Giving Strangers A Helping Hand
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on
March 1st, 2007
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Perhaps I'm struggling with a mid life crisis but I'm thinking a lot more about the meaning of life these days. About doing meaningful things and what's really important when all the crap is out of the way. I have so far come up with children and becoming a grandfather as some things in life I really care about. Turns out I also care about helping others which has dramatically grown in importance after having my own children. Which brings me to Matthew over at ChildsplayX2 and his work with YMCA
Unlike Matthew I don't help others in my job. I'm highly compensated and like what I do but I don't make a difference in someones life. I don't build anything, give someone shelter, put lunch on their table, educate anyone, or give someone a helping hand with day care. I just throw around billions of dollars on a daily basis and create profits. Fun but meaningless in the big picture. Bottom line is this. If I die, no one really cares. It has little or no impact on others. If the people working at YMCA die, the negative impact on many families and children will be significant.
Matthew works with the YMCA and help families and children who are in need of assistance. Last week he posted a short note on his site asking for a few extra dollars for his organization. He says,
But the American Dream is expensive. Many of our parents work more than one job. Many cann not speak enough English to help their children with their homework. Many cannot afford quality, reliable childcare. That’s where we come in. We provide childcare to over 1,000 kids a day at 8 different schools and sites.Most of these kids are subsidized through grants but our licensed childcare programs are fee-based. Ninety-percent of the kids that come through our doors are eligible for financial aid. And since it is our goal never to turn anyone away due to an inability to pay, we must raise funds to cover the costs of our subsidies.
In other words, the funds go to families who are working hard but need a little extra help with their children. Day care, school, etc. If you have kids, you know this tends to be outrageously expensive and can be a huge burden even with a good salary.
I personally hate corruption. That's why I don't give money to the Red Cross, UN, or any other large organization. I don't like seeing 80% or my money going into some local warlords pocket. I also rather give money to someone who works hard and wants to give her kids a better future than a local drunk just looking for a fix. That might sound odd but it makes perfect sense in my little world.
Since Matthew is involved I don't feel like I'm giving money to strangers even though we only know each other through the web. If you have a few dollars left over this month, head on over to Matthew's site and give a helping hand. You can give money at the corporate site or through Matthew personally. It's a nice things to do and you will have a direct impact on children. Who knows, you and me might find ourselves needing similar assistance at some point in the future.
Thanks AD! That’s so nice of you!
My brother used to work for a large Tech company and we’d joke that my job was to send kids to camp and his job was to send the CEO’s kid to camp.
Seriously though, I’m really proud of the job we do at our YMCA. We are a true resource for the working families in our community.
Thanks for spreading the word!
I just sold a business of 9 years (Insurance agency) to launch a new business which I hope will make a difference to our kids…
Why… I felt I wasn’t making a difference in anybody’s life… The only time I did feel alive in that job was when I delivered a life insurance check to a woman with 2 kids for the passing of her husband…It hapenned once in 9 years.
Kudos Matthew, I will go look at your site now
I donate once in awhile. The only thing that stops me is that once they have my information, they call and mail me stuff to entice me to donate somemore. I’ve tried to get myself off their list but it hasn’t worked.
So now I donate in the form of buying stuff, like for food banks and toy drives because I don’t have to give out my information and they can’t “aggravate” me with their calls.
Sounds like a wonderful cause. I’ll check it out!
I just read an article recently on the financial discrepancies in the Red Cross and it was very alarming at the very least.
Mar 1st, 2007 at 9:38 pm
[…] Giving Strangers A Helping Hand Perhaps I’m struggling with a mid life crisis but I’m thinking a lot more about the meaning of life these days. About doing meaningful things and what’s really important when all the crap is out of the way. I have so far come up with children and becoming a grandfather as some things in life I really care about. Turns out I also care about helping others which has dramatically grown in importance after having my own children. Which brings me to Matthew over at ChildsplayX2 and his work with YMCA Unlike Matthew I don’t help others in my job. I’m highly compensated and like what I do but I don’t make a difference in someones life. I don’t build anything, give someone shelter, put lunch on their table, educate anyone, or give someone a helping hand with day care. I just throw around billions of dollars on a daily basis and create profits. Fun but meaningless in the big picture. Matthew works with the YMCA and help families and children who are in need of assistance. Last week he posted a short note on his site asking for a few extra dollars for his organization. He says, But the American Dream is expensive. Many of our parents work more than one job. Many cann not speak enough English to help their children with their homework. Many cannot afford quality, reliable childcare. That s where we come in. We provide childcare to over 1,000 kids a day at 8 different schools and sites. Most of these kids are subsidized through grants but our licensed childcare programs are fee-based. Ninety-percent of the kids that come through our doors are eligible for financial aid. And since it is our goal never to turn anyone away due to an inability to pay, we must raise funds to cover the costs of our subsidies. In other words, the funds go to families who are working hard but need a little extra help with their children. Day care, school, etc. If you have kids, you know this tends to be outrageously expensive and can be a huge burden even with a good salary. I personally hate corruption. That’s why I don’t give money to the Red Cross, UN, or any other large organization. I don’t like seeing 80% or my money going into some local warlords pocket. I also rather give money to someone who works hard and wants to give her kids a better future than a local drunk just looking for a fix. That might sound odd but it makes perfect sense in my little world. Since Matthew is involved I don’t feel like I’m giving money to strangers even though we only know each other through the web. If you have a few dollars left over this month, head on over to Matthew’s site and give a helping hand. You can give money at the corporate site or through Matthew personally. It’s a nice things to do and you will have a direct impact on children. Who knows, you and me might find ourselves needing similar assistance at some point in the future. […]