Global Volunteers Offers New Programs in Sri Lanka & Brazil
St. Paul, MN (ContentDesk) April 27, 2006 -- Global Volunteers is pleased to offer two new service programs -- in Sri Lanka and Brazil. Teams are now forming for summer and fall program dates. Here are details: Help rebuild lives in Sri Lanka:
Much work remains to be done in Southeast Asia in the wake of the devastating tsunami of Dec. 26, 2004, that killed an estimated 30,000 in Sri Lanka alone and left 500,000 homeless in the island nation.
Beginning this fall, Global Volunteers will send teams of volunteers to work on homebuilding and education projects in the community of Weligama on the southwestern tip of Sri Lanka.
Working in partnership with the nonprofit Direct Tsunami Relief, Global Volunteers teams will help build school facilities or new homes and paint or repair existing facilities.
There will also be opportunities to teach conversational English and other subjects.
This is an area that was severely damaged by the tsunami. In Weligama alone, more than 400 died and 8,000 found themselves without homes.
???Initial service programs are scheduled on the following dates:
Sept. 16-30, Nov. 4-18, and, in 2007, Jan. 6-20 and March 3-17. ???Volunteers will be lodged in a tourist-class hotel and eat most meals at the hotel with lunch served at the worksite.
The tax-deductible fee for the two-week program will be $2,395, with discounts available for former volunteers, students, groups and internet users.
The fee covers all meals, lodging, ground transportation, emergency medical evacuation insurance, team leader services and other project expenses. Airfare is extra. To learn more, call 800-487-1074.
You can help Brazils children: In July, Global Volunteers will begin sending volunteer teams to Salvador, Brazil, a fascinating, historic and vibrant city of 2.6 million and the capital of the state of Bahia.
There they will share their time and compassion with vulnerable children, working either at one of five preschools for impoverished youths or at a hospital for poor children with cancer or other illnesses. Inaugural teams are planned on the following dates:
July 1-15, July 22-Aug. 5, Sept. 23-Oct. 7, Oct.
14-28, Dec. 16-30, Dec. 30-Jan. 13 and into 2007.
The tax-deductible service program fee of $2,250 for two weeks (and $2,100 for one week) covers all meals, hotel lodging, project expenses, ground transportation in the community and team leader services.
Airfare is extra.
However, all project-related expenses, including airfare, are tax-deductible for U.S. taxpayers. Global Volunteers, a nonsectarian, nonprofit international development organization based in St. Paul, Minn., offers short-term service programs in 20 countries.
All projects are directed by local community hosts and volunteers work one-on-one with local people. For details, call 800-487-1074 or visit us on the web at www.globalvolunteers.org..
Buying property in Portugal
Portugal has long been a popular choice for people, particularly from the colder climates of Northern Europe, looking to purchase a holiday home or a retirement home. Traditionally they have done so using offshore companies, mainly to avoid estate taxes. Unfortunately Portugal, along with some other countries, has made this route considerably less attractive by the imposition of swingeing tax penalties on offshore companies. The magnitude of these penalties can be seen from the examples below,Real Estate Transfer TaxThis tax is paid by the purchaser, at progressive rates of up to 6% (5% for rural property) on property used exclusively for residential purposes, on the higher of the registered value or the purchase price agreed between the parties. This is usually the purchase price.For offshore companies this rate has been increased to 15%.Municipal Property TaxThis is a tax, at a rate set annually, levied by the local authority and based on the registered value.
The rates are...
Buying property in Portugal
Tax help > Buying property in Portugal
Ascentis Announces Partnership with RSM McGladrey
Bellevue, Wash. (ContentDesk) July 27, 2005 -? Microsoft Gold Certified Partners Ascentis and RSM McGladrey work together to strengthen mid-sized companies businesses through the integration of Microsoft Business Solutions ? Great Plains and Solomon with HROffice."We are excited to be able to offer automated HR [HROffice to our clients," says Tom Burtner, Director, IT Consulting at RSM McGladrey ? Mid-Atlantic. "HROffice is truly a program that can pay for itself by providing workflow efficiencies. Its integration with Microsoft Business Solutions - Solomon and Great Plains, external payroll solutions, and insurance carriers is unparalleled. HROffice will help us retain current clients who require an HR solution as well as obtain new ones."HROffice is a human resources management system (HRMS) that builds on the latest Microsoft technologies and integrates with the tools HR departments already use.
