GET OUT AND GIVE BACK/It’s What You Get, not What You Give

Photo by John Arundel ACT for Alexandria is a community foundation that serves as a catalyst for increasing charitable investment in Alexandria. ACT seeks to raise the level and effectiveness of giving in Alexandria by increasing awareness of the importance of strategic philanthropy and making a lasting difference in our community. Pictured here, ACT Executive Director John Porter, keynote speaker Cokie Roberts and ACT Board President Allison Cryor DiNardo at last year's Alexandria philanthropy summit.

ALEXANDRIA, VA. - I took almost a year off from writing Get Out and Give Back after retiring from the United States Air Force to decide what I wanted my post-Air Force life to look like. And I realized that I missed writing for you. I missed the connection. I missed giving back.
 
So here it is again. Hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoy writing it:

Thursday mornings are my favorite part of the week. From nine o’clock until noon I volunteer with the underserved at a local church. The joy that the gift of service brings me is a peace that I haven’t felt anywhere else.

But lately this joy has bothered me.
 
The clients we help don’t seem to enjoy Thursday mornings nearly as much as me. They sit in a waiting area for up to three hours for their name to be called. Then they wait another twenty minutes or more as we determine if we have enough money to help them pay their rent, buy clothes, or prevent their utilities from being cut off.
 
Many of those we serve don’t work, but nearly all of them are trying. I can’t tell you how many of them have given me business cards, advertising their willingness to rake leaves or shovel snow. What a humbling experience it must be for them to ask for assistance week after week.

And, I’ve ask myself, if I’m so satisfied by assisting them, why don’t I do more? I’ve brought in food or clothing or bus tokens on occasion, but if I were really serious about serving them, wouldn’t I make some real personal sacrifices? Would I be willing to shop less or eat out less to give more resources to the needy?

I was starting to feel like a phony.

Then yesterday, while at the church, I found myself getting impatient and irritated with one of the homeless women with whom I was working. She couldn’t articulate her issue clearly, and it took me several phone calls and a twenty minute “please hold” to find out how to best assist her. When I got up to make a third phone call on her behalf, I heard the impatience in my voice to her and stopped to regroup.

And I realized that my minor annoyance was nothing compared to her annoyance, so to speak, of living on the streets and waiting three hours to rectify a ten dollar issue. And ultimately I had to refer her to another service agency before her problem could be solved.

Then I couldn’t help my next client because we had run out of money. She also needed ten dollars.

I can bring a few extra dollars each week and help out some more if I want to. I don’t know if I will or not, but I do know that I have complete control over how much I choose to give of my time and money. Feeling guilty about not giving enough is a wake-up call to re-evaluate my priorities. And that’s something I can do.

Get out and give back.

Jane inspires people to contribute through writing, speaking and (hopefully) example. You can contact her at www.getoutandgiveback.com.