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Newsletter : Apr i l 2015 Volume-3/ Issue-1

M I S S I O N S T A T E M E N T

The Mission of M.O.N.A. is to act as a central organization representing the Memon community

throughout North America. On a non-profit, charitable basis, M.O.N.A. will promote and support

the advancement, unity, welfare, and well-being of all Memons and humanity.

www.memonconnect.comA place where you can find out about community events,

services, youth initiatives and contact information.

[email protected]

New Office & Crescent Clinic:

2180 W. Crescent Ave.Anaheim, CA 92801

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BOARD OF TRUSTEES:

Salim Adaya

Yusuf Tar

BOARD OF DIRECTORS:

PRESIDENT:

M. Ashraf Kamdar

VICE PRESIDENT:

Abdulgani Moulvi

SECRETARY:

Yasmeen Ahussain

TREASURER:

Rashid Memon

MEMBERS:

Mushtak Batliwala

Mohammed Hanif Dada

Rahil Jandga

Soaliha Lakhani

Saleem Moosani

Iesha Wadalawala

YOUTH REPRESENTATIVE:

Humera Moulvi

ADVISORY COMMITTEE:

Arif Merchant

Zakaria Sattar

Abdul Wahab

Assalamu Ala ikum!InshaAllah you are all well! We are delighted to bring you this newsletter to update you of

what your donations have allowed MONA to do! We are still so happy, Alhamdulilhah for

your support, to have opened the Crescent Clinic, a FREE health clinic in partnership with

ICNA. Since the opening of the clinic, we have served over 280 patients. We also have

been able to open Crescent Food Pantry, serving individuals and families in need with

food. The food pantry has served and fed over 139 families, and 500 individuals. Along

with free health care and food access, we have also started the Crescent Family Services,

providing free counseling services to children, teens, adults and families. We currently

have one Counseling Supervisor and four counselors on staff. Over 50 clients have been

counseled since the start of our services. We are now also listed in the 211 directories.

MONA Board 2015

MONA Annual General Body Meeting BanquetSunday, April 19th from 6:00pm to 10:00pm at

There will be a raffle and a free stay with two tickets for Knotts Berry Farm!

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HEALTH CORNER

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DEALING WITH DIABETES: Farah Lakhani, MPH, RD.

In the South Asian Community, diabetes is becoming increasingly prevalent and there has not been much focus

on prevention or dealing with diabetes that many are facing. If diabetes is not controlled, there are many health

implications it could cause such as kidney problems and neuropathy (losing feeling in hands and feet). Therefore

it is important to take your medication and follow a healthy diet.

As far as diet goes, it has a significant influence on the way our blood sugar responds, especially if we are diabetic.

Sugar is not the only culprit in diabetes, carbohydrates also affects diabetes and our blood sugar levels so it is

important to not eat too many carbohydrates. The key is to eat the same amount of carbs for all meals to keep

your blood sugar numbers consistent. . Some ways to help how blood glucose responds in a good way are:

s Wheat bread/brown rice: Helps to decrease the spike in blood sugar levels

s Eating more vegetables: Vegetables have a lot of fiber which helps to decrease the amount of sugar

absorbed in our body

s Practicing weight management: Losing weight and exercising has been proven to help with diabetes and

lower your glucose numbers

s Avoid sugar drinks such as sodas, juices, excess sugar in coffee/tea

s Avoid sugary foods and desserts

s Eating more of avocados, walnuts, olive oil are some omega 3 fatty acids which helps with diabetes

Crescent Clinic is open every Saturday from 9:00AM – 2:00PM. If you would like to make an appointment,

please contact the clinic at (714) 399 – 4575.

The Crescent Food Pantry is open on Tuesdays and Wednesdays from 10:00AM – 1:00PM

Crescent Counseling Family Services are open Saturday sand Sundays from 10:00AM – 5:00PM.

“The best among you is the one who is the most beneficial to others.”(The Prophet Muhammad PBUH)


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FINANCIAL LITERACY

SECURING YOUR FINANCIAL FUTURE:

Harr i s Moten, CPA

There are a number of nonprofit organiza-

tions across the country, each of whom

relies on your donations or some form of

fundraising to continue their support of

a cause. Before you hand over a portion

of your hard earned income to these

organizations, it’s important to distinguish

between the different types of groups.

Charitable organizations, such as MONA, who are recognized as a 501(c)(3)

entity by the IRS, are exempt from federal income taxes, allowing them to pre-

serve and allocate a higher percentage of your donations. Organizations that

operate as a traditional corporation are still subject to federal income taxes,

which is similar to you and I receiving a paycheck, having federal taxes

deducted, where only a percentage of our paycheck make it into our pockets

to support our cause, which could be paying off a mortgage or buying food

and paying for the education of our youth.

Other benefits of being a 501(c)(3) charitable organization include: (1) the

ability to apply for grants only allowed to IRS-recognized groups, (2) lower

postage rates and (3) limited liability. All of that sounds great, but what about the

benefits for those that contribute to these charitable organizations? What is the

benefit to you when you donate to the likes of MONA, Islamic Relief, CAIR, etc.?

