Every year at this time the spouse and I look at our finances and make our donations for the end of the year. This year, we're really finding it tremendously hard.
This column by Nicholas Kristof really hit home.
I'm wondering what other members of the Kos community are doing along these lines.
I have to say up front that we are very fortunate as a family. I'm a primary care doc (part time) and the spouse is an architect, well placed within the firm. And we have good incomes and, at least for the moment, steady jobs.
I was struck, however, a couple of years ago with demographic data that showed that Kentucky, one of the poorest states in the country (and one to which I have strong family ties) is among the largest donors, per capita, to charities in the country. Now, as Mr. Kristof points out in his column:
It’s true that religion is the essential reason conservatives give more, and religious liberals are as generous as religious conservatives. Among the stingiest of the stingy are secular conservatives.
According to Google’s figures, if donations to all religious organizations are excluded, liberals give slightly more to charity than conservatives do. But Mr. Brooks says that if measuring by the percentage of income given, conservatives are more generous than liberals even to secular causes.
I don't know about you, but I've been overwhelmed by the really, serious, at times desperate need out there. And it's affecting all manner of non-profit organizations, not to mention those they serve.
Just as an example, the Baltimore Opera Company recently filed for bankruptcy. As a Baltimorean, I've been very proud of our Opera Company, but haven't been able to find the time to go. And now I never will. So I want to support our local remaining Equity Theaters (frankly because the spouse and I met doing college theatre and we still go, though our careers never went along those routes.)
Yet there's also tremendous need for healthcare, which I see every day. I work in an inner city hospital, which also supports the Shepherd's Clinic, which provides medical care to the working poor in Baltimore. And we have long supported Healthcare for the Homeless, whose name largely speaks for itself; however, it has also been a powerful advocacy voice for the need for change within our healthcare system. I could certainly also mention Planned Parenthood, or MSF/Doctors Without Borders, or any of a number of others.
And while it may seem less important, in the greater scheme of things, I also find it important to donate to my schools. Frankly, I wouldn't be where I am without them. One of the fund I support regularly at my medical school helps to provide scholarships to needy students. There are others.
The spouse, being the architect, also supports the alma mater, but also supports a number of groups that promote fundamental changes in housing and preservation: the Citizens Planning and Housing Association, a long standing organization in Baltimore; the Neighborhood Design Center which provides high quality design services to underserved neighborhoods; as well as Preservation Maryland and the Green Building Institute.
And then, locally, there's the Maryland Food Bank and the local foodbank/care center supported by our church. Not to mention the church itself and some of the other ministries it serves.
I'm not bringing this up to show how "charitable" we are. But like many people, maybe a majority of Kossacks, we're being bombarded with an overwhelming sense of need out there. And I'm overloaded. Right now, we both still have jobs, and have decent incomes; but my job is changing and with the spouse being in architecture, it's very uncertain. When we first came to Maryland, in the recession of the early 1990s, there was a 40%+ unemployment rate among architects in the state. It seems to be heading that way again, and we have 2 kids to take care of.
So I'm writing out the year end checks, at the last minute (as always) and trying to decide where we can help the most. Frankly, I'm terrified about what lies ahead (and I'm genetically a pessimist.) The spouse usually is the cock-eyed optimist but recently has definitely been feeling the stress. And I'm also wondering if we do more giving relatively small donations to multiple groups, or if we'd be more effective giving larger donations to fewer groups. And then there are always the new requests, which this year seem even more necessary.
So Kristof's article hit home. I want to donate and help out, and we've already made donations; but I also feel the need to prioritize. Yet I also feel the stigma of the "liberal Scrooge" label.
I do believe that there is an important role for government in promoting justice, particularly economic justice; however, that role has been seriously damaged in the last 3 decades, and it simply doesn't exist anymore. Meanwhile, as I said above, people are hurting. Many of them have posted on this site; more than a few are no longer posting because, frankly, they've lost their internet or even their homes and are in real need themselves.
I'm feeling overwhelmed by the need out there, and am just not sure how to prioritize. I'm also, frankly, trying to encourage those that can to donate at least something to their local groups helping people in need.
People are hurting. And if we really believe in community, don't we need to help, when we are able? But what's the best way to do that?