Man’s love for model automobiles is passed on to church.
While it is not unusual for a church to be remembered in a parishioner’s will in the form of money or securities, it is unusual for a church to receive a house full of valuable model cars. But Minnesota resident Dennis Erickson did just that when he left his home and its contents to his church.
When a church employee went to catalog the contents of the home, she found it full of model and toy cars. In all the house contained over 30,000 miniature cars and a couple of the real things. Collectors have already contacted the church about obtaining the model cars. Fox News reported this story in “Man donates home full of thousands of model cars to church.”
Not to criticize someone who gave a valuable donation to his church, but it is possible that this donation could have been handled better in his estate plan. Cataloging the model car collection and disposing of it will come at an expense for the church. If possible, Erickson could have cataloged the collection before he passed away or even sold off the collection and left the proceeds to the church.
An estate planning attorney could advise you on the best way to leave a bequest in your estate to your church or another charity.
Reference: Fox News (March 29, 2016) “Man donates home full of thousands of model cars to church.”
