Holston Conference of the United Methodist Church Fdn.

What Holston Conference of the United Methodist Church Fdn. does

The Holston Conference of the United Methodist Church Foundation is a Tennessee-domiciled nonprofit foundation headquartered at 217 S. Rankin Rd., Alcoa, TN 37701 (Federal Tax ID 62-1112387), operating as the planned-giving arm of the Holston Conference of the United Methodist Church. Founded in 1981 and staffed by approximately 95 employees, the foundation serves individual donors and families across East Tennessee, Southwest Virginia, and portions of North Georgia and North Alabama by facilitating charitable gift annuities, charitable remainder trusts (unitrusts and annuity trusts), bequests, IRA rollovers, and beneficiary designations to churches and ministries within the Conference. Donors receive confidential, fee-free consultations and access to educational resources on tax-advantaged legacy giving.

The foundation's technology stack is built on the Crescendo Interactive, Inc. planned-giving platform, which powers the public-facing holstonlegacy.org site. Documented platform features include the Gift Calculator (covering gift annuities, annuity trusts, deferred gift annuities, part gift/part sale, and unitrust calculations), a Free Estate Planning Guide (electronic/PDF), standardized Bequest Language templates for wills and living trusts, and GiftLaw Pro — a charitable-tax reference and IRS-format deduction calculator targeted at CPAs, attorneys, CLUs, CFPs, ChFCs, and trust officers. Distribution is multi-channel: direct donor consultations, a bi-weekly e-newsletter (The Circuit Rider Dispatch), 25+ published donor stories, and organic social on Facebook and Twitter/X.

The foundation's revenue mechanics operate through the management and investment of donor gifts for the benefit of designated churches and ministries; no fees are charged to donors for planned-giving consultations or use of the calculators, and GiftLaw Pro is provided as a free professional-advisor service. The organization is governed by its own Board of Directors under the umbrella of the Holston Conference, with no venture capital, private equity, or institutional investment involved. The portfolio is concentrated in a single denominational network within a defined multi-state geography.

Name

Holston Conference of the United Methodist Church Fdn.

Legal name

Holston Foundation

Website

https://holstonlegacy.org

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

The Holston Foundation is a Tennessee-based nonprofit (founded 1981) that serves as the planned-giving arm of the Holston Conference of the United Methodist Church, helping individual donors and families in East Tennessee, Southwest Virginia, and adjacent regions structure bequests, charitable gift annuities, and trusts to benefit Conference churches and ministries.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Planned Giving Services

NAICS

Grantmaking and Giving Services (81321), Religious, Grantmaking, Civic, Professional, and Similar Organizations (813), Grantmaking and Giving Services (8132)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Community Foundations (BPAGAKAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Fundraising & Annual Giving (EDALAOAB), Scholarship & Fellowship Foundations and Trusts (EDADAHAC), Family Offices & Philanthropic Advisors (Grantmaking) (BPAGAKAD)

Keywords

• Planned giving services
• Charitable gift annuities
• Estate planning guidance
• Endowment management
• Donor stewardship

Headquarters

HQ city

Alcoa

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Planned Giving Services: The foundation facilitates various planned giving vehicles including bequests, charitable gift annuities, charitable remainder trusts, charitable lead trusts, beneficiary designations, and IRA rollovers. Revenue is generated through managing and investing donor gifts for the benefit of designated churches and ministries.
2. Charitable Gift Annuities: Donors transfer cash or appreciated property in exchange for fixed payments for life, with payment rates based on age.
3. Charitable Remainder Trusts: Donors fund unitrusts or annuity trusts that sell property tax-free and provide income for life or a term of years.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Holston Foundation facilitates planned giving vehicles for individual donors and families — including bequests, charitable gift annuities, charitable remainder trusts, charitable lead trusts, beneficiary designations, and IRA rollovers — to support churches and ministries within the Holston Conference of the United Methodist Church. The foundation confidentially assists donors in designing personalized gift plans and carefully invests and distributes contributed assets for the long-term benefit of designated ministries.

