by Giver Girl on December 15, 2012
Hard to believe we’ve got just over two weeks until 2012 comes to a close. It’s been an interesting year in terms of our giving. We ended up taking on a larger giving project that basically claimed the $52 times 52 weeks for the entirety of the year. We’ve given larger amounts in smaller intervals and have found that devoting so much of our resources to one organization brings with it its own challenges; for example, we’ve noticed ourselves becoming more critical of that one particular organization, and have paid much closer attention in a much more painstaking manner to the way they spend their money. We’ve had some uncomfortable conversations about the way we want our donation allocated. And perhaps that’s not a bad thing. Yes, things seemed simpler last year–we put our trust in the Charity Navigator ratings and fired of those fifty-twos with a nice, warm feeling–but what goes on day in and day out in each of those organizations was and is undoubtedly much more complex than a simple four-star rating can indicate.
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by Giver Girl on March 22, 2012
Well, as was forecast, we haven’t been around much lately. But we have been giving. We’ve had fun recently just letting a few weeks’ worth of $52s pile up and then handing the cash out all at once. We’ve made two gifts since we last wrote: one to a close friend of ours, who along with his wife are missionaries and who expressed a dire need for support to get them through the end of winter (we weren’t alone in helping them out–they now have more than they need!); and another to a cause in support of my mother, who is raising funds for the American Heart Associaton’s Heart Walk.
These gifts were pretty much the opposite of anonymous–we obviously know, love, and communicated with the recipients–but I still say they honor the tradition we’ve started.
All that said, we’re about $75 shy of where we should be right now, according to the math of the $52 per week formula. While we’re not following our old ways to the letter, we do want to make sure the amount stays at the same level, or higher.
I’d love to give $100 today to a charitable effort in need–any ideas?
