Together, We Have It All

This morning I drove into work listening to the Tom Joyner Morning Show in the midst of regular rush hour traffic on I-459. Wednesdays on the show is Christmas and Tom