Product overview

The Holston Foundation operates as a planned giving organization for the Holston Conference of the United Methodist Church, offering a comprehensive suite of services to help individuals make gifts to their church or favorite ministry. The portfolio includes educational resources (Planned Giving Home, Bequests and Wills Guide, What To Give), various gift vehicles (How To Give covering bequests, charitable gift annuities, unitrusts, IRA rollovers), planning tools (Gift Calculator, Free Estate Planning Guide, Bequest Language templates), professional advisor support (Advisor Resources with GiftLaw services), and donor engagement (Donor Stories, Donor E-newsletter). The organization serves generous individuals and families seeking to create lasting legacies while potentially receiving tax benefits and life income.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Planned Giving Services Comprehensive planned giving facilitation service that confidentially assists individual donors and families in designing personalized gift plans, including bequests, charitable gift annuities, charitable remainder trusts, charitable lead trusts, beneficiary designations, and IRA rollovers, for the benefit of churches and ministries within the Holston Conference.
• Charitable Gift Annuity Program Donors transfer cash or appreciated property to Holston Foundation in exchange for fixed payments for life, with payment rates based on the donor's age. Provides donors with life income and a charitable tax deduction.
• Charitable Remainder Trust Services Donors fund unitrusts or annuity trusts that sell property tax-free and provide income for life or a term of years, with the remainder benefiting designated ministries.
• Gift Calculator Interactive online calculator providing estimates of income and tax benefits for gift annuities, annuity trusts, deferred gift annuities, part gift/part sale, unitrusts, and unitrust sale scenarios. Available free to donors and advisors via the Holston Foundation website.
• Advisor Resources (GiftLaw Pro) Complete charitable giving and tax information service for professional advisors (CPAs, attorneys, CLUs, CFPs, ChFCs, trust officers) including a charitable tax reference and IRS-format deduction calculator. Provided free to advisors.
• Free Estate Planning Guide Electronic/PDF estate planning guide enabling donors to record family information and estate distribution plans, helping them plan their wills and trusts and avoid accidental disinheritance. Available free as a download from the foundation website.
• Circuit Rider Dispatch (Donor E-newsletter) Bi-weekly electronic newsletter featuring the latest foundation news, church leader information, gift stories, Washington updates, Savvy Living content, and finance articles, distributed to donors and supporters.

Named customers2 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Emerging players

• FreeWill: Tech-forward online planned giving platform partnering with thousands of nonprofits to facilitate bequest commitments and charitable planning. Competes for the same end-donor attention via a more modern, digital-first experience.
• Charityvest: Modern online donor-advised fund provider targeting tech-forward donors with low fees and digital UX. Competes indirectly with denominational foundations by offering a frictionless alternative for charitable legacy planning.

Direct peers

• National Christian Foundation: Faith-based (Christian) donor-advised fund and planned giving provider operating nationally. Comparable in targeting Christian donors with planned giving and gift planning services, but operates at much larger scale and across denominations.
• United Methodist Foundation of Western North Carolina: Another regional United Methodist Conference foundation offering planned giving, endowments, and grantmaking to UMC churches within its territory. Closely comparable in mission, donor base, and service offering.

Broad incumbents

• United Methodist Church Foundation (General): The United Methodist Church's national planned giving and endowment ministry that serves as an umbrella resource for conference foundations including Holston. Comparable in planned-giving mission but operates at the national rather than regional level.
• The Duke Endowment: Large Methodist-affiliated foundation based in Charlotte, NC that manages endowments and makes grants across the Carolinas. Comparable in Methodist heritage and grantmaking model, but operates at vastly larger scale and broader programmatic scope.
• Foundation For The Carolinas: One of the largest community foundations in the Southeast, providing planned giving, donor-advised funds, and endowment management across the Carolinas. Comparable in core service offering to Holston Foundation but at significantly larger scale and broader geographic scope.

Regional players

• East Tennessee Foundation: Regional community foundation serving the same East Tennessee geography as Holston Foundation, administering donor-advised funds, endowments, and planned gifts. Comparable in geographic footprint and asset-management function, though secular rather than denominationally affiliated.
• Appalachian Community Fund: Regional foundation operating across Appalachian communities overlapping Holston Foundation's territory, focused on social justice and community grantmaking. Comparable in geographic focus on East Tennessee/SW Virginia, but different mission and grantmaking priorities.

Others

• Crescendo Interactive, Inc. Technology vendor that provides the planned giving platform, calculators, and GiftLaw service that Holston Foundation uses. Not a competitor but an ecosystem partner; relevant as a proxy for the technology stack underpinning Holston's offering.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/holstonfound
• Facebookfacebook.com/holstonfoundationumc
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/holston-conference-of-the-united-methodist-church-fdn.

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Holston Conference of the United Methodist Church Fdn.