The software integrates with Microsoft Business Solutions ? Great Plains, Solomon,...
Ascentis Announces Partnership with RSM McGladrey
Tax help > Ascentis Announces Partnership with RSM McGladrey
Johnnierenee Nelson publishes sixth book on Kwanzaa poetry
San Diego, California (ContentDesk) December 31 2003--House of Nia is proud to announce the release of its latest publication, Classic Kwanzaa Poems: New and Selected
written by the award-winning poet and activist, Johnnierenee Nelson.
Classic Kwanzaa Poems is a rich collection of poetry which pays tribute to the African American holiday, Kwanzaa, which Nelson considers the most innovative dynamic to emerge from the Black Nationalist Movement of the 1960's. This collection is Nelson's fifth book in a series of Kwanzaa poetry.
Her first volume, A Quest for Kwanzaa, was heralded as the authoritative genesis of Kwanzaa literature. ????Included in Classic Kwanzaa Poems are new classics such as Kwanzaa is Rich, Kwanzaa Always Begins with a Bang, the Genius of Karenga, and the High Sounds of Kwanzaa.
Such selected classics as Come Kwanzaa with Me, Black Gold and the Beauty of Kwanzaa, have also been included. This book is a spiritually nurturing work for...
Johnnierenee Nelson publishes sixth book on Kwanzaa poetry
Tax help > Johnnierenee Nelson publishes sixth book on Kwanzaa poetry
Tarey Wolf, Award-Winning Singer, Songwriter, to Appear at Catherine A. Hickman Theater February 8, 2004 at 2:00 P.M. with Donna Klein, and Friends
Tampa, FL (ContentDesk) February 4, 2004 -- Since strumming her first $18 Silvertone guitar at 14, Tarey Wolf has continued to weave a rich poetic tapestry of self-made songs. "The first song I ever learned was P.F. Sloan's "Eve of Destruction" which was cut by Barry McGuire who is a cousin of mine. I always preferred to write my own material, because it was a way to express all that teenage angst in a constructive way... It is still my favorite thing to do, and for me success is looking out into a smiling audience and knowing they hear me, that in speaking for myself I speak for them..." Tarey has shared the stage with many noteworthy artists including Melissa Etheridge, Teresa Trull, Lisa Nemzo, Sandy Ross, Freebo.See Tarey at:Keeping Company? with Donna KleinSunday, February 8, 2004 @ 2:00 pm Catherine A.
Hickman Theater, 5501 27th Ave. S., Gulfport, FLAdmission: $10.00 tax includedTickets available in advance through Donna Klein or the City of Gulfport, FLContact: Marlene...
Tarey Wolf, Award-Winning Singer, Songwriter, to Appear at Catherine A. Hickman Theater February 8, 2004 at 2:00 P.M. with Donna Klein, and Friends
Tax help > Tarey Wolf, Award-Winning Singer, Songwriter, to Appear at Catherine A. Hickman Theater February 8, 2004 at 2:00 P.M. with Donna Klein, and Friends
Top 5 Overlooked Tax Deductions
Copyright 2006 Kristine McKinley
How many times have you done your taxes, and a week or a month later realized you forgot a deduction?
The tax law is very complicated, so it's easy to miss a deduction or two.
In my experience, these are the top 5 missed deductions.
1. Non-Cash Donations
Did you clean out your closets this year?
Chances are you donated those items to Goodwill or a similar non-profit organization.
The value of donated items (clothing, furniture, etc.) is deductible.
You will need to get a written receipt and assign a value to these items, but the tax savings are worth the effort.
2.
Points on Refinancing
With interest rates so low the past few years, there have been a record-number of houses refinanced.
If you refinanced, you may have paid points to get a lower interest rate.
These points are deductible over the life of the new loan.
...
Tax help > Top 5 Overlooked Tax Deductions