jueves, 23 de octubre de 2014

Exercise Your Will Power


When a person dies without a will, a court judge decides how their wealth is distributed. The estate is usually divided among family members, and, if the deceased had wanted to donate a portion of his or her assets to a charity, that chance will be missed.
Though a will is the best way to designate beneficiaries and charities of your choice, you still have options if you do not wish to incur the expense of a lawyer to create one.
Planned Giving is the term used to describe how a person would like assets distributed upon death. Some plans involve professional assistance and some do not. Many believe Planned Giving is only for the wealthy. The truth is that even people of modest means can make a significant contribution through Planned Giving.

Is there an easy way to donate my assets to TPRF when I die without having a will or trust?

Yes. There is a way of designating beneficiaries to receive your assets at the time of your death without having to go through probate. It’s called Transfer-On-Death (TOD). A TOD also allows you to specify the percentage of your assets each person or entity (your “TOD beneficiary”) will receive. Your assets will be automatically transferred to the designated beneficiaries upon your death. Transfer-On-Death is a means of transferring assets without the hassle, delay, and cost of probate. If you set up your account or have your securities registered this way, the executor or administrator of your estate won’t have to take any action to ensure that your securities transfer to the beneficiaries you designated.
With TOD registration, you maintain complete control over your assets during your lifetime. Your named beneficiaries have no access to or control over your assets as long as you are alive.

How do I set up a TOD account and what are the costs?

Simply talk to your bank or brokerage firm and tell them you want your account to be designated as a TOD account. There is no cost for setting it up, and you are free to change the beneficiaries whenever you desire. They will provide you with the necessary paperwork to change the designation.

If I have a will, what information is needed to bequest a percentage or dollar amount to my designated beneficiaries?

You will need the name, address and Tax ID # of the beneficiaries written in your will. If you are planning to name TPRF as a beneficiary, please contact the TPRF Planned Giving Team at PlannedGiving@tprf.org to get this information.

I have an insurance policy and would like to include TPRF as a beneficiary. How do I do that?

Simply contact the insurance company. They will provide you with a form. When you fill it out, you may name TPRF as either a primary or contingent beneficiary. You may also designate the percentage or dollar amount you wish to give upon your death.

I have an IRA and would like to include TPRF as a beneficiary. How do I do that?

Simply contact the brokerage firm or bank where the IRA is being held. They will provide you with a form. When you fill it out, you may name TPRF as either a primary or contingent beneficiary. You may also designate the percentage or dollar amount you wish to give upon your death.

Why is it necessary to have a will?

There are many myths about wills. Here are some common ones:

Myth: “Only rich people need wills.”

In fact, the families of those who are not rich are more apt to be affected by not having a will in place. In the absence of a will, local laws usually determine how a person’s assets will be distributed. Also, many people are worth more than they realize when they take into account their life insurance, retirement benefits, home, savings, and securities.

Myth: “People without dependents do not need wills.”

Under state law, the property of a person without a will and without dependents goes to his or her parents and perhaps brothers and sisters in specified, rigid shares. Friends, charities, and other organizations the person may have wished to support will be left out.

Myth: “Younger people do not need wills.”

Not true. Every adult is likely to need a will, especially young married people with children. Accidents occur, and it is not uncommon for fatal accidents to involve both parents.

Myth: “All my property is in joint ownership. Why do I need a will?”

It is unlikely that all of your property is jointly owned. For example, you may have retirement benefits, death benefits from your employer, income-tax refunds, etc. that are not legally considered “joint ownership.” And what happens if you and your joint tenant die in a common accident?

Reasons for Needing a Will

Some 70% of us will spend a lifetime working, accumulating assets, caring for loved ones, and then leave the distribution of our property up to local laws. The distribution of these assets may not be in accordance with our wishes. Probably no other document in our lifetime is as important as a will. With a will you can:
  • make your wishes clear by determining to whom, how, and when your assets will be distributed
  • create trusts for your spouse, children, or others, thus providing income to your beneficiaries as well as saving taxes
  • name an executor who will manage your assets in accordance with your intentions
  • reduce and sometimes eliminate estate taxes
  • leave gifts to favorite charities
For further information about Planned Giving, please contact: PlannedGiving@tprf.org.

