An envelope bearing the seal of the
Internal Revenue Service fills most people with trepidation. But for
eighteen-year-old Prerna Singh an IRS letter she received prompted a giant
celebration. Prerna, a senior at
Downingtown High School West had just learned that her high school graduation
project, “The Pledging Tree Foundation” had been granted 501 (c) (3)
tax-exempt status by the IRS.
Prerna, President of The Pledging Tree
Foundation, began the charity in 2006 after considering many ideas for her
high school graduation project. The
Downingtown Area School District requires all students to complete a
graduation project that, according to their website, “expands their personal
knowledge, applies learning to practical, real life situations, helps them
explore career paths and leads them to become lifelong learners.” Graduation projects must be approved by
high school advisors and require at least 40 hours of community service.
DHS West teacher Kate Campbell is chair of
the Graduation Project Committee at West as well as Prerna's teacher and
project mentor. “When Prerna
presented us with the idea of forming a foundation to help families save
money for college or retirement,” said Campbell, “we were a bit concerned
that she might be tackling something that might be too complex to finish. But
Prerna is a very bright, articulate young woman and she has instituted a
unique project that will potentially benefit many families in our area.”
The goal of The Pledging Tree Foundation
(TPTF) is to promote disciplined savings in financially challenged families,
while educating them in financial matters through workshops and training
seminars. The TPTF has collaborated with organizations such as National
Endowment for Financial Education to obtain workshop materials on financial
mentoring.
“Gaining tax exempt status from the IRS is
an important milestone for The Pledging Tree” said Prema. “It allows us to go out in public and seek
sponsorships from organizations that can now donate tax deductible
contributions.”
The Pledging Tree Foundation will match up to $100 a
month for one year any contributions made by a family enrolled in the
program. The money will be put in
some from of an investment /529/ savings account. After the one year, the
family will receive all the money that has been saved for any use, such as
spending it for college or retirement.
The Foundation plans to open the
application process in fall 2007 to all families who have a total household
income less than $40,000/year. To receive more information contact the
foundation at psingh@thepledgingtree.org.
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