“Let us not be content to wait and see what will happen, but give us the determination to make the right things happen.”

– Horace Mann

It seems that Spring, like Thanksgiving and Christmas, is the season of appeals for giving to many different causes.  Every day I receive a request or two by mail, email, or Facebook post, to support a worthy cause.  It is easy during difficult economic times to turn our backs on these requests and say that we need to take care of our own; but I’m thinking that now — when the economy is slow and everyone is hurting — is the time to renew our commitment to giving.  Communities coming together to support the welfare of all is a time-honored practice.  Our hearts — and sometimes our wallets — open to meet the needs of people whose circumstances place them in a position where they are unable to do it on their own.

It is easy when our own incomes and investments seem threatened to say, “let somebody else do it,” or “the social welfare system will take care of them.”  As funding cuts hit the government, the agencies that have helped people in desperate need are finding that they lack the necessary funds to offer meaningful support.  This is a very good time to empower ourselves to be a part of the efforts people make to raise the funds that provide the support that alleviates the suffering of others.

I’ve always tried to do my part to support good causes; but in the last three years, my awareness has changed due to the birth of an amazing little girl.  Recently, I shared the story of my granddaughter, Cheyenne.  Since her birth, Chey has received services from agencies that provide early intervention for children with disabilities.  This month, she will finish her services, because she has achieved on-level results in all her areas of need.  Last year, Cheyenne was asked to be an Ambassador child for Easter Seals.

Chey, 2 and cousin Hailey, 5 walk for Easter Seals.

For the first time, our family was in the position of asking for donations instead of contributing.  We learned a lot through this experience about how difficult it is to say, “won’t you please give?”  We also learned how much those who ask appreciate even a dollar, or the change in your pocket; because each drop contributes to filling the bucket.

Sometimes I look at all the need in my world and simply feel without the means to do anything meaningful.  If you are someone who champions a cause and raises great amounts to meet goals, I applaud you.  That sort of commitment is a rare and beautiful thing.  Thank you for being the one who opens our hearts to the needs of others and shows us how grateful we should be for our own, uncomplicated existence.  Certainly, I am in no position to check the box next to $25.00 on every request that comes my way; but I did come away from our year as the fundraisers with one resolve — never to pass a fundraising bucket without leaving a dollar to alleviate human suffering.

I think of all the ways I can divert a dollar from my tight budget to a good cause, and the list is endless.  Do you enjoy a $4 cup of specialty coffee?  That’s four buckets right there!  Skip the $8 movie ticket and rent one for $5 that you watch at home — three buckets!  And throw in the $3 for popcorn, and you have six dollars available for the next opportunity to reach beyond your own world and into that of another person.

In the next few months, in addition to Easter Seals, I’ve been offered the opportunity to contribute to the Walk for the Cure, the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, a group against Domestic Violence, and The Ben Yorgey Foundation, a new group that provides assistance for families with mentally disabled young adults.  So many good causes — so little wiggle room in my budget.

But here’s what I’m thinking.  If twenty-five people like me — the ones who just can’t check that box next to $25 — each contributed a single dollar to each of these causes, it would be like checking that box instead of walking away.  You never know what that dollar might build in the life of another person; but I can guarantee that the warmth in your heart will far outlast the warmth of that cup of coffee.

Little sister, Harper, rides with Cheyenne

Easter Seals will graduate Cheyenne this month, but their legacy in her life — provided by the dollars of people like you and me — will go on for the rest of her life.  Let’s not sit back and wait to see what others will do.  Let’s make some right things happen.