Thomas M. Boles, 33°, G.C. Director of Development 1761 East Woodcrest Avenue La Habra, California 90631-3260 Tel . 562-691-4227; Fax 562-691-5327

Earl E. Ihle, Jr., 33° Director of Major Gifts 1733 Sixteenth St., Washington, DC 20009–3103 Tel. 202-232-3579, Ext. 143; Fax. 202-387-1843 Or call 800-486-3331, Ext. 143 council@srmason-sj.org

We are pleased to announce a new service for our Scottish Rite members to provide assistance in estate planning. The Scottish Rite Foundation, S.J., has the capability, through a financial consultant, to provide a Comprehensive Estate and Financial Review for any member requesting this benefit. We believe this to be an extremely valuable tool for you and your family. A financial review would normally have an approximate cost of $1,000, but will be provided to Scottish Rite Masons at no charge. Such a comprehensive financial analysis contains approximately 65 pages of valuable information to help you plan for your family's future. If you would like to receive a free Comprehensive Estate and Financial Review, please call our Development Office at 1–800–486–3331, ext. 143.

The Comprehensive Estate and Financial Review is a detailed analysis to help you attain your financial goals. Some of the areas covered in the review include the following: a detailed balance sheet and asset allocation, an income tax and cash flow analysis, a life insurance needs analysis, and a charitable giving module. If necessary, the financial analysis will include an education planning section to provide financial planning for your family's educational needs. The Comprehensive Estate and Financial Review will include an estate section outlining your current estate tax liability and what methods you can use to minimize these taxes. Finally, the supplement and summary sections will address the specific strategies you need to discuss with your attorney and other professional advisors to assist you in implementing your plan.

There are many reasons to consider estate planning for your family. Proper estate planning can help to eliminate or reduce estate taxes. With estate planning, you may find that a structured charitable gift made now may have benefits today and in the future. Estate planning may help you identify assets that are not performing to meet your long-term financial goals. Of course, one of the greatest concerns is providing for your heirs. Through proper estate planning, even the most complicated situations can be addressed. Laws change, and therein lies the necessity to review your estate plan on an ongoing basis. In general, you and your family will benefit by having peace of mind with a carefully considered estate plan to provide for your family's financial needs.

The Scottish Rite Foundation, Southern Jurisdiction, has several brochures to help you understand the basic guidelines of planned giving. These brochures are available, upon your request, at no charge. One of the basic rules in planned giving is to remember to take care of your personal needs and those of your family first before making any planned giving commitments. While we welcome gifts to our Foundations, we want the best results for our donors. Our brochure, "A Circle from Childhood to Childhood" is an excellent tool to understand the basics of choosing a gift plan. It covers seven types of gifts:

1. Bequests in Wills
2. Life Insurance Policies
3. Gifts of Stocks or Securities
4. The Scottish Rite Foundation Pooled Income Fund
5. Gift Annuities
6. Charitable Remainder Annuity Trusts
7. Charitable Remainder Unitrusts.

Also, we have a new brochure specifically designed to answer questions about the Scottish Rite Foundation Pooled Income Fund.

It is our goal to provide Scottish Rite members and the many friends of the various Scottish Rite Foundations with the most current and accurate information on estate planning. In keeping with this intention, our Development Office is currently scheduling estate-planning seminars in selected Scottish Rite Valleys. To find out more about these seminars, just give us a call. Please remember, though, when contacting our office, we are not in a position to give any legal or accounting advice. We always recommend using your own attorney or accountant for advice before making any financial decisions. We want to thank all of our previous donors and to let everyone know that our Scottish Rite Donor Recognition Program is continuing to grow at a rapid pace. Your contributions greatly assist our many charitable endeavors. It is the enthusiasm of our Brethren and friends who make many of our Scottish Rite Childhood Language Programs and Scottish Rite Scholarships possible. As we approach the new millennium, let us continue to advance our mission of helping America's children and to concentrate on the positive aspects of what our children are accomplishing today. Let us help them to reach greater heights in the future. Please accept our invitation to participate in a dialog with our Foundations to develop new ideas to encourage America's children to prepare for the challenges of the new millennium.

Ill. Thomas M. Boles, 33°, G.C. (left in photo) has worked extensively in fund-raising for children's programs throughout our Fraternity. For more information on planned giving, call Bro. Tom at 562–691–4227 (Fax 562–691–5327) or the Scottish Rite Foundation, Southern Jurisdiction, U.S.A., at 202–232–3579, ext. 143. Ill. Earl E. Ihle, Jr., 33°, is our development team's Director of Major Gifts. He has been a member of the Fraternity for 25 years and served in 1978 as Master of Lafayette Lodge, No. 111, Baltimore, Maryland. He is also a member of Boumi Shrine Temple in Baltimore, the York Rite, and a dual member of the Scottish Rite Valleys of Baltimore and Washington, D.C. You can reach Bro. Ihle toll free at 1–800–486–3331.