Starting with next spring’s 2013 tax returns, taxpayers who have never claimed a deduction for charitable donations will get a 25-per-cent boost for their first charity claim. On a $500 donation, the First-Time Donor’s Super Credit would more than double the value of the tax deduction to $242.
If the tax break isn’t attractive enough, there’s also the knowledge that for every dollar a first-time donor gives ShareLife this year, a generous, anonymous donor will match the amount out of an $800,000 fund.
The tax incentive to first-time donors is “a nice little extra,” said ShareLife executive director Arthur Peters.
“We don’t say you should give to ShareLife to get a tax benefit,” Peters said. “You should contribute because you want to support the work of the Church and the work of the agencies. This is just an extra benefit.”
Encouraging new donors is always a focus for the charitable fundraising arm of the archdiocese of Toronto.
“It’s important to bring new people on board,” Peters said. “There are people who know ShareLife from knocking on doors in the 1970s asking people for support.... We want to have a mix of people who have been supporting us for years and new people.”
Whether new to Canada or young couples establishing a family, contributing to ShareLife is a way for Catholics to contribute to strong families and a healthy society.
“We’re always encouraging parishioners to make a sacrificial gift to the campaign, and those who haven’t made a gift to consider doing so. As our population ages and new parishioners — children grow older and have families of their own — we want them to continue the tradition of their families and support the work of the Church,” said Peters.
Last year ShareLife reached its $12.3 million goal, a seven-per-cent increase over 2011. Going into the last month of this year’s campaign the annual appeal was just over $1 million short of the $12.3 million mark.
Agencies in the ShareLife portfolio serve more than 250,000 people a year in 20 languages with everything from seniors’ care to supporting teen mothers.