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Visiting Rotarians
- Prof. Dr. Martin Puetz of R/C of Bad Bergzabern, Germany
- PP Meggy Tseung of R/C of Peninsula Sunrise
Visiting Guests
- Mrs.Anastasia Puetz, wife of Rtn. Prof. Dr.Puetz,
- Mr. Joseph Ng introduced by President Rudy
- Ms Grace Lo, (guest of our speaker)
- Ms Marcial Aw, recommended by our sister club, Vancouver China Town, Canada

Sergeants-at-Arms - Our red box is richer by a collection of $540.00 to-day.

Programme for next week - Club Assembly to be chaired by PE Robert Lai.

Highlight of the day
- Director Eddy Wong presented our speaker, Mr. Raymond Tong, who is the legal director of Rockwill HK Limited and had been a practicing solicitors for 18 years. He was admitted as a solicitor by the Supreme Court of Hong Kong in 1985 and subsequently enrolled as a solicitor in England and Wales in 1989. Mr. Tong specializes in corporate/commercial matters, handling mergers, takeovers, asset acquisition and transfer with concentrated practice in conveyancing, estate succession and probate matters. His topic is Planning through the drafting of a valid will.

The Speaker
- Mr. Tong started by asking a simple question but not simple at all. Why make a will ? He illustrated the following ten points as logical answers. There are many reasons why it is a good idea to have a Will.

Anybody can draft a Will, but must remember, it requires (2) Two independent witnesses.

My second question is where do you keep the Will ? It is important to keep your Will in a safe place and more importantly, your executors should know where it is. In Mr. Tong's company, they safe keep your Will at a storage vault provided by Guardforce Security, a subsidiary of the Chubb Group. You and your executors will each receive a personalized identification card that is bar-coded for easy tracking and retrieval of your Will, as and when you needed it. All Wills are also bar-coded throughout to prevent tampering. You should review your Will every year and after any major life change such as getting married, separated or divorced, having a child or moving house.

When someone dies without a will and friends left behind could suffer financially and from many inconveniences, apart from the grief they have to deal with. In the event of an appointed executor passing away or no longer able to act, the inconveniences could even be greater.

If somebody dies intestate, it often takes an average of 18 months to obtain probate and in some cases, much longer. In the meantime, assets or bank accounts could be frozen. In case where a valid Will which has been written, signed and properly witnessed, normal length could be cut down to only six to eight months.

When someone dies without a Will their estate, all their assets and belongings are distributed according to the laws governing intestacy. The problem is that the distribution may not fulfill their wishes.

For information, Estate Duty is levied at escalating rates contained in Schedules to the Estate Ordinance. The applicable Schedule at present is set out below :

Person dying on or after 1st April 1998

Exceeding	Not Exceeding	Percentage
	HK$7,500,000	Exempt
HK$7,500,000	HK$9,000,000	5%
HK$9,000,000	HK$10,500,000	10%

HK$10,500,000

15%

Vote of Thanks
- A vote of thanks was given by PE Robert Lai, who, in conclusion, said that "There is a Will, there is a way."

Adjournment
- The meeting was adjourned in good time with a toast to RI coupled with the name of the Rotary Club of Bad Bergzabern and R/C of Peninsula Sunrise.

Group Photo
- As usual, a group picture was taken with our speaker, visiting Rotarians and guests to be inserted in our club bulletin.

During the Rotary Foundation month, a 30-minute Foundation Programme Talk in Cantonese will be held at Hotel Miramar, Nathan Road, Kowloon on 8th November 2004 at 6.30 p.m. during the regular meeting of the Rotary Club of Tsuen Wan.

The speaker will be PP Kenneth Chow, chairman of the Annual-Giving Sub-Committee of the District Rotary Foundation.

The cost for meal is HK$275.00 per person. Please inform PP John Kwok before the 3rd November 2004 in case you wish to participate.

Note: Due to the popularity of the event, bookings will only be confirmed with payment on a first-come-first-served basis.

Rotary's 100th birthday will be on 23rd February 2005. The Happy Valley Racecourse will be specially decorated that evening and the Hong Kong Jockey Club will dedicate one special cup race to commemorate Rotary's Centenary. The host club committee has reserved a special box for Rotarians and their guests.

Venue : 3rd and 4th floors, Happy Valley Stand, Happy Valley Racecourse (exclusively for Rotarians and guests)

Price : HK$500 per person with International buffet and unlimited serving of House wine, beers, orange juice and standard soft drinks.

Note : Please book early as we have to observe the rule of first come first served Basis.