Tax-Smart Giving
We are more than just one program. Live 2 Give Hope wraps families in support. We’re a closet, a courtroom advocate, a life skills course, a monthly night out, a family put back together. All of it built by the same community it serves. Here’s a look at where that reaches and why your dollars matter.
There’s more than one way to give, and some of them cost you less than you think. Here’s what a smart gift to Live 2 Give Hope can look like.
Two ways to give more, for less +
Missouri offers a 70% tax credit on eligible gifts to Live 2 Give Hope. If you or a client holds appreciated stock, there's a second option that can avoid capital gains entirely. Neither requires writing a bigger check than you're comfortable with. Both are explained below.
A 70% Missouri tax credit +
Eligible gifts to Live 2 Give Hope qualify for a 70% Missouri Neighborhood Assistance Program tax credit, one of the highest rates the state offers. Credits are allocated by the state in limited amounts each year, so once a given year's allocation is claimed, it's gone until the next round. We currently have meaningful remaining credits available. A gift that qualifies can mean a client effectively gives significantly more than they spend, once the credit and the federal deduction are both applied.
Give stock, skip the capital gains +
If you or a client holds long-term appreciated securities, donating the stock directly, rather than selling it and giving the proceeds, means the gift is valued at full fair market value, and neither you nor Live 2 Give Hope ever pays capital gains tax on the appreciation. For a client sitting on a stock position they don't want to sell into a taxable event, this is often the single most efficient way to give.
What We Do +
We work with families and the kids caught in the middle of hard situations. Mostly foster care. A lot of quiet prevention work, keeping kids in their homes before a crisis becomes a removal. Kinship, adoptive, guardianship, and reunification families too. No government contracts. No geographic restrictions. Roughly 90% of what we run on comes from the community, not government funding.
Sustaining the Growth +
Since 2017, we've served over 1,200 families across 41 Missouri counties. The need was always there. What's changed is that more families are finding us.
New clients coming through our doors each month in 2026 are double what they were in 2025.
One full-time staff member and two part-time run all of it, already at capacity every single day. We lean hard on volunteers to make up the difference. Over 4,770 volunteer hours January through July this year. The same as 4 full-time employees.
A gift of goods fills the closet. A gift of dollars is what hires the people to open the door wider.
Changing child welfare, one family at a time +
Nationally, more than half of foster parents quit fostering within the first year, and only about 15% are still fostering by year three. Among the foster families who've come back to us more than once, nearly 4 in 10 are still connected to us three years later, roughly double the national rate.
That's not just a number for the system. Kids in care who had even one fewer placement change a year were almost twice as likely to graduate high school before leaving care.
Every family that stays is one less move for a kid who's already had too many, and a caseworker with one less crisis on their desk.
Reunification: The Torres Family +
Jose Torres was released from jail in July 2024 to the news that his four children had been placed in foster care. While inside, he'd met our founder, John Angst, through jail ministry. Something took root. Jose and his estranged wife Natalie both got sober, found stable work, and repaired their marriage, with Hope Reunited, our family advocacy program, walking alongside them the entire way.
Twelve months after their children were removed, far ahead of the local 39.5-month average, they were reunited. Hope Reunited stayed with them for two more years to make sure it held. In January 2026, all six of them moved into a home of their own for the first time.
Our financials, posted plainly +
Our IRS Form 990 filings are posted on our financials page. No summary, no spin. See exactly where the money goes.
Over the last five years, in-kind giving (clothing, shoes, appliances, etc.) has made up more than 60% of our revenue on average. In a typical year, more than half of what keeps us running walks in the door as goods, not cash. The exact share moves year to year: a major gift or a stretch of grant funding can shift the numbers, but the pattern holds.
