I Know, Bah Humbug

While I am all about "Paying It Forward" and have participated for many years helping others during the Holidays, a friend and I were talking about all of the fundraising that goes on locally, I  thought I'd share some of that discussion.

I want to make something very clear here. I am in no way attempting to take any credit away from the unconditional intent from so many people and or organizations but haven't you ever wondered, where is all that money going to? Have you ever wondered, just how many local Families are in such a bad way that they have to depend so much on these donations?

For examples, WBOC raised over $265,000.00 this year for their Bless Our Children campaign. The Salvation Army has been known to raise more then $300,000.00 as well. The local Law Enforcement agencies and Fire Departments have been known to give out literally hundreds of bicycles and have adopted Families each year. Wicomico County will probably deliver more then THREE TONS of food to the Maryland Food Bank. Then there's Toys For Tots, Churches and the list goes on and on. 

In case you weren't aware, the Salvation Army also gives out hundreds of free and complete dinners for Christmas. Perdue donates hundreds of Turkeys not only with the Salvation Army but also the Maryland Food Bank. 

So we were listening to WBOC and they said they want to make sure every child has a present under the Christmas Tree. They also mentioned hundreds of children. OK, $265,000.00, (+ or-), hundreds of children, have you ever wondered just how many presents these kids get? Forgive me for using WBOC as an example but they do announce the details, so that is what I'm going by. 

Hundreds could mean 200. One would think if it was over 500 Families, well, they'd probably say they help more then 500 Families. So let's be fair and say it's 400+ Families. Isn't that $600.00  (+ or-) per Family? Then there's the Salvation Army and ALL of the other non profits who raise millions of dollars, (all together) in our area and you just have to ask yourself, REALLY?

Just how many Families locally are that destitute that they cannot take care of their children for the Holidays AND is it really that important that every child get so well cared for because their parents don't even have to try to do better when they can just as easily get on a list where everyone else will take care of them.

I know, heartless, isn't it. Like many of you, we grew up broke. Did we turn out bad because all our friends were getting the latest and greatest, NO. I can truly tell you, what we did get was extremely appreciated. In our spare time we'd find ways to mow lawns in the summer or shovel snow in the winter, (you get my drift). If we NEEDED things, we earned it, took care of it and appreciated it that much more.

Then we discussed free breakfast and lunch at school and let's not forget the free food the children get during the summer months. Then there's free college, free school supplies, affordable housing, EBT Cards, welfare, free Christmas presents, when is enough enough. What drives these people to get jobs so they can provide for their families?

We also discussed, how does anyone know one family isn't on every non profit list? In other words, why not get on WBOC's, Salvation Army, Church, Toys For Tots and whatever else is out there, who regulates this? What's stopping people from getting on every list.

So yes, I'm the bad guy bringing up a topic thousands of you think about but are way too afraid to say anything. The cool part is, you can remain anonymous and share your thoughts on this matter. It seems to me that the ONLY thing these organizations are interested in is breaking last years record numbers, yet you never see the end result. They BEG you for the money, you GIVE from the heart but you never see any financial records. I mean, they'll knock on the door to interview the family of a child that was just murdered an hour ago but they won't show you where all that money went???

I can tell you first hand when we gave out 300 turkeys one Christmas Season, honest to God we had multiple people, (the same people) coming back three to four times to collect a free dinner, so please don't tell me people do not take advantage of such free programs. 

We want to hear your thoughts on this matter. There needs to be a way these organizations can come together to make sure their unconditional giving isn't abused. We also need to come up with a creative way to get these people off a lifetime or even generations of entitlements. 

Finally, God Bless All of you who not only make such donations but especially those organizations who run these programs. I know first hand how trying it is to pull them off.