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| Join us in preserving the Tibetan Buddhist Monastic Tradition by supporting the Deer Park Endowment Fund “There are many Tibetan Buddhist Centers in this country, but there are very few places that are what we Tibetans would consider monasteries…It is much harder, however, to find a place to go if one wants to take up monastic life. I think this is very important, and I want Deer Park to continue to offer this possibility…” Geshe Lhundub Sopa, Like a Walking Dream Starting from the time when Buddha Shakyamuni first turned the wheel of Dharma at Sarnath, India some 2,600 years ago, the Buddhist monastic order, the Sangha, has been one of the key pillars of Buddhist tradition. The Buddha–founder and source of the teachings, the Dharma–his words and advice, and the Sangha–the monastic order established by Buddha, have been integral parts of Buddhist tradition throughout the millennia. The Buddhist monastic order originally set forth by the Lord Buddha has passed down to the present through an unbroken sequence of generations of monastic lineages. Deer Park Buddhist Center was founded by Geshe Lhundub Sopa Rinpoche in 1976. Today it remains one of the very few fully functioning Tibetan Buddhist Monasteries following the Je Tsongkapa, Nalanda tradition in the West. The Deer Park Endowment Fund was established by the Board of Directors of Deer Park Buddhist Center in order to provide the resources necessary to ensure the continuous support and maintenance of a proper environment conducive for the Buddhist monastic training here. The Fund’s purpose is to allow Deer Park Buddhist Center to continue to function as a Tibetan Buddhist Monastery enabling the resident Buddhist monks to uphold their spiritual commitments, foster spiritual growth and realizations, and preserve the Je Tsongkapa Nalanda tradition for future generations. The Deer Park Endowment Fund will also enable Deer Park Buddhist Center to follow the example set by our founder, Geshe Lhundub Sopa Rinpoche, by providing the highest quality Buddhist teachings. Through these teachings, prayers, and rituals services the lay community’s spiritual growth and understanding will be fostered. Operating costs have consistently increased over time because of an increase in the number of spiritual programs, students and visitors to the monastery, and on going improvements and maintenance. The Deer Park Endowment Fund is needed to ensure long term stability of the monastery, financial health, continued ability to underwrite our high quality services and programs, and visits of guest teachers. The successful completion of our goal and continuous commitment to remain self-sustaining, will keep us free from business enterprise and profit making efforts to acquire resources. The Endowment Fund will allow Deer Park Buddhist Center to remain focused on and steadfast in striving toward the spiritual goals and standards set forth by our founder Geshe Lhundub Sopa Rinpoche and Lord Buddha 2,600 years ago. Deer Park Buddhist Center is not affiliated with or funded by any government organizations, programs, or any other religious or secular institutions. The Deer Park Endowment Fund will allow Deer Park Buddhist Center to continue to remain independent and secure in fulfilling Geshe Lhundub Sopa Rinpoche’s wishes by preserving Deer Park Buddhist Center as a unique and vibrant Tibetan Buddhist monastery outside of Tibet and India. How the Deer Park Endowment Fund will work Gifts to the Deer Park Endowment Fund will be prudently invested to generate income and appreciation in value of the principal. It will be a collection of unrestricted and restricted funds. Unrestricted gifts to the Endowment will enable the Board of Directors of Deer Park Buddhist Center to use the income generated from the Fund to provide the resources necessary to operate Deer Park Buddhist Center. The principal of unrestricted gifts intended for Endowment will be maintained and preserved in the endowment and the appreciation and income will be available for general purposes including support for the monks, maintenance and upkeep of buildings and grounds, maintaining the Deer Park library and archive, and other general purposes including travel expenses and stipends for visiting teachers. Under very limited and appropriate circumstances, the Board of Directors may use the principal of the endowment fund, in addition to income and appreciation, in order to meet unanticipated and urgent financial needs of Deer Park Buddhist Center. Deer Park Buddhist Center encourages gifts in which the donor does not restrict the purpose of the endowment, but rather states a preference for the purpose. Unrestricted gifts are preferred because they allow the Board of Directors the most flexibility in its financial planning. It is the Board of Directors’ policy, depending on and in accordance with the wishes of the donor, that the principal of an unrestricted gift to the Endowment shall be preserved to the fullest extent possible in order to remain in the Endowment. Restricted gifts intended for the Endowment will be restricted to particular purposes approved by the Board of Directors in accordance with the intention of the donor. The donor can restrict the terms of an endowment by means of a “gift instrument,” a document signed by the donor that states the donor’s intent. Examples of restricted gifts to the Endowment are gifts that are to be used to pay for upkeep and maintenance of the New Temple or the Kalachakra Temple, or to provide for the ongoing support of the monks. When a donor restricts the purpose of the gift, the donor will receive a gift instrument setting forth the purposes of the gift signed by the donor and a representative of the organization. Please support the Deer Park Endowment Fund Deer Park Buddhist Center has entered an important and critical transition following the passing of our precious founder and abbot, Geshe Lhundub Sopa Rinpoche. In order to carry out his wishes and preserve Deer Park Buddhist Center as an authentic Tibetan Buddhist Monastery, it is essential that we raise sufficient funds to enable Deer Park Buddhist Center to function without interruption for many decades and centuries to come. If you would like to make your tax deductible contribution by check, please make your check payable to: “Deer Park Buddhist Center” and under memo please specify “Deer Park Endowment Fund” for allocation to this specific project. Send to: Deer Park Buddhist Center Attention: Deer Park Endowment Fund 4548 Schneider Drive Oregon, Wisconsin 53575 In addition to monetary gifts, donations of stocks, bonds, the proceeds of life insurance policies and other types of assets may be made to the Deer Park Endowment Fund. Bequests may be made to the"Deer Park Endowment Fund" by naming "Deer Park Buddhist Center, Inc." as a beneficiary in your will or trust and designating the bequest as a gift to the Deer Park Endowment Fund. For more information about the Deer Park Endowment Fund, please contact Venerable Lhundup Chowng by email at: deerparkbuddhistcenter@gmail.com or by phone at (608) 835-5572 Gifts to the Deer Park Endowment Fund are tax deductible. We thank you for your generosity and support. |