Savannah Alumnae Chapter April 2016 Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. Savannah Alumnae Chapter A MESSESAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT: IF NOT US, THEN WHO? During Delta Days at the Nations Capitol, our National President and Social Action Commission Chair strongly encouraged Delta chapters to form coalitions and work collaboratively with others during this campaign season that would greatly impact the Get Out The Vote (GOTV) effort. It is imperative that we get every eligible individual to the polls during the Presidential and Congressional election of 2016. This next election will determine the swing of the Supreme Court, the continuance of Obamacare, and many other vital issues that will impact our and the lives of those we serve. Our Social Action mandate lead Savannah Alumnae Chapter to engage other community leaders including the Divine 9, National Council of Negro Women, and the NAACP to begin discussion on how to ensure voter turn out is monumental. Savannah Alumnae Chapter was chartered mandate required all graduate chapters to be known as alumnae chapters of the city in their as the Beta Delta Sigma Chapter on May 15, 1941. In 1957, a Grand Chapter service area. With that mandate, Beta Delta Sigma became Savannah Alumnae Chapter In a little over two weeks on Saturday, May 14 at 7 p.m., SAC will celebrate 75 years of providing outstanding service to the Savannah community. With more than 200 active members and countless friends of the sorority, it promises to be a fun filled evening. Tickets are still available! Contact Sorors DeVita Slaughter at 912-429-9565; Renee Cannon at 912-272-1888 or [email protected] or Omesha Coppock at 912-272-2363 or [email protected] Celebrating 75yrs of Sisterhood, Scholarship and Service GOTV is our mandate! Important dates to remember: Early voting begins May 2 Georgia Primary is May 24 Any registered voter can request a mail-in absentee ballot through their local county registrar or through the Georgia Secretary of State’s website at https:// www.mvp.sos.ga.gov/MVP/mvp.do. As we form partnerships and devise strategies to get our citizens to the polls, please check our corner for volunteer opportunities. The most important thing that we all can do now is spread the word to EVERYONE we know: Our votes matter…Let’s go to the polls. The National Social Action Commission hosted Delta Day at the United Nations on March 18, 2016. The theme was: “Gender Motivated Violence: Empowering Women and Girls with Solutions”. Local chapters are encouraged to become informed and engaged in gender based oppression issues. Resources include: unicefusa.org/endtrafficking, notmylife.org, slaveryfootprint.org and ww.ggenyc.org “ So Act” Corner Information and updates from the Social Action Committee message cont. from cover Our first meeting was very successful in dialoging about not only GOTV efforts, but other areas of concern in our community. Please stay tuned as the Social Action Committee keeps us abreast of what actions we need to take. The “ SO ACT” Corner, debuting in this issue of the newsletter, will continue to provide information and updates as the political season progresses. With Love & Devotion to Delta, Soror Laura N. Wiggins, President Savannah Alumnae Chapter Estate cont. from front cover leave taxable assets to charities if charities are included in your list of beneficiaries, and leave your tax-free assets, such as Roth retirement accounts, life insurance and after-tax savings, to your other beneficiaries. Also, you can reduce your taxable estate by gifting amounts to your beneficiaries while you are alive, and the gift would be nontaxable if it is under $13,000 for each recipient. 4) OFFSET TAXES WITH INSURANCE Your beneficiaries can lose a significant amount of the taxable assets that they inherit to estate and income taxes. This can be offset with the proceeds from life insurance. For instance, if your estate planner estimates that your beneficiary will owe $500,000 in estate and income tax, you can purchase a life insurance plan for that amount and name the affected party as the beneficiary. Since life- insurance proceeds paid to your beneficiaries are tax-free, the entire $500,000 would be available to pay the taxes owed. 5) WORKING WITH AN ESTATE PLANNING TEAM You may need the assistance of experts from several fields. This includes the following: An estate planning attorney who can help with the designing and creation of trusts and wills, as well as ensuring that your estate plan meets federal and state requirements. It is often best to work with a local attorney as he/she is more likely to be familiar with the laws of the area in which you reside. A tax professional that can help to minimize the amount of income taxes that your beneficiaries would pay on the amounts they inherit. A financial advisor can help you to design a suitable investment portfolio for your assets. When choosing a financial advisor, ensure that he/she is knowledgeable about the estate planning needs and rules for retirement accounts. BOTTOM LINE Many individuals tend to focus on the aspects of finances that affect them during their lifetime and procrastinate about making decisions for their estate. However, failing to put an effective estate plan in place can be costly to your beneficiaries and cause friction if some feel they were unfairly disinherited by your inaction. Make appointments with your estate planning team, and make sure that your estate plan is customized to suit the needs of you and your beneficiaries.