January, 2014

I could start this article with some remark about New Year's resolutions. I'm tempted to do so, but I won't. However, if it's OK, could I talk about being halfway through the Rotary year and taking stock? I get several emails each week on a variety of Rotary subjects. You can probably guess what some of those topics are. If you guessed membership, effective service projects, our Rotary Foundation and contributions to the Annual Fund or to Polio Plus you would be right. And there are more. So let's see where we stand.

Does your club have a membership goal for 2013-14? Has your club added members since July 1, 2013?   Well, two thirds of the clubs in D6740 have added at least one new member since July 1, 2013. As of December 31, 2013 membership records at RI show D6740 with 1663 members. Our membership is up 26 net new members since July 1, 2013. Have you invited a friend or associate to attend your Rotary club meeting? Will you share your Rotary spirit with others and give them the opportunity to have a similar experience?

In my visits to Rotary clubs in our district, I learned of many worthwhile service projects of our clubs. These projects are what Rotary is about. They reflect Rotarians and their clubs' committing their hearts and hands to doing good in their communities and changing lives. Will there be one or more service projects your club will do by June 30, 2014? Maybe your club is planning or evaluating a new service project which can have an even greater impact on your community.   

Our Rotary Foundation through district grants, global grants and packaged grants make possible worthwhile humanitarian projects in local communities and all over the world that change people's lives.  Contributions to our Rotary Foundation Annual Fund from individual Rotarians and Rotary clubs in D6740 during the first half of the Rotary year between July 1, 2013 and December 31, 2013 have amounted to nearly $39,000. This is about 45% of our goal for the Rotary year which will end June 30, 2014.  These contributions have come from half of the clubs in D6740. Contributions to Polio Plus so far this Rotary year have amounted to $20,000 which is 40% of our goal.

Rotary is about people being of service to our fellow human beings through our good works and our contributions. May that continue?   

 

The Manier-Peak Foundation has just awarded a grant to help a Berea College student from the Congo complete his studies.  One of 30 foreign students, Lwamwe Muzima is a student majoring in peace and reconciliation studies.  Muzima fled his native country and hopes to become a specialist in conflict resolution through peaceful means.

 

The autobiography he submitted with his application tells of his escape from the violence and wars in the Congo and how he has survived.  This is an example of how Rotary can sometimes play a part in helping this young man at a critical time of his life.  The M-P grant will help Muzima realize his dream in getting his Bachelor's degree at Berea.  We pass along his story to let Rotarians of District 6740 know how their Manier-Peak donation of $1.00 per Rotarian per year is spent.

 

Rotarians are encouraged to pass information about Manier-Peak to the International Coordinator of the College near you.  We hope that we will be able to help other needy students.  This is what Rotary is about!  Send information requests to: Manier-Peak, c/o George Wilson, 859-277-4680: gwilson3i@twc.com

 

 

Autobiography - Lwamwe Muzima

 

As a student from the Democratic Republic of Congo (D.RC.)-a country ravaged by the deadliest war since World War II, I have always dreamed to equip myself with an education that will enable me to find innovative ways to help resolve conflicts in my country.  My personal experiences with hardships in refugee camps, and the ever-growing need for experts in peacebuilding in my country remain the catalysts for my desire for an education. 

 

After being offered admission for the MA International Relations and Security at the University of Westminster and the University of Bradford, both in the United Kingdom, I feel closer to realizing my dream.  However, my financial situation remains a barrier to realizing that dream.  Raised by a single mother after my father died, I grew up with limited financial resources, and struggled to finish my secondary education.  My real nightmare, one that changed my life and shaped my career aspiration, began when I escaped my country for fear of being forced to join a rebel group which had captured my hometown of Uvira, when the Second Congo War erupted in August of 1998.

 

Determination to continue my education motivated my travels through multiple refugee camps, selling material I was issued to obtain travel to areas and countries where prospects for work or education were more promising.  At age 30 I had the good fortune to gain a four-year full scholarship to study Political Science at Berea College, in Berea, Kentucky.  While at Berea College, I have benefitted a great deal from courses such as International Relations, Human Rights and International Law, Comparative Political Systems, Voices of Nonviolence, and Conflict Transformation, among many others.  These courses have provided me with a solid background to issues of conflict and international relations, while equipping me with necessary skills to succeed at graduate level.

 

In addition to undergraduate courses, I have sought other learning opportunities outside the classroom.On three occasions, I have represented three African countries in the peace and security committee at the Model African Union in Washington, DC -a simulation program that challenged me to analyze, negotiate, and propose resolutions on Africa's most pressing security crises. My problem-solving capabilities and sense of leadership were recognized by fellow participants, when I was awarded the Outstanding Leadership Award in the peace and security committee in February of 2011.

