIDDO! does and what a positive difference it makes. The Endowment is a terrific way to ensure KIDDO! will continue to help our children and community thrive for many years to come. —Jon and Gale Love

"We gave to the Kiddo! Endowment to say 'Thanks!' for helping us raise our children with the joy and smiles of singing, dancing and performing throughout their K-8 years. We want to make sure that all future generations of students will have the opportunity experience this same happiness!" —Jonathan and Deborah Goldman

"Appreciated property is one of the last areas where you can still give to your favorite charity, and get a substantial tax benefit which can be as high as 39%." —Jeff Freiberg

"We decided to contribute to the Kiddo! Endowment Fund so that our grandkids and future generations of children can also enjoy the benefits of the arts. We encourage other grandparents to join us in our effort." —Joyce and Rigomar Thurmer

"We contributed without using out-of-pocket cash. We avoided capital gains taxes. Some of this stock was twenty years old with a very low basis, but we were able to claim a charitable deduction for the full current market value. It was so easy! We just called Kiddo! and they sent us the appropriate forms and helped facilitate the transfer." —Paula and Bob Reynolds

"When we bought a new car, the dealer wouldn't give us much and we didn't want to go through the hassle of selling it ourselves. We just called Kiddo! and they referred us to a representative who picked up the car and handled all the paperwork and sent us a letter verifying the donation of the car. We were able to help Kiddo! and get a tax deduction. It was so simple!" —Anna Lazzarini (former MVMS Principal) and Mark Wagner

"For us, the solution to helping Kiddo! was to take out a life insurance policy with the premiums invested in a managed growth stock portfolio. The Kiddo! Endowment is the owner and beneficiary allowing the premiums we pay to be income tax deductible." —Jim and Mary Brock

Join Our Planned Giving Circle

Let us know you have included Kiddo! in your Gift and Estate plan, and join the community of others that have done the same. Submit this form to the Kiddo! office.

Alumni Stories

Learn how some of our former Kiddo! students are using their Kiddo! arts education today, and hear how Kiddo! programs affected their lives in their own words on our Alumni Profiles page. For more information on the many ways to be involved, call (415) 389-7790.