France Launches A Special Heritage Lottery

By Deepak Arora

PARIS, Feb 23: French President Emmanuel Macron hosted the signing of an unprecedented agreement between the French Ministry of Culture, represented by Minister Francoise Nyssen and the French Heritage Foundation (Fondation du Patrimoine) represented by its president, Guillaume Poitrinal, relative to the use of government funds that will be generated by a new lottery known as the Heritage Lotto.

Signatories at the event on February 13 also included Stéphane Bern (popular history & heritage Radio and TV show host) and Stéphane Pallez, CEO of “Française des Jeux,” France’s national lottery authority.

Last September, the French President enlisted Stephane Bern’s assistance in identifying and listing France’s imperiled architectural heritage and help find novel ways to finance their restoration. One of these solutions was to create a new lottery, which was voted into law on December 28, 2017.

In the next three years or more, the drawing of the Heritage Lotto will take place during the European Heritage Days and proceeds will go to the French Heritage Foundation and will be earmarked for the restoration of architectural treasures throughout France.
The inaugural drawing will be on September 14, 2018 one day before the European Heritage Days (Journées Européennes du Patrimoine) to be held September 14 and 15. A scratch-off game will also be offered.

For its first year, the proceeds from the lotto will subsidize the restoration projects for approximately 100 public and private imperiled monuments, castles or manors throughout France. Other fundraising initiatives will include crowd funding campaigns that will support the restoration of 14 emblematic edifices in each region.

Stephane Bern will head the committee that will select among the 1800 restoration projects inventoried by the French Heritage Foundation and by the French Ministry of Culture that will receive financial aid from the special fund. Applications for funding are taken online by the Ministry of Culture and assessed by both organizations.

The projects are both public and private and will represent the diversity and historical periods of France’s architectural heritage: rural, residential, religious, industrial, funereal, military, relating to gardens and public areas.

The selection criteria will be:
- Cultural and historical significance
- Urgency of the restoration due to state of the edifice
- Creating a geographic balance all in giving preference to rural and smaller towns to
revitalize those areas
- Support projects to showcase the edifice or its new use and the economic
benefits expected, especially in the realm of local tourism development

The French National Lottery estimates that the Heritage lotto will raise between 15 and 20 million Euros. Additional funding managed by the French Heritage Foundation will include corporate sponsoring and crowd funding.

The Fondation du Patrimoine/Heritage Foundation is a private non-profit organization created by law on July 2, 1996 to promote, preserve and showcase France’s architectural heritage that does not benefit from France’s land marking laws.

Stéphane Bern: (born 14 November 1963 in Lyon) is a French journalist, radio and television host. He is known as a specialist in nobility and royalty. He has been awarded several honors, including the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres (France), the Order of Grimaldi (Monaco), and the Order of the British Empire (United Kingdom).

Journées Européennes du Patrimoine/European Heritage Days – two “open-house” days
held late September in over 50 European countries to explore and visit, in many cases free of charge, monuments, theaters, churches, castles and also private edifices or those not normally open to the public or not usually visited by the public like courthouses, ministries, police headquarters, prefectures and other administrative buildings housed in historical manors etc…

Baba Jaswant Singh Opens Masonic Centre In Karnal

By Deepak Arora

KARNAL, Feb 1: Baba Jaswant Singh Ji Nirmal of Zarifa Farm inaugurated the Gaurav Dhamija International Masonic Centre here on Thursday.

The centre has been built by Inderjit Dhamija, a prominent Freemason of Karnal, in the memory of his late son, Gaurav Dhamija, for the charitable and socio-religious activities in Karnal. Several Karnal and other Freemasons have also contributed towards setting up this centre.

Freemasonry is an organisation formed in india by the Britishers in the late seventeen century in Calcutta, the English capital of those times, and in Karnal a branch of it was opened in the year 1836 with its head quarters at the Mall Road opposite to the now DC house.

It was then named as the Light of the North Lodge under the English Constitution and was controlled by the United Grand Lodge of England. The building housing this light of the north lodge was later occupied by the church authorities when this lodge was shifted to Ambala due to change in military strategy of the Britishers.

In 1982 a lodge was constituted under the Indian Constitution in Karnal and was named as Lodge Karan No. 244 but was without its premises for its activities.

It may be montioned that in the year 2016, Gaurav Dhamija died in an accident. It was later decided to build this centre with the help of local Freemasons. Its foundation stone was laid on October 9, 2016 and on completion it was named as Gaurav Dhamija International Masonic Centre.

This centre comprises of a temple, activities hall and a Masonic charitable poly clinic.

Though the first Masonic meeting was held in this building on December 18, 2017, the official opening of the centre was held today (February 1) to coincide with the birth anniversary of Gaurav Dhamija, who was born in the year 1980.

Dhamija family organised charity on the opening day and sweets fruits and woollen cloths were distributed to nearly 100 needy people.

Just continue to help, sustain, wipe tears, listen attentively and carefully repair all the 'leaks' you find

NEW DELHI, Feb 1: A man was asked to paint a boat.

He brought with him paint and brushes and began to paint the boat a bright red, as the owner asked him.

While painting, he noticed that there was a small hole in the hull, and quietly repaired it.

When finished painting, he received his money and left.

The next day, the owner of the boat came to the painter and presented him with a nice cheque, much higher than the payment for painting.

The painter was surprised and said "You've already paid me for painting the boat Sir!"

"But this is not for the paint job. It's for having repaired the hole in the boat."

"Ah! But it was such a small service... certainly it's not worth paying me such a high amount for something so insignificant."

"My dear friend, you do not understand. Let me tell you what happened.

When I asked you to paint the boat, I forgot to mention about the hole.

When the boat dried, my kids took the boat and went on a fishing trip.

They did not know that there was a hole. I was not at home at that time.

When I returned and noticed they had taken the boat, I was desperate because I remembered that the boat had a hole.

Imagine my relief and joy when I saw them returning from fishing.

Then, I examined the boat and found that you had repaired the hole! You see, now, what you did? You saved the life of my children! I do not have enough money to pay your 'small' good deed."

So, no matter who, when or how. Just continue to help, sustain, wipe tears, listen attentively and carefully repair all the 'leaks' you find, because you never know when one is in need of us or when God holds a pleasant surprise for us to be helpful and important to someone.

You may have repaired numerous 'boat holes' along the way... of several people without realizing how many lives you've saved.