Why on this Website?
As Journey Moore Often Ltd founders, Gary & Dianne Moore, we feel very strongly about giving to charities.
It has helped shape who we are today, and the respect we believe should be generated for other humans. All others, not just the ones we like.
We also feel strongly about giving back in the form of personal time and mentoring. We love to and look forward to participating directly and indirectly with helping others.
As Americans, we can easily become callous to the needs of others. Especially in the US, where even our poor are richer than most people throughout the world. But that doesn’t mean that there are no needs. On the contrary.
And it’s not about big. It’s about fulfilling someone else’s need.
Types of Fundraisers
There are almost an infinite number of ways we can help others. Below are just a few. You’ll probably think of your own as you read through our list. We’ve narrowed down to some sub-lists, just for organizational purposes. The primary takeaway is that all these different opportunities exist in their various forms.
Smaller Commitments
These are usually one-time happenings or maybe annual events that don’t take a lot of time or money.
- Giving to someone directly – you do this by giving homeless/jobless people spare change or buying a meal. Or maybe fixing a someone’s car.
- Paying it forward – paying for the person’s car toll in back of you on the highway. Be careful on this one as some jurisdictions will not allow it due to accusations of toll collectors pocketing the cash.
- Fundraisers – so many. Things like buying Girl Scout Cookies, donating to Thon (money goes to fight children’s cancer), Toys for Tots, candy at the office, or that car wash down the street.
- Community fundraisers – spaghetti dinners, church breakfasts, even catered dinners. A great example would be The Garage Community and Youth Center‘s annual event.
- Internet pleas – most of us have heard of GoFundMe. This is a perfect way to help others out, either friends or complete strangers.
- Giving away old “stuff” – Salvation Army, Goodwill, Purple Heart (they may even pick up for you!) are just a few of the ones we’ve heard of.
Volunteering
This requires time, and in some cases skill. In yet other cases, you may be asked to use your vacation or not get paid while volunteering.
- Service work volunteer – Soup kitchens always need help. Church projects working on homes of those less fortunate, or a more organized version of this would be the more well-known Habitat for Humanity. Then there’s also overseas volunteer work that some do.
- Service work professional – Doctor’s without Borders, Engineers without Borders, the Rotary International, etc. are prime examples of great service organizations. These types of organizations provide incredible service and resources to people throughout the world. Note that you don’t have to be a doctor or engineer to help with those types of organizations. All you need is something to offer, perhaps bookkeeping/accounting and planning, either of which could be beneficial. Certified counselors are also in demand for volunteer services.
- Service work non-professional – we met a group of Sigma Chi Brotherhood fraternity brothers who couple with the Catholic Church going to the Dominican Republic every year to dig latrines for those without sanitary facilities.
- Service teaching and mentoring – helping others gain valuable experience and education by teaching them a trade. Foundation Builders International is a great example. They have schools in Haiti and Kenya, and intend on branching out to more countries.
Larger Commitments
We understand this may not be for everyone, but there are many different levels at which you can participate. Some are pretty small.
- Social Fundraisers – dinner, silent auction, art gallery and black tie events. These are often dual purpose, both raising money for charity, and socializing with others. JMO deliberately went to the Twelves Grill as they were donating a portion of the money to charity that night.
- Scholastic sponsorship – this can be providing money to a specific school scholarship (private school, or college). It can also be part of an event or charity that has links to scholarships.
- Organization donations – through non-profits like Heifer Foundation you can even set up endowments for sustainable giving.
- Individual sponsorship – organizations like Compassion International allow sponsors to positively impact actual people for extended periods of time. There are all sorts of organizations you can reach out to if this is something you want to do.
The Pitch
In some form or another, Journey Moore Often staff try to take part regularly in some form of charitable giving. The staff is very thankful for what they have and feel it important to share with others.
All we’ve done in this blog is thrown out some ideas. You’ve probably thought of even more while reading up to this point.
One of the most important things is to find what works for you. Do you have spare money or valuables to donate? Give your change to the jar or bucket. Get rid of that chair you’re not using that’s in perfect shape. Or perhaps time is something you can offer? Dish out food at your local soup kitchen. Grocery shop for a single mom with kids. Visit and maybe play some music at an old folks home.
Another consideration is educating yourself. No one wants to give of their time or money to something that doesn’t work out, so it’s good to do have some understanding where your resources will be going.
We would ask all our readers to consider what you have to help others. Is it time, money, expertise? All are valuable to those in need. Please look at what you have to offer and give freely.
Even when we had no money, we still somehow found ways to give back.
Anyone can do it.
Be the one washing the cars. Help paint someone’s house. Serve food at a soup kitchen. Tutor a student. Teach someone else a trade. Drop your spare change in the bucket.