It’s no secret. The past 18 months have been difficult. Families have struggled. Businesses have struggled. The government has struggled. And, sadly, non-profit organizations – the very groups families, businesses, and governments turn to for help when times get tough-have also struggled.
As needs have increased, non-profits have been asked to do more with less: less human resources, and less financial resources. Some of our donors, psychologically paralyzed by fear or uncertainty, either drastically reduced or completely eliminated charitable giving from their budgets. Even people whose lifestyles were not materially affected by the economic downturn changed the manner in which they approached their philanthropy-and not in a good way.
As a result, non-profits have had to change the way we do business. Like many families and businesses, we have re-ordered our priorities, and gotten back to “the basics.” For us, that has meant reminding ourselves that the only way we can do what we do is thanks to our donors. And, it has meant reminding our donors that, just because they can’t give what they used to give or what they’d like to give, every donor counts-and every dollar counts.
On Sunday, March 21, the Allied Jewish Federation of Colorado will be sponsoring our first-ever “Community Tzedakah Day” phone-a-thon to benefit the entire community. The Hebrew word, “tzedakah” is commonly used to mean “charity,” but literally translates to mean “justice.”
Judaism teaches that we are responsible to fulfill the mitzvah (commandment) of tzedakah. It is our collective responsibility to create a more just and perfect world. Even those who receive charity are required to give it in some form or fashion.
The theme of Community Tzedakah Day is “Small Change-Big Difference.” The message of the Day is simple: when we all work together and give a little, we can do a lot. In conjunction with the Day, we are distributing “Small Change-Big Difference” tzedakah boxes (coin banks) throughout the community for people to fill with the small change they collect over time. It’s estimated that if the average person saves all the small change he or she receives when making a purchase (rather than making perfect change to pay for it), it could amount to more than $30.00 in a month.
Thirty dollars may not seem like much, but when combined another $30.00 and another $30.00 and so on, it can accomplish a great deal. Just look at what the Red Cross was able to accomplish with gifts of just $10.00 in the aftermath of January’s earthquake in Haiti-within 48 hours, they had raised $7 million through their simple text-message campaign. Decades ago, the March of Dimes funded-through the donation of DIMES-the research that resulted in the discovery of the polio vaccine.
In her book, “Give a Little – How Your Small Donations Can Transform our World,” author Wendy Smith notes that in 2007, average, everyday Americans contributed a total of $229 BILLION to charities. She further stipulates that this figure did not include gift from bequests, corporations, or foundations-just ordinary individuals, like you and me. $229 billion – that is an illustration of the power of collective giving, and that is why each of us must continue to give what we can, when we can, especially now-because no matter how large or small our gifts may same to us, they can make a huge difference in the world.
Doug Seserman is the president and CEO of the Allied Jewish Federation of Colorado. He can be reached at dseserman@ajfcolorado.org. EDITOR’S NOTE: This is an online-only column and has not been edited.
