ProfNet Sources Available on Repairs, Catholicism, Tax Planning, More

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EXPERT ALERTS

• Don't Trust Repairs to Door-to-Door Help
• St. Hildegard von Bingen: Mother of All Dissident Nuns
• Planning Can Help Avoid Tax Uncertainty

MEDIA JOBS

• Web Editor - Denver
• Reporter - Washington, D.C.
• Writer/Editor - Ramsey, N.J.
• Junior Reporter - San Diego

OTHER NEWS & RESOURCES

• #ConnectChat Recap: How Social Media Is Changing PR
• Don't Run Afoul of Olympic Games Marks Use Restrictions
• Do You Have Confidence in Television News?
• Grammar Hammer: It's All Pun and Games

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EXPERT ALERTS

Expert Alerts are listings of ProfNet members who are available to discuss timely news topics. If you are interested in interviewing any of the experts, please contact their media representative at the end of the listing. You can also find Expert Alerts online at http://bit.ly/pncalerts

Don't Trust Repairs to Door-to-Door Help
Marc H. Fanning
Insurance Attorney
Fanning Harper Martinson Brandt & Kutchin in Dallas
"Homeowners trying to find an available contractor for repairs to storm-damaged roofs may be tempted by the 'too-good-to-be-true' deals promised by workers who arrive on their doorsteps. While they may promise to handle all the insurance claim details in addition to the needed repairs, these contractors far too often are inexperienced and untrained for the job at hand. Assigning part of your insurance claim to these so-called contractors could be a huge mistake. After suffering any type of home damage, consumers need to contact their insurance agent immediately, then work with the adjuster assigned to the claim and gather estimates from licensed, reputable contractors. Working with a random 'Chuck in a Truck' can jeopardize your ability to get your home properly repaired and the claim resolved in a timely fashion."
News Contact: Rhonda Reddick, [e-mail] or [phone]

St. Hildegard von Bingen: Mother of All Dissident Nuns
Mary Sharratt
Author
OnOct. 7, PopeBenedict XVI will elevatemedieval composer and polymath Hildegard von Bingen (1098-1179)toDoctor of the Church, a rare and solemn title reserved for theologians who have significantly impacted church doctrine. Presently, there are only 33 Doctors of the Church, and only three are women (Catherine of Siena, Teresa of Avila, and Therese of Lisieux).
"Ironically, Benedict's elevation of St. Hildegardcomes at a time when the Vatican is launching a vendetta against her contemporarycounterparts, the sisters of the Leadership Conference of Women Religious, which represents 80 percent of the Catholic sisters and nuns in the United States, some 57,000 women whostand accused of 'serious doctrinal problems' and of promoting 'certain radical feminist themes incompatible with the Catholic faith.' Von Bingenhas a great deal in common with some of these women, such as Sister Margaret Farley, Yale professor emeritus, who was rebuked for writing frankly about human sexuality -- as von Bingen herself did. An outspoken critic of church corruption, von Bingen was embroiled in controversy. At the age of 80, von Bingen and the nuns at her abbey were subject to an interdict, or collective excommunication, because they refused to dig up a supposed apostate buried in their graveyard. The interdict was lifted only a few months before her death, otherwise Hildegard would have died an outcast.Far from being a poster girl for Pope Benedict XVI's ironclad orthodoxy, I believe that St. Hildegard was the mother of all dissident nuns."
Sharratt is author of "Illuminations: A Novel of Hildegard von Bingen" (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, October 2012).
News Contact: Diane Saarinen, [e-mail], [e-mail] or [phone]

Planning Can Help Avoid Tax Uncertainty
Dan Baucum
Tax Attorney at Shackelford Melton & McKinley in Dallas
Former Special Assistant to the IRS Associate Chief Counsel
"With promised gift and estate tax changes, and the expiration of the $5.12 million gift tax exemption at the close of 2012, the well-to-do are turning to exotic techniques in a last-ditch effort to save their investments from the looming tax uncertainty. Some families have tried to delay the inevitable death tax through provisions in their Last Will and Testament documents, and a few have created 'Family Limited Partnerships.' But for those with working assets, such as a family farm or business, these options won't work. Instead, they are opting for a 'Defective Grantor Trust' where parents make a seed gift or sale to a trust with special terms that treat themselves as the owners. This gives them control, but gifts future appreciation to their heirs."
News Contact: Rhonda Reddick, [e-mail] or [phone]

MEDIA JOBS:

Following are links to job listings for staff and freelance writers. You can view these and more job listings on our Job Board: http://bit.ly/pncjobboard

• Web Editor - Denver
• Reporter - Washington, D.C.
• Writer/Editor - Ramsey, N.J.
• Junior Reporter - San Diego

See more listings here.

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OTHER NEWS & RESOURCES:

Following are links to other news and resources we think you might find useful. If you have an item you think other reporters would be interested in and would like us to include in a future alert, please drop us a line at [e-mail]

• #CONNECTCHAT RECAP: HOW SOCIAL MEDIA IS CHANGING PR: ProfNet Editor Grace Lavigne interviews PR expert Deirdre Breakenridge on how social media is changing skills and mindsets in the PR industry: http://goo.gl/w3dUA

• DON'T RUN AFOUL OF OLYMPIC GAMES MARKS USE RESTRICTIONS: PR Newswire's Sarah Skerik reminds content creators on how to avoid copyright infringements during the "Big Game": http://goo.gl/V1h0y

• DO YOU HAVE CONFIDENCE IN TELEVISION NEWS? ProfNet Editor Evelyn Tipacti discusses the significance of the recent Gallup poll that confirmed people are losing faith in broadcast news: http://goo.gl/9gZGx

• GRAMMAR HAMMER: IT'S ALL PUN AND GAMES: ProfNet Editor Grace Lavigne explains what puns are and how to use them: http://goo.gl/sEF2J

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/PRNewswire - July 20/

SOURCE ProfNet