I have held various leadership positions through student organizations at Berea College. I have also held teaching assistantship positions in the departments of Political Science and Peace and Social Justice at Berea College, assisting faculty and providing peer mentoring and tutoring.

 

I like to consider myself a citizen of the world.  I have learned a great deal not only in the classroom but also through various traveling experiences in nine foreign countries.  My trips and stays abroad have enabled me to learn different cultures as well as a variety of languages.  In addition to my home languages, such as Swahili and Lingala, I am fluent in a variety of foreign languages, including French, English, Kinyarwanda, Zulu, and Shona.

 

I remain driven by my desire to contribute towards peace and stability in my country.  My decision to seek an education stemmed from my firm belief that I can be a resource for my country, as it attempts to rebuild after decades of war and instability.  More specifically, I hope to use my education to the benefit of the volatile eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.  I anticipate using my knowledge to address the challenges posed by the ongoing ethnic conflicts in the Ruzizi plain of the eastern D.R.C, which I call home.  While I have acquired a solid undergraduate foundation necessary for success in graduate school, as is evidenced by my grades, internships, and other experiences I have acquired beyond the classroom, my lack of financial resources remains an obstacle to attend graduate school.  However, despite this challenge, I remain optimistic that my ultimate goal will materialize.

 

 

     

 

 

 

Rotary clubs, because they are charitable tax exempt organizations, are required by the IRS to file an annual exempt organization information return. Those requirements are given below in an FAQ from IRS.

 

"What are my filing responsibilities once I receive/apply for my tax-exempt status?

An organization that normally has $50,000 or more in gross receipts and that is required to file an exempt organization information return must file either Form 990, Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax, or Form 990-EZ, Short Form Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax. See Filing Phase-In for more information about which return to file. The return is due on the 15th day of the 5th month after the end of the organization's fiscal year. (For example, the 2008 return of an organization whose fiscal year ends on June 30, 2009, would be November 15, 2009.)  The due date may be extended for three months, without showing cause, by filing Form 8868 before the due date; an additional three-month extension may be requested on Form 8868 if the organization shows reasonable cause why the return cannot be filed by the extended due date.

  

Small organizations - those whose annual gross receipts are normally less than the threshold- are not required to file an annual return, but may be required to file an annual electronic notice - e-Postcard."

 

If such a tax exempt organization fails to file the appropriate form for three years, their tax exempt status will automatically be revoked.  A recent newsletter from IRS outlines the options for automatically revoked organizations to apply for reinstatement. That newsletter is given below.

  

 

EO Update, January 3, 2014

Issue Number:  2014-1
Inside This Issue

 

1. New options for automatically revoked organizations to apply for reinstatement
2. IRS issues proposed correction and disclosure procedures for failures to meet new requirements for charitable hospitals; invites public comments
3. IRS confirms charitable hospitals may continue to rely on proposed regulations pending further guidance
4. Read current guidance on user fees for employee plans and exempt organizations

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 1.  New options for automatically revoked organizations to apply for reinstatement

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Organizations that have had their tax-exempt status automatically revoked for not filing required 990 series returns may apply for reinstatement. Revenue Procedure 2014-11 provides four options for applying for reinstatement and explains how the new procedures apply to pending and recently approved applications.

Revenue Procedure 2014-11 modifies and supersedes the procedures described in Notice 2011-44.

Also see: Automatic Revocation - How to have your tax-exempt status retroactively reinstated   

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 2.  IRS issues proposed correction and disclosure procedures for failures to meet new requirements for charitable hospitals; invites public comments

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Notice 2014-3 contains a proposed revenue procedure that provides correction and disclosure procedures under which certain failures to meet the requirements of § 501(r) of the Internal Revenue Code will be excused for purposes of § 501(r)(1) and 501(r)(2)(B). This notice invites comments regarding the procedures set forth in the proposed revenue procedure, including what additional examples, if any, would be helpful and whether hospitals should be required to make additional disclosures.   

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 3.  IRS confirms charitable hospitals may continue to rely on proposed regulations pending further guidance

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Notice 2014-2 confirms that hospital organizations can rely on proposed regulations under section 501(r) of the Internal Revenue Code published on June 26, 2012, and April 5, 2013, pending the publication of final regulations or other applicable guidance.   

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 4.  Read current guidance on user fees for employee plans and exempt organizations

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Review Revenue Procedure 2014-8 on page 242.