PROFESSIONAL ADVISOR CIRCLE
A trusted partnership for you. Meaningful impact for your clients.
The Erie Community Foundation partners with attorneys, financial advisors, accountants, and wealth managers to help clients make well-informed, tax-efficient charitable decisions. The Professional Advisor Circle reflects our ongoing commitment to supporting advisors with the tools, expertise, and partnership needed to guide clients toward lasting, purpose-driven philanthropy.
Whether your clients are navigating a major life event, preparing for year-end tax planning, or exploring ways to give back to the community, we are here as a resource and collaborator — not as a competitor for your advisory relationship.
How We Support Advisors
Your clients trust you with their most significant financial decisions. We help you broaden that conversation to include charitable goals, values, and legacy planning.
Guidance for Complex Giving
Our team works with advisors to structure charitable gifts that align with financial, tax, and estate plans. From appreciated securities to real estate and business interests, we help ensure the giving process is seamless and strategic.
Local Knowledge, National Expertise
Advisors rely on us for insight into the region’s most significant needs and the nonprofits addressing them. Our understanding of community priorities helps your clients give with clarity and confidence.
Flexible Fund Options
We offer a variety of charitable fund types, investment pools, and giving vehicles tailored to meet your clients’ needs. Donors with endowments of $250,000 or more may continue working with their own investment advisor.
When to Engage the Foundation
Many advisors connect with us during pivotal financial moments that present both opportunities and challenges.
Common examples include:
lump-sum payouts
a private foundation
Advised Fund
Whether anticipated or unexpected, these transitions can be ideal times to establish or expand a charitable giving plan.
Professional Advisor Circle Events & Learning
The Professional Advisor Circle also serves as a platform for engagement throughout the year. Through periodic programs, workshops, and networking, advisors gain:
- Updates on charitable planning strategies
- Insight into community needs and local impact
- Opportunities to strengthen client relationships
- Practical tools to support philanthropic conversations
These sessions are designed to be accessible, informative, and relevant to your work with clients.
Resources for Advisors
Professional Advisor Program
We maintain a suite of guides, tools, and reference materials to support charitable decision-making. These resources can be shared directly with clients or used as part of your planning conversations.
Commonly requested materials include:
- Guide to Fund Types
- Benefits of a Donor Advised Fund
- Life Income and Estate Giving
- Complex Gifts Overview
- Stock Transfer Instructions
- Fee and Administrative Information
- Sample Fund Agreement
A Collaborative Approach
Our goal is to simplify philanthropy for your clients while reinforcing — not replacing — your role as their trusted advisor. Together, we help individuals and families create a legacy that reflects what matters most to them.
Connect With Us
For questions or to explore how we can support your work with clients, please contact:
Steve Weiser, Vice President of Philanthropic Services
SWeiser@ErieCommunityFoundation.org | 814.413.7345