Always consult your financial advisor before making any significant estate planning decisions. A charitable gift annuity is a contract that pays you an income stream for life and then provides a permanent gift for your church. A charitable gift annuity provides: Dependable income for life Tax-free income An immediate tax deduction A legacy for your faith • • • • Charitable Gift Annuities Tax-Smart Christmas Giving The IRA Rollover If you are over age 70½, the Federal government now permits you to give up to $100,000 from your IRA to charity without tax. Benefit from this law for tax-smart giving if you: Do not itemize but still make gifts to your church Are required to take an unneeded IRA distribution (RMD), or Wish to make a special gift but your major assets are in your IRA • • • (225) 346-1535   (800) 256-9317 www.umfgiving.org Call us to find out how you and your United Methodist Church can benefit from tax-smart giving! 8 DECEMBER 19, 2008 Louisiana Conference Now! LAVIM team carries the spirit of Christmas to the youth of Cambodia A LAVIM team, led by Rev. Jack O’Dell, participated in a mission to Cambodia during the first two weeks of December. Team members assisted in running a Youth Camp during the first week of the mission. The event was attended by approximately 160 young people, gathering together to pray and be in fellowship. The theme was "Cambodia Methodist Youth Rise and Shine." Youth attending the camp are pictured, top left, during a lively worship service. Children at the local orphanage are shown, top right, at a Christmas celebration facilitated by the LAVIM team. A similar celebration was held for children living at the Phonom Penh dumpsite. Louisiana Volunteers in Mission and the Louisiana Cambodia initiative's strong relationship with the Methodist Mission in the Kingdom of Cambodia continued dur- ing the first two weeks of December. A LAVIM team, led by Rev. Jack O’Dell, led a youth leadership camp and worked with Christmas programs at a local orphanage and at the infamous dump site where so many impoverished children live in Cambodia. Members of the team included Mandy O'Dell, Diane Reich, Ken Musick, Mike Patterson, Dirk Smith, Curt Bailey and David Howell. For the past several years, Louisiana Volunteers in Mission and the Louisiana Annual Conference have worked with the Spean Chivit congregation near Phonom Penh in purchasing property for a new church location and the construction of a sanctuary. The church was finished in 2007 and dedicated by LAVIM teams in February of 2008.  Esther Karimi Gitobu, a missionary with the General Board of Global Ministries, is assigned to Cambodia and helped to coordinate the December mission The average age of a Cambodian Methodist is between 15 and 25 years of age, and English is the official second lan- guage of the country. The LAVIM team assisted in running a Youth Camp the first week of December. The event was attend- ed by approximately 160 young people, gathering together to pray and be in fel- lowship. The theme was "Cambodia Methodist Youth Rise and Shine," with a motto of "To know Christ and make Him known". The goal of the Youth Camp was to create a Christian community where young people throughout Cambodia come together to build relationships and struc- tures that will enable them to work in col- laboration on issues of common concern.