Spring 2025 GPC Newsletter
Aloha oe and Mahalo Nui Loa
David Bonner, Sr. Manager, Gift Planning Services, Philanthropies
Dear friends,
I am feeling mixed emotions as I prepare my final Manager’s Minute for the Gift Planning Council newsletter. After twenty-five years at Philanthropies, and eight years as manager of the Gift Planning Services team, it is time to say goodbye and begin the next chapter of my life. I am sad that I will not have frequent interactions with you, while happy that my wife and I will shortly be privileged to serve as missionaries together in the Hawaii Laie Mission.
It has been a wonderful experience and blessing to work at Philanthropies!
The best part of my work for the past 25 years has been the people I have been fortunate to work with. That includes the employees of Philanthropies and you, the professional advisors, whom I have been honored to come to know.
My colleagues, past and present, at Philanthropies are bright, knowledgeable, kind, and extremely fun to be with. They are awesome! They have become dear friends whom I will deeply miss interacting with daily.
My interactions with you, the members of the Gift Planning Council, are the other reason that I have loved my work at Philanthropies. I am grateful for the opportunity to visit you in your offices in nearly every state throughout the country. You have blessed me with your great technical knowledge and the thoughtfulness you have shown me. Thank you for your example of service to your clients and the communities in which you reside. I will greatly miss our visits!
I am pleased to announce that my successor as manager of the Gift Planning Services team is Ed Knight. Ed possesses exceptional experience and knowledge resulting from his diligent studies and his many years in the planned giving arena. Ed is a wonderful listener and has a heart of gold. You will absolutely enjoy working with Ed. I encourage you to reach out to Ed and the other members of the Gift Planning Services team with your questions and whenever they can be of service to you and your clients.
Borrowing from the wise words of another, I choose not to cry because it is over, but rather I smile because it happened! Thank you for twenty-five incredible years!
Kindest regards always,
David
A Look Back: Gift Planning Council Conference 2023
Judge Thomas Griffith, "Three Life-Changing Decisions"
Tamatoa Jonassen Spotlight
Tamatoa Jonassen, Gift Planning Specialist Sr., joins the Philanthropies Department after being based in the Cook Islands for the past twelve years. While in the Cook Islands he worked for an international trust company in the offshore finance industry and later became CEO for the Cook Islands Financial Services Development Authority. More recently, Tamatoa served as the permanent secretary managing the Cook Islands Ministry of Justice for over 5 years. He has served on numerous boards and committees, including the Cook Islands National Sustainability Commission, the Cook Islands Law Society Council, the Cook Islands Legal Aid Committee, the national Cook Islands Religious Advisory Council, and the Cook Islands Mediation Center governing committee in which he is a founding member.
Tamatoa earned his Juris Doctor law degree from the William S. Richardson School of Law at the University of Hawaii. He also obtained a Law Certificate in Pacific and Asian Legal Studies, and a Graduate Certificate in Conflict Resolution from the Matsunaga Institute for Peace. He received his bachelor’s degree from Brigham Young University – Hawaii where he double majored in Information Systems and Political Science. Tamatoa is admitted to practice law in Hawaii and the Cook Islands.
Before moving to Utah, Tamatoa served as the District President for the Cook Islands District of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, which is part of the Auckland New Zealand Mission. He also served a full-time mission in the Taipei Taiwan Mission, Chinese-mandarin speaking. Tamatoa met his wife Chui Yee at BYU Hawaii after she served a full-time mission in Washington D.C. and they now have three sons.
Having been the recipient of scholarships and endowments throughout his education, Tamatoa is excited to support the philanthropic priorities of the Church that seek to bless the lives of others.
BYU-Hawaii
BYU–Hawaii’s mission is unique, even within the Church Educational System. In addition to integrating spiritual and secular learning, the university focuses on serving students from Oceania and the Asian Rim—areas where the Church is young and where higher education is out of reach for many Latter-day Saints. Many students come to BYU–Hawaii from challenging socioeconomic circumstances. Some come as first generation college students. Others come as recent converts to the Church. At BYU–Hawaii, they receive a quality education that instructs their minds, fortifies their faith, and refines their characters. They are prepared not only to be successful in their careers but also to be lifelong disciples of Jesus Christ. They help build the kingdom of God as they become leaders in their families, communities, and congregations throughout the world.
Visit here to learn more about BYU-Hawaii, the IWork Program, and how donors can further this great work.
Informational Videos
We have created numerous informational videos that can be used easily to introduce and even educate individuals about segments of gift planning. They are easily available in the Gift Planning section of the Philanthropies website. One example is the following:
Donor Advised Funds
This video gives you a one-minute guide to how Donor Advised Funds work.
PS: Don’t forget to add giftplanning@ChurchofJesusChrist.org to your safe senders list.
PPS: If you have friends or colleagues who you think would benefit from receiving this newsletter or other Gift Planning Council correspondence, please contact David Bonner at david.bonner@ChurchofJesusChrist.org or 801-356-5247.
Contact Us
For a detailed discussion of the services we provide you and your advisors, please contact us at 1-877-650-5377 or by email.