Leave a legacy with a bequest in your Will

Leaving the world a better place for future generations is something many of us aspire to, and one way to do that is to provide a gift to HMRI in your Will for medical research. Your bequest will help save lives and change lives, now and into the future.

Many Australians donate to charities in their lifetime and some also leave a charitable bequest. In some cases, a bequest represents an opportunity for you to make a greater gift to medical research than you may have been able to give in your lifetime.

The benefits of medical research live on and on, long after you’re gone. Your bequest can be awarded through a competitive HMRI grant process, or strategically invested longer-term to support future medical research. Both options help us to fund new projects each year – ensuring that together we can beat the many diseases currently ravaging our world.

We sincerely encourage you to think about this special form of giving and, of course, discuss it with your family and solicitor. Your decision is an important one and we will handle your gift with the deepest respect, confidentiality, and sensitivity.

We have prepared a brochure about leaving a gift to HMRI in your Will, which includes details on how bequests can help HMRI, as well as information that may be useful for your solicitor. To request a copy of this brochure or to have a confidential conversation to find out more about leaving a gift in your Will to HMRI, please contact the HMRI Bequest Manager Julia Berry on (02) 4042 0581 or complete the form below.

Hear from HMRI supporters about how they are leaving a legacy by supporting medical research at HMRI.

Rose Story

 

Types of bequests

There are two main types of bequests:

  • A residuary bequest allows you to choose to give a portion of, or the balance of, your estate to HMRI. Such a gift is commonly referred to as a “percentage of the residue” because it is the amount that remains after all other gifts, debts, liabilities and costs have been paid or satisfied.
  • A specific bequest is for a specified sum of money or specified asset (such as shares, jewellery or other personal property) that you may choose to give to HMRI and family.
How HMRI uses bequests

A general-purpose gift is the most flexible as it gives the HMRI Director, after consultation with our Executive Team and Research Council, the ability to decide which activities and projects are funded by your bequest gift or in response to changing research needs and priorities.

Some people may prefer to specify which particular research discipline (such as asthma or cancer research, for example) they wish to support with their bequest. Such gifts may also be endowed, or alternatively made available in full in the next HMRI Grants Round.

You may also like to consider leaving a bequest to one of our wonderful auspiced fundraisers, for example Hunter Children’s Research Foundation (for children's’ illnesses medical research), The Hunter Transplant Research Foundation (organ transplant medical research), or The Borne HMRI Collaboration (premature birth medical research).

You can state your preference in your Will.

How to leave a bequest

When making a Will we encourage you to first ensure it reflects your priorities, such as providing for your family. Once that is done, including a bequest to HMRI is easy.

You can either include the gift when you initially write your Will, add a clause to your existing Will by adding a codicil (a supplement modifying a Will) or by updating your Will.

You may wish to seek professional legal advice to ensure your wishes are recorded in a legally binding way.

Wording to use in your Will

To help you decide on the best wording to use when making a bequest to HMRI, please contact our Bequest Officer for a confidential discussion or to request a simple one page guide to help you or your legal adviser in the preparation of your Will.

Please fill out the form below, or call our Bequest Manager Julia Berry on (02) 4042 0581.

Join our Friends for the Future supporter group

HMRI has a ‘Friends for the Future’ supporter group – people who are considering or have chosen to leave HMRI a bequest once they pass on. It’s a lovely way to meet other like-minded people with a passion for medical research. We will inform you about our research and include you on our invitation list to public seminars and donor events.

Each year we hold a luncheon for our Friends for the Future supporters. You’ll hear first-hand from researchers about their work and meet the Director of HMRI and the Philanthropy Team. You’re most welcome to also bring along a family member or friend.

HMRI Endowed Bequests

An endowed bequest is a truly meaningful and lasting way for you to make a difference that will help to improve the lives of many patients and other families – now and into the future.

By choosing to endow your bequest, it creates an ongoing return, creating greater impact over time.

Endowed bequests are invested in perpetuity (forever), with the capital preserved and earnings distributed annually for the nominated purpose – thereby creating a lasting legacy for generations to come.

At HMRI, an endowed gift can be allocated for general purposes or, if the capital amount is large enough, it can also be specified to a particular area of research. We do recommend you call our Bequest Manager to have a confidential discussion if this is of interest to you.

A general-purpose gift is the most flexible as it gives the HMRI Director, after consultation with our Executive Team and Research Council, the ability to decide which activities and projects are funded by your bequest gift or in response to changing research needs and priorities. These gifts are invested in the HMRI Endowment Fund.

If you would like to discuss leaving an endowed bequest in your Will, please contact Julia Berry on (02) 4042 0581 or fill in the form below.

Please fill out the form below or call Julia Berry on (02) 4042 0581 or 1300 993 822.

Contact

Julia Berry

Senior Direct Marketing & Bequests Manager

 

Hunter Medical Research Institute is registered as a charity with the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission ABN 27 081 436 919​

*Indicates a compulsory field