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I run a knitting charity that provided over 11,000 items last year--hats, scarves and mittens for the homeless, baby blankets, sweaters and hats for the "fish and chip babies" (born in clinics that are so poor they wrap up newborns in a sheet of newspaper to send them home), many other items too numerous to list to places all over the U.S. and various places in the world. I coordinate who needs what by when and solicit people to sign up to meet the need.
I personally knit 35 hats for mentally ill homeless men, 8 afghans for a disabled veteran center, 16 baby sweaters, 15 small cage blankets for pet rescue centers and small burial blankets for abandoned babies.
Year-round I solicit used books to go to both the SPCA for their annual sale and the Library volunteers, to help fund their programs.
I give what money I can, but I haven't worked in over two years now, so it's not as much as it used to be.
I help teach a martial arts class for adults with developmental disabilities. Not a self defense class, more for exercise to help them with balance and muscle control.
I think I adopted my second elderly widow lady who lives on a very severe and limited income and I heard it was around $800/month and she doesn't own home she rents a shack.
When you do something like this it isn't a one time shot it is something you obligate yourself to forever as long as that might be and sometimes you can expect to shell out several hundred at a time but when I do this I am not doing it for her I am doing it for me. It's also anonymous.
The last widow lady we adopted died last year and in a four year period there were three of us that went in together to help out. She owned her home and one year her air conditioner went out and in south Georgia in July it's not a luxury so we pooled out money and got her a new one. Her plumbing in her house had problems and that was an understatement. We discovered she didn't have any water, due to a broken underground pipe, and a neighbor let her use a hose. I got a hold of a licensed plumber who good friend of mine and when he got into it we discovered the plumbing had a lot of major issues... my friend donated his time and the group purchased the material for the job that ended up costing nearly $2,000 which we split three ways. The toilet didn't even work so don't ask me.
A year before she died I paid her property tax which was $700. Property tax is due in November which is close to Christmas and isn't Christmas all about giving and not getting? For me having the ability to pay her property tax was the best Christmas present I got. Once in a while we'd send a $50 gift card to a local grocery store she would walk to. She didn't have a car.
She died never knowing who paid what... we were anonymous.
As I said we discovered another very recently and this story is a real sad one. I know her name and I know her address and I've already started to help.
Remember the story of the widows mite. I'm an usher at our local church and one of my jobs is to pass the plate. People give $5, $10, $20, $50, $100 and sometimes more but the one that impresses me most the lady that quickly puts in a small handful of change... sometimes it's been a couple dimes with pennies but she always gives which brings tears to my eyes because I know of everyone in that church she is the one that can least afford to give but she does. It's been my honor to help her out too by making sure she gets 100 to 1 back. This is anonymous too... I give an unmarked envelope to my priest who gives it to her at the end of service.
I don't want anyone to think I am a great person or anything like that because I'm not a whole lot special. What makes me not so special is what giving I have done I can easily afford to do. So that is what I do because you can't take it with you.
I am a strong right wing republican and very regular church goer.
The Bible prevents me from revealing that I am Batman.
“Beware of practicing your righteousness before other people in order to be seen by them, for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven. “Thus, when you give to the needy, sound no trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may be praised by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.
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