miércoles, 22 de octubre de 2014

A beautiful exchange



Cary ONeal 10:42am Aug 14
Maharaji gave me a really valuable opportunity to speak with him 2 weeks after I received Knowledge. I asked him how can I quiet my mind in meditation. He said with a big smile “oh, you must be one of those new premies… when we sit down to meditate our mind immediately goes out outside and attaches itself to something like that roto-tiller over there (garden equipment on front lawn). All you have to do is calm it down a little bit and keep pulling it back inside, pulling it back inside, pulling it back inside. You don’t want to get a shot gun and blow the mind to pieces, you just want to calm it down a little bit and keep pulling back inside.” I then asked “yes but how do you actually connect to that energy?” He smiled and then held up his right hand- palm upwards as though he was introducing a whole new factor and said “and then there’s the Grace.” I asked him “so if I do Satsang, Service, and Meditation, will everything be OK?” He said “actually you alone exist.. Satsang, Service, and Meditation do not exist in themselves. This is an experience that you actually become. You become Satsang, you become Service, and you become Meditation.”
He communicated so much love and understanding in that brief conversation, it described the whole dynamic of my entire life – that if I keep making the effort to meditate, there will always be the Grace. I felt so much love from him in that moment, I wanted to tell him that I love him but for some reason did not speak those words out loud. So I just looked in his eyes and thought “I love you” and he immediately responded by nodding his head, showing me that he heard me.

jueves, 16 de octubre de 2014

Malaysia scouts movement makes pledge for peace with Prem Rawat


Prem Rawat at scouting peace pledge event.
Prem Rawat at scouting peace pledge event.

As part of an initiative to help young people do more for a peaceful world, Prem Rawat and the Scouts Association of Malaysia signed a “Pledge to Peace” on 30th September 2014 at an event attended by 500 scouts and scout leaders.
The pledge represents an agreement between the Scouts Association of Malaysia and Prem Rawat to cooperate and assist each other in supporting the international scouts movement’s “Messenger of Peace” initiative in Malaysia. The project, which encourages scouts to support peaceful action in their communities for the betterment of mankind, was created by the World Organization of the Scouts Movement (WOSM) in 2011.
 
Prem Rawat speaking to young scouts, Malaysia, September 2014.
Prem Rawat speaking to young scouts, Malaysia, September 2014.

 
At the gathering, held in Putrajaya in Malaysia, Prem Rawat spoke about the importance of making the right choices in life and the impact this can have on both individuals and society. He urged the audience to practice those traits that will bring them peace, saying that if they truly want to succeed in improving society, they have to begin with themselves.
He said: “Every day in our life we have to face choices. To choose! And this is what I say to the whole world: ‘Choose clarity over doubt. Choose strength over weakness. Choose wisdom in your life.’ And then, I truly feel that this would be a different world.”
He also spoke about the futility of war and the pain it brings, and emphasized that choice is the weapon that can bring people together. He pointed out that, historically, civilizations that chose badly have crumbled, while those that chose wisely have withstood the test of time.
 
Prem Rawat with Malaysian scout leaders.
Prem Rawat with Malaysian scout leaders.

 
The Chief Scout of Malaysia, Tan Sri Dr. Hj. Shafie Mohd Salleh, welcomed Prem Rawat as a fellow scout by bestowing on him the “Scouts Award of Friendship” and “Messenger of Peace” scarf — a symbol representing brotherhood amongst all scouts. Describing him as an honoured friend of Malaysia, Tan Sri Dr. Shafie expressed his thanks to Prem Rawat for sharing his knowledge and wisdom. He went on to say that the scouting movement rededicates itself to the pursuit of peace and sends a message of peace across the world.
 
Scouts from the Scouts Association of Malaysia.
Scouts from the Scouts Association of Malaysia.

 
With over 40 million members globally, the scouts movement is booming, especially in Asia. In recent years, young Asians have enthusiastically embraced scouting — a fact not lost on the international scouts governing body, which moved its headquarters from Europe to Kuala Lumpur in June 2014.
With a million young people and volunteers involved in scouting in Malaysia and an estimated four million in Indonesia, the epicenter of this century-old organization, created in England in 1907, has now shifted eastward.
Today, over 36 million scouts around the world contribute hundreds of millions of hours of voluntary work helping those in need in their communities. Since adopting the “Messengers of Peace” initiative, scouts also attempt to contribute to global peace by encouraging peaceful actions to create a better world.
 
Prem Rawat and Tan Sri Dr. Hj. Shafie Mohd Salleh signing peace pledge
Prem Rawat and Tan Sri Dr. Hj. Shafie Mohd Salleh signing peace pledge

viernes, 3 de octubre de 2014

JAIPUR ENTHRALLED ON WORLD PEACE DAY!



