Just Causes

I grew up knowing first hand that neighbors helped neighbors. When an elderly neighbor came asking Dad for a loan, Dad gave him what he could, five dollars, knowing full well the money probably wouldn't be repaid.
When another neighbor died Dad went house to house collecting a dollar here, two dollars there and having a sympathy card signed to go with the total to hand over to the widow.
It is what you did to help.
I moved away from that neighborhood, to the city where sometimes you didn't even know your neighbors, where instead I gave money to United Way and blood to the Red Cross.

In 1991, I gave money to the International Red Cross, a first for me. It was earmarked to buy blankets for the Kurdish refugees, freezing in the snow. TV brought their suffering images home.

During the floods of '93, living in Valley Junction, the Red Cross came to me. But I was among the lucky, the flood waters stopped six inches from coming into the main part of my home. I accepted some cleaning supplies from the volunteers thanking them and my lucky stars.

After canceling a trip to my niece's wedding in Chicago and giving the money instead for Hurricane Katrina relief, I became dubious of charitable giving when learning more went to salaries for high paid executives than went to the people who needed help. That made me regret not attending the wedding. It would have been better to be there for my niece on her big day.

Perhaps I've made up a bit for it by donating every year for eight years as she has walked the 3-day Komen walk for the cure.

This has already been a more than usual year of donating - deaths of cousins and a former sister-in-law, a go-fund-me for a cousin injured in a vehicle accident, my son's birthday request for donations to young adult cancer in lieu of presents. Just causes, all.

And now, another hurricane, Harvey looks to be as bad or worse than Katrina. My donation will once again go to the Red Cross - what I can this month and more later if possible.

I'll try not to think about how much or how little actually makes it to the ones who need it the most. Instead I'll try to be grateful I can contribute something, and grateful there are people who can provide help.

But as I watch the images of the ones there, the neighbors helping neighbors wade out of their flooded homes, I remember growing up in a time when that was what neighbors did - and still do.

(If it sounds like I am bragging about donating, I'm not. I'm crying because I can't do more. And I'm sad about the 'powers that be' who have more than they need or can ever use, but continue to scheme to line their own pockets. I wish they could see the errors of their way.)