Stuff for the Spirit

Contacts:
Rev. Mark Whitlock, Co-Director, phone (949) 955-0014
Rev. Najuma Smith, Alumni President, Phone (323) 873-7724 USC Launches Third Annual Program for African American Clergy and Lay Leaders For Immediate Release Los Angeles - The USC Passing the Mantle Clergy and Lay Leadership Institute is now accepting applications for its 2008 program. Created to develop a new generation of black church leaders in California, the program trains emerging and established African American clergy and lay leaders in community organizing, economic development and leadership strategies. “This effort is important because the essence of the struggle for black equity is based in the black church,” said the Rev. Dr. Cecil “Chip” Murray, John R. Tansey Professor of Christian Ethics, and director of USC’s Passing the Mantle program. “If you want to affect the larger black community, your point of contact will ultimately include the church.”

The USC Passing the Mantle Clergy and Lay Leadership Institute, known as PTM, includes dynamic speakers and structured mentoring meetings with leading ministers in the Los Angeles area. PTM is led by the Rev. Dr. Cecil “Chip” Murray, the former pastor of the First African Methodist Episcopal Church Los Angeles. The institute is co-directed by Rev. Mark Whitlock, founder and pastor of Christ Our Redeemer African Methodist Episcopal Church, and Rev. Eugene Williams, founder of Regional Congregations and Neighborhood Organizations. Prof. Donald E. Miller, executive director of the USC Center for Religion and Civic Culture, completes the leadership team as co-principal investigator.

The institute takes place August 3-9, 2008 at the University of Southern California and is limited to 40 pastors, lay leaders, and community development professionals. Clergy and lay leaders in California will be given priority consideration. The application deadline is May 30, 2008. Program tuition is $500, which includes accommodations, materials, food, and fellowship with other church leaders. A limited number of scholarships are available for those with financial need.

The Passing the Mantle Clergy and Lay Leadership Institute is supported by a grant from The James Irvine Foundation (http://www.irvine.org/). PTM is housed at the University of Southern California’s Center for Religion and Civic Culture, (www.usc.edu/crcc), a catalyst for new partnerships and research on the role of religion in society.

For more information on the Passing the Mantle program and to download an application, please visit www.usc.edu/ptm, or call 213.740.8562.

An Ohio woman earns $50 weekly writing personal letters.  HOW?  She advertises in the National Tabloid newspapers and ladies magazines.  For $3 weekly or $10 monthly, she promises to write a long letter to shut-ins, prisoners and service people.  Families of these individuals explain the likes and dislikes of those she is to write to and she corresponds along the lines suggested by family and friends.nal Tabloid newspapers and ladies magazines.  For $3 weekly or $10 monthly€

New Book Answers Jewish Questions about Islam
 
An Introduction to Islam for Jews by Reuven Firestone

What does the Qur’an really say about Jews? Why is Jerusalem so important to Muslims? Is hallal the same thing as kosher?

Jews have today, as never before, a pressing need to understand the history, theology, and practice of Muslims and Islam. In An Introduction to Islam for Jews Firestone explains the remarkable similarities and profound differences between Judaism and Islam, the complex history of Jihad, the legal and religious positions of Jews in the world of Islam, how various expressions of Islam (Sunni, Shi`a, Sufi, Salafi, etc.) regard Jews, the range of Muslim views about Israel, and much more. He addresses these issues and others with candor and integrity, and he writes with language, symbols, and ideas that make sense to Jews. An Introduction to Islam for Jews is both readable and reasoned, presenting to Jewish readers for the first time the complexity of Islam and its relationship towards Jews and Judaism.

Reuven Firestone is professor of Medieval Judaism and Islam at Hebrew Union College in Los Angeles and director of the Institute for the Study and Enhancement of Muslim-Jewish Interrelations (ISEMJI), a program of the Center for Religion and Civic Culture at the University of Southern California. An ordained rabbi, he received his Ph.D. in Arabic and Islamic studies from NYU.  Firestone is the author of Jihad: The Origin of Holy War in Islam (Oxford University Press); Children of Abraham: An Introduction to Judaism for Muslims (Ktav); Jews, Christians, Muslims in Dialogue: A Practical Handbook, with Leonard Swidler and Khalid Duran; (Twenty-Third Publications) and The Revival of Holy War in Modern Judaism (forthcoming).

Price: $18   
Binding: Paper; 304 pages; 6″ x 9″
ISBN 0-8276-0864-1
Publication Date:  August 2008

For more information or receive a press kit please contact Arielle Levites (800)-234-3151 ext. 5601 or email: alevites@jewishpub.org

A pawnbroker makes loans on personal property left as collateral.
The property can be redeemed when the loan plus interest is repaid.

The interest rates for pawnshops, which may be regulated by state or local
laws, may range from 5% to 6% a month. Loans can usually be renewed, but
only if the interest for the original period has been paid.

Pawnbrokers will accept a variety of personal property as collateral.
Usually, items that are small or of modest value (jewelry, clocks, computers,
camcorders, silverware, etc.) Brokers won’t lend more money than they think
they can get if the pledged item is not redeemed and has to be sold.

When a pledged item is not redeemed, brokers are required to notify pawners
that the loan period has expired and to give them a final opportunity to
redeem their personal property before the broker has the right to sell the
item. In some jurisdictions, brokers may keep all the money received from
the sale of the unredeemed pledge. In other cases, the broker may only keep
the original loan and any interest due, but must turn any excess over to the
pawner.

In many states, pawnbrokers are required by law to file with the local police
a daily list of items that have been pledged. They must report and give a
description of the object along with serial number and other points of
identification.

