BITS & PIECES

Candelit dinners, rose bouquets, cards, gifts, chocolates and romantic walks on the beach -- sound familiar? While some of that may happen at different times during the year, Valentine’s Day is the day for lovers and loved ones. (And you fellas out there had better remember the 14th of February, or you may indeed be in lots of trouble!)

But how did Valentine’s Day come about? It is probably the fault of the original St. Valentine, a name shared between two legendary Christian martyrs of the third century. Sadly enough, the first St. Valentine was a martyr who was believed to be a Roman priest--killed for believing in Christianity on a Roman Road. The second St. Valentine was an Italian bishop martyred in Rome for believing in Christianity. Historians disagree on whether these are true stories or just legends. Nevertheless, celebration feasts for these two men were held on February 14th and they did not occur with the idea of love or courtship but instead were held in honor of the martyred St. Valentine’s.

Up until the 5th century AD, a celebration (the Lupercalia -- a Roman feast in honor of Lupercus or Pan) was held on February 15th for Faunus, the mythological Roman god of fertility and flocks through sacrifices of goats and a dog. Young men called Luperci would then travel down the hillsides, hitting those along the way with whips made of the sacrificed goatskins. If any of these were women, they were assured of fertility and a simple childbirth. Many of these women would write their names on love notes during evening feasts and men who drew any of those notes would be allowed to court that woman for the evening. And this is how of St. Valentine’s Day cards originated. Strangely enough, the Lupercalia, held on February 15th was connected to the feast of St. Valentine on the 14th but it was not until the 1600’s that the Christian Church ended the Lupercalia and incorporated it with the Feast of St. Valentine.

In time, St. Valentine became known as the Lover’s Saint though it is doubtful he had anything to do with romantic antics at all. St. Valentine’s Day evolved into celebrations of love due to media hype and commercialization. Yet who among us would deny that Valentine’s Day is a positive undertaking -- a time to express love, to receive and give love and to make someone special very happy indeed. (Editor’s Note: many elderly people’s families donate all kinds of cards to local thrift stores; even the smaller thrifts carry greeting cards. We suggest that you search for holiday cards, including Valentine’s Day cards, in your local thrift stores and in rummage sales. See our San Diego Events Calendar for the largest rummage sale in town, coming up in Balboa Park in March.)

New Laws Affect Your Donation and Hurt National Charities.

    The House passed a new law effective January 1st allowing the final sale price only as a tax write-off for donated cars, boats, planes and other valuable items in 2005, if the price of those items are more than $500. The fair market value still applies if the value is less than $500.

    The General Accounting Office, an independent watchdog arm of the government studied tax returns in the year 2000, finding that 733,000 people claimed deductions for donated vehicles. Donors were claiming deductions that valued automobiles at more than 20 times the actual auction price. According to the GAO, an estimated 4300 U.S. charities with annual revenues in excess of $100,000 operate vehicle donation programs. In addition, the annual net proceeds from vehicle donations for 2002 as reported by the charities ranged from as little as $1000 per two vehicles..to over $8.8 million for one national charity that received over 70,000 vehicles. Although the dollar amount received was over $1 million for several charities, for many the revenue was a small share of total charity revenues. Charity proceeds constituted less than 2% of the total annual budget for fifteen of the thirty charities providing budget information; however, two of the charities stated that vehicle donations accounted for 80% or more of their annual revenue. The IRS and the GAO both have issued guidelines which donors should consider when donating vehicles to charities:

1. Verify that the recipient organization is a tax-exempt charity.

2. Charities need to be registered with state regulatory agencies; check with the state attorney general’s office or the secretary of state.

3. Ask how the vehicle will be used once donated? For example, will it be repaired and given to the needy? Or will it be resold and if so, what amount will the charity receive?

4. Consider itemizing deductions if those are greater than the standard deduction.

5. Deductions can only be based on the fair market value if below $500; that includes the vehicle’s condition which can be less than what is listed in used car guides.

6. These deductions must be documented. Obtain IRS publication 526.

7. Title of vehicles must be transferred to the charity’s name by contacting the state motor vehicles department; if state laws allow it, remove all license plates when the transfer is complete.