“Peace begins with me” …“Peace is not an imagination”… “Peace is from within not without”
Such were the thoughts of enthusiastic members of Youth Peace Foundation(YPF), who organised a WALK FOR PEACE, an initiative to develop a culture of peace among the youth in Jaipur, on the occasion of World Peace Day on 21st September.
Cutting across different strata of the society, more than 700+ Jaipurites gathered towards one and only purpose, that is, to attract attention of people towards the most basic necessity of our life…PEACE. In our busy lives, we don’t have a moment to spare to think about peace. This walk aimed at making people think about it.
The walk began with a simple idea to develop the culture of peace among the Youth. Almost 3 months of preparation saw its fruitful rendition on the auspicious Day. Numerous meetings, planning regarding walking track, permission from authorities, spreading word about the event via posters, Oral publicity, choosing the venue, printing materials etc all formed part of the preparation.
The event began with the inauguration of the Walk by esteemed personality Mr. Gopal Saini, an Arjun awardee. The walk began from Kulish Smriti Van and ended at the same venue via Peacock Garden. During the walk, several passers-by were amazed seeing 700+ crowd walking peacefully, raising banners about peace, without disturbing decorum. Thereafter, the participants gathered inside the Open Garden Theatre, followed by an amazing interaction among the youth. The hosts interacted with people and sought their views regarding peace. Everyone had a different view. Someone thought equality defines peace and for some peace was a matter of abolition of corruption. But all agreed that peace needs to be felt and it must begin with an individual.
A number of famous personalities like Mr. K.K.Bhatnagar (Retd I.A.S.officer), Mr. Indraj Singh (Deputy Commissioner of Police, Jaipur), Mr. Kunal Majumdar (Chief editor of Times Of India) and Mr. Praveen Lekhra (R.A.S.) also joined the walk and later shared their own views about peace with the gathering.
During the programme a video was also shown by YPF which contained some peppy songs on peace, followed by inspiring videos of internationally renowned peace speaker Mr. Prem Rawat andPeace One Day founder, Mr. Jeremy Gilley. At the end, everyone was absolutely delighted by the live band performance, playing classical as well as modern music on peace.
The energy, spirit and desire to feel peace was the highlight of the event, with all the participants getting determined to achieve peace and to develop a culture of peace in our society with an aim that one day we can all live in a more peaceful world.
For this event we are thankful to all the supporters who have given us immense support the likes of Youth Peace Foundation core team, Administrative Authorities, all the Volunteers, Raj Vidya Kender, Sponsors, Media Personnel without whom it would have been difficult to achieve this milestone. This event was covered by five Houses from Print media and an online channel.
It was a great opportunity to learn a lot and we hope that YPF will be back soon with some more activities to develop culture of peace among the youth.

miércoles, 1 de octubre de 2014

Just What the Doctor Ordered


Just What the Doctor Ordered
This article is also available in: FrenchSpanish
It’s checkup day in Bantoli. As the children giggle and squirm under Dr. K. Sandhya’s cold stethoscope, it’s clear that, today, the doctor is also taking the pulse of TPRF’s first Food for People (FFP) facility to see how effectively it’s meeting the nutrition and health needs of the villagers it serves.
Malnutrition is a pervasive problem in rural areas such as this,” explains Sandhya, a pediatric specialist and Associate Professor of Anatomy at the Rajendra Institute of Medical Sciences in Ranchi. “Poor nutrition weakens the immune system. And when immunity is low, disease takes over.” Dr. Sandhya has been affiliated with FFP in Bantoli since before the facility opened in 2006, helping to determine which foods to serve and even the optimal height of the children’s washbasins.
“Before FFP, and when we first started, many of the children I saw were regularly suffering from respiratory infections,”the doctor remembers. “Skin problems were prevalent. Energy levels were low, which affected the children’s ability to focus and learn.”
And today, after performing her general checkup of the children, including an examination of their nails and teeth, the doctor is encouraged. “Today, I saw two small girls, sisters, new to the facility. They had never been here before. One was coughing badly and they both had dermatitis.” The doctor reflects for a moment. “After examining them, along with the others who had been coming to the FFP facility for a while, I realized that I very rarely see those symptoms any more. So, yes, FFP is definitely making a difference—even in the children’s ability to socialize. When we first started, most of the children were shy and had problems even talking. Seeing these two new students today made me remember that many of the children here had those same issues before the Food for People program started in Bantoli. And now they don’t. Good hygiene and proper nutrition has made a real difference in their lives.”
As she discusses the positive changes she’s seen, a child runs up toshow her his mastery of the 11 times table. Dr. Sandhya smiles and ponders the future. “The children’s health checkups are good and our screening has been effective. But follow-up is important. These children do very well when they’re here between the ages of 8 and 12. But what about when they’re adults? Having an empirical record of what happens after these children leave our facility will better tell us where and how we can improve what we offer in these formative years.”
If today’s health checkup is any indication, the prognosis for tomorrow is very encouraging. “The children here are more open, less shy, healthier and practice better hygiene than ever before,” says the doctor looking around the FFP facility. “A lot of positive change has happened.”