Karnataka Temple Development Fund

July-August-September 2004 Newsletter

Dr. and Mrs. Hiranya and Sarawathi Gowda recently created an endowment (#55) to help build one small Hindu temple for every five villages in their home state of Karnataka. Dr.Gowda, president of the Sri Ganesha of Nashville, Tennessee, was motivated to provide a place of worship for villagers who have nowhere else to go. He traveled to India early in 2004 and hired a sthapati (architect) to design a model temple. His fund allows someone living in the USA to donate funds through HHE to build a small temple in a village in Karnataka, taking advantage of an existing architectural plan. The Gowdas utilized income-tax savings to create the endowment for their temple-building project, as donations given in the USA to charities in India through HHE are tax deductible. They further leveraged their giving by donating appreciated stock, and thus were able to give significantly more through HHE than they could by sending money directly to India. Specifically, Dr.Gowda donated stocks to HHE to establish the endowment, thus saving the capital gains tax he would have incurred had he sold the stock and donated cash.

He and other interested parties can give donations to the fund, of which up to 70% may be sent to India to build temples. The remaining 30%, the average tax savings, is added to the principal of the endowment. Each year a percentage of the endowment (currently about 4%) is given as a grant to help maintain and operate temples that have been built. A principal of $50,000 in the endowment, for example, would generate a grant of $2,000 or Rs 90,539 annually. There is no charge to open a fund with HHE, and the minimum fund size is just $5,000. [As of February 2011 the minimal start-up amount is $10,000.] The annual fee, both for professional investment management teams and administration overhead, is approximately two percent of the principal, and all wire transfer and bank fees for sending to India are paid by HHE.

Sri Ganesha Hindu Temple of Utah Fund

Aditya Vinadhara was instrumental in the creation and development of a temple for Lord Ganesha at the foot of the Rocky Mountains in Utah. After the installation of the Deity in the newly built temple on May 4, 2003, Aditya explained that plans for the temples included building a community center, elderly housing and day-care facilities and creating an endowment for the future. In less than a year, the plans for the endowment manifested with creation of a multi-donor fund (#56), the Sri Ganesha Hindu Temple of Utah Endowment Fund. Aditya was impressed with the success of the Iraivan Temple Endowment (#2), which currently supports the temple's maintenance budgets on $144,000 per year in grants. He felt that the security of such an endowment within HHE for the Utah temple was important to avoid the pitfalls of a "quasi-endowment," the practice of placing general donations into an investment account, which, though it may be thought of as an endowment, is not truly protected and could later be spent by a different board of trustees.

The principal of each of the fifty-six HHE endowments, however, is protected and cannot be spent. For the Utah temple, the grant income is restricted to maintaining the gardens and grounds of the current 5.3 acres, plus any future connected temple lands, maintenance and repair of the temple, care of plants and ponds, paths fencing, gardeners, puja supplies, gifts of prasadam an festivals. Visit the Utah Ganesha Temple online at www.sriganesh.faithweb.com.

January to March Endowment Contributions

MISSION STATEMENT

Hindu Heritage Endowment is a publicly supported, charitable organization recognized as tax exempt by the IRS on April 22, 1994. Employer ID 99-0308924. Founded by Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami, its philanthropic mission is to provide secure, professionally managed financial support for institutions and religious leaders of all lineages of Sanatana Dharma.

PROFESSIONAL ADVISORS

Halbert/Hargrove, Investment Counsel; Sonoda & Isara, LLP, CPA. HHE is a member of the Council on Foundations, an association of more than 2,000 foundations which interprets relevant law and management and investment principles, and of the National Committee on Planned Giving, the voice and professional resource for the gift planning community.

I want to participate. Where should I Send My Donation?

You may send your gift to an existing fund, create a new Endowment or request information through the address below.

Donations may be made online at www.hheonline.org or use the HHE tear-out card in the HINDUISM TODAY magazine to join our family of benefactors who are Strengthening Hinduism Worldwide. Thank you.