The biggest benefit, outside of improving our sense of well-being and strength-

ening our religious or moral convictions, is a financial benefit - contributions

to 501(c)(3) entities are tax deductible, which will reduce your taxable

income and your tax bill on April 15th. In fact, an individual can deduct cash

contributions up to 50% of their adjusted gross income (AGI). For example, if

you have an AGI of $100,000 in 2014, you can deduct up to $50,000 of

cash contributions. Keep in mind, however, that these deductions are only

applicable when the contributor is filing a Form 1040 and itemizing their

deductions on Schedule A of the Form 1040. Also, the donation becomes

deductible at the point of payment. For example, if you send a $100 check on

December 31, 2014, but it is not received by the organization until January

5, 2015, the $100 is deductible in your 2014 Form 1040.

A cash (check or credit card) contribution is deductible only from an income

tax perspective, which is a benefit to you. A donation being deductible does

not mean that any amount of your contribution will be deducted from the

amount the charitable organization receives. It’s important to emphasize that

100% of your contribution will be received by the organization and at their

disposal to support their cause (or pay for minimal administrative expenses).

The current tax code provides us with a number of benefits and opportunities

to lower our taxable income, but often they begin to phase out as our income

gets higher and higher, but this is not the case with charitable donations. It is

safe to say our primary motive to donate is altruism, but it doesn’t hurt to

know there is a high correlation to the amount we donate and the financial

benefit we receive from donating!

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BEWARE! TAX SEASON IS PRIME TAX

SCAM SEASON Yasmeen Ahussain

Tax related phishing scams are one

of the ways crooks try to obtain the

personal information of prospective

victims.

Some taxpayers recently logged onto

TurboTax and found that a return had

already been filed under their name.

TurboTax owner Intuit temporarily stopped processing e-filed state tax

returns in all states after reports of fraud increased.

“During this tax season, Intuit and some states have seen an increase

in suspicious filings and attempts by criminals to use stolen identity

information to file fraudulent state tax returns and claim tax refunds,”

the company said in a statement.

An identity thief uses a legitimate taxpayer’s personal information such as

name, Social Security number and birth date to file a false tax return and

claim a refund for themselves.

Tax related phishing scams are one of the ways crooks try to obtain the

personal information of their victims. An unsolicited email or a fake

website will be used to lure in potential victims and prompt them to

provide valuable personal and financial information.

If you get an unexpected email, don’t open any attachments or click

on any links contained in the message. Instead, forward the email

to [email protected].

BE ON GUARD!

To lessen the chance of becoming a victim:

s File tax returns early in the tax season, before identity thieves beat

you to it.

s Use only a secure Internet connection if you file electronically. Don’t

use publicly available Wi-Fi hotspots at places like coffee shops

or hotel lobbies.

s If you intend to mail your tax return, put it in a U.S. Postal Service

mailbox or drop it off at the post office to prevent it from being

intercepted from your roadside mailbox.

s Remember that the IRS won’t contact you by email, text or social

media. If the IRS needs information, it will contact you by mail.

s Never provide your Social Security number or other personal

information to telemarketers by text message or by email unless

you initiate correspondence with a trusted entity



YOUTH CORNER COMMUNITY CORNER

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PLEASE DONATE GENEROUSLY!MONA needs your continued support, your donations are what funds the Crescent Clinic, the Crescent FoodPantry, Crescent Family Services, Humanitarian Days, Ramadan boxes, burial plots, medical equipment fororganizations in need in Pakistan, youth activities, and so much more!

MESSAGE FROM YOUTH COMMITTEE:

Assalamualikum!

I would like to thank everyone for coming outto our MONA Ice Skating Event in Yorba Linda onJanuary 16th. It was a great turn out, mashaAllah.I find it refreshing to see the Memon youth in placesother than Memon dawaats for once. We alsoincluded kids this time around to make sure ourlittle ones don’t miss out! I hope everyone had anamazing time with friends and family. MashaAllah,the turn out was great and all of you representedMONA with pride. If you missed out on our earlierevent at Skyzone or this one, keep your eye outfor the next MONA youth event coming soon,hopefully. I look forward to having us all gettogether once again.

Humera MoulviMONA Youth Representative

ADVERTISING ON MONA WEBSITEAND NEWSLETTER:

Do you have a business that you would like to adver-

tise to the Muslim Community? Do you want to pro-

mote what you do to other Memons and Pakistanis?

If so, consider advertising with MONA for a nominal

fee, and reach all our members! Announcements are

FREE. Business Ads are $25 for the year.

We congratulate MONA on their 7th Anniversary. We love being a part of MONA and appreciate yourservice to the community. We hope you grow in membership and in success! Anis Bakali and Family

Seven years of service to the community is much appreciated! We look forward to many more yearsof supporting the work of MONA. Thank you for providing necessary programs for the needy andactivities for the youth! Anwar Gajiani and Family


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