This gives the police an opportunity to check these pledge items against any
list of reported stolen items. In somebody buys a stolen item from a
pawnbroker, it must be returned, and the broker must refund the purchase
price to the customer.

DEBT LIMIT. Installment debt should not exceed 10% of take-home pay. A debt
ratio of 20% indicates trouble ahead. However, when computing for your debt
ratio, you must not include mortgage payments in the amount of debt.

HOW TO RUN AN EASY AND PROFITABLE BUSINESS SELLING SPECIAL COUPONS

Look in your mailbox.  What do you see almost every day?  Coupons.  Look in your newspaper.  What do you see EVERY day?  Coupons.  It seems like coupons multiply like rabbits.  Why?  Prices are rising, unlike a majority of
people’s incomes.

Coupons only make good financial sense.  But what if you discovered that someone’s making money from coupons?  They are, and so can you, by selling a special type of coupon.

Manufacturers use coupons primarily to attract new customers.  The money savings entice people to try products they might otherwise not have.  The same can be true of local businesses in your area.  Sure, they put coupons
in their newspaper ads.

But you can give them the opportunity to get their coupons into the hands of the exact customers they need, and at a far better price than the local newspaper.  You can produce a Local Business Coupon Book easily, inexpensively, and profitably, if you follow the steps outlined here.

The first step in running a successful coupon publishing business is to find the businesses that will advertise with you.  Any business that relies on local advertising is a good prospect.

Here is a short list of businesses you should consider:

Theaters;
Hair Salons;
Fast Food Restaurants;
Record
and CD Stores;
Dry Cleaners;
Supermarkets;
Car Washes;
Muffler Shops;
Ice Cream and Frozen Yogurt Shops.

Basically, any store that could reasonably use a coupon to draw in new customers is a prospect.

You may want to specialize in one area, such as fast food restaurants.  Or, cover the whole gamut.  Look through your phone book for businesses you might not have thought of.

When you approach these businesses, target a group within a five mile radius. It will be more time-efficient for you, and you can use the area grouping in your sales pitch.  Stress the fact that around 80 percent of their business will come from that five mile radius.  Tell them that you plan to distribute the coupon book within that radius, so it will draw the
best results.

To be really profitable, you should get at least 15 - 25 businesses in the book.  The more, the better.

How much to charge?  That depends on how many books you will be distributing, and what your costs are.  One coupon book producer charged $100 for a coupon going to 1,000 people in an eight mile radius.  His total cost was $300, and he sold 11 businesses coupons.  This gave him an $800 profit in one week!

The second step is to create the coupons.  If you have a computer, the job of designing the coupons can be quite easy with some of the word processor/ graphics packages available.  If not, talk to your printer.  He or she will more than likely have some ready-made templates for coupons.  You can just fill in the blanks.

Be sure to put YOUR business name on the coupon (in small print, so it doesn’t distract).  Subconsciously, people will remember your business name and associate it with saving money.  In any case, you will need to put the advertising business’ name, address, phone, logo (if any, many businesses will have them ready made for you to use), the amount of the discount, any conditions they may have, and an expiration date.  Your printer can help you with the layout, if you are inexperienced, or you can find easy to use layout boards at an office supply or art store.

Assembling the coupon books can be done in a number of ways.  The easiest, and recommended, way to start is by simply stapling them together.  Only one staple will be necessary, on the left side of the stack of coupons.  Make a cover coupon with your business name and the name you’ve chosen for the coupon book.  Put that on top of the stack before you staple.  Other methods are perforating/padding, and perforating/perfect binding.  Your printer should be able to provide pricing information on these and other binding methods.

The third step is distributing.  You have already identified the radius within which you will distribute your coupon books.  There are two methods of delivery you can use.  You can either deliver them by car or foot, or you can bulk mail them.

Bulk mailing is infinitely easier and more efficient, but requires a bit of paperwork and registration fees.  If you are delivering in one zip code area, you can use either five digit presort mailing, or carrier route presort mailing.

You should check with your postmaster regarding rules and fees.  As soon as you have mailed the coupons, deliver a copy of the coupon book to each business that has advertised in it, so they know that customers will now be bringing them in.

The fourth and final step is follow up.  You need to know how your coupon books are doing.  Ask the businesses that advertise in your book to write the amount purchased by the coupon-bearing customer on the back of the coupon, and to hold them for you.

Stop by at least once a week and pick up the redeemed coupons.  Besides giving you purchase totals that you can refer to in future sales to new customers, this also gives you a chance to talk to the businesses about purchasing coupons in new books.  You can show them right then and there the results they have gotten, and they should be enthusiastic about signing back on.

It is important to maintain a good relationship with the businesses who advertise with you.  Show them that you are committed to helping them increase their business.  If you care, so will they.  This is a fun business that can be started part-time, and can easily move to full-time.  Remember the man who cleared $800 his first week in this business.  He was
just starting out, and you can do that, too!

Collecting money owed to you

If you are owed money and have not received any payment over a reasonable
period of time, there are several steps you can take to collect, even
before going to the expense of hiring a collection agency or lawyer.

While making these moves, you can collect evidence in case it becomes
necessary to take the matter to court.

CALL THE DEBTOR

This method, handled properly, can have surprisingly successful results.
For best results, have another person of the line to witness the
conversation. In case the debtor denies the call, you have a witness
who can testify otherwise.

WRITE THE DEBTOR
Write a letter that confirms and reviews all the pertinent points of the
telephone conversation. The goal is to make your letter clear enough to
make it stick in court.

IF THE DEBTOR IS A BUSINESS
File a complaint with the BBB or the trade organization in which the
debtor is a member. Make sure you stick to the facts in order to avoid
being sued for libel.