Niche Compassion
Today’s web-clicking led me to the website for a philanthropy organization called Modest Needs. Its mission is to reach out “to the people conventional philanthropy has forgotten: hard-working individuals and families who suddenly find themselves faced with small, emergency expenses that they have no way to afford on their own.”
How beautiful: the internet is now making possible the type of personalized, targeted emergency support that used to be typical only in small towns.
Besides donation, the site also coordinates volunteering of professional services (plumbing, dentistry, auto help, etc.) It seems like a very hands-on site, for both donors and applicants, with a community “bulletin board” and a section devoted to advice on fiscal responsibility.
There are also profiles of recipient families, which are very touching, and really show what a big difference “small change” can make– one that I read told of a cancer survivor to whom $16 was going to make the difference between making the next month’s rent or losing her housing. Another tells of three children who held a garage sale and sold their toys to help a woman who was caring for her sick mother to make her mortgage payment.
The more I read about the organization’s philosophy and set-up (including secure giving, requirements of specific documentation from applicants, etc), the more I am impressed with the thoughtfulness and integrity of the people running Modest Needs.
I encourage you to check it out (and when you can, to help out).
…
To contrast my earlier post-title today, it’s good to be reminded that sometimes we humans can get the whole “an ounce of prevention for a pound of cure” thing right…
“By offering to assist individuals and families before they have been forced into the unforgiving cycle of poverty, Modest Needs’ donors work with our applicants to beat the cycle of poverty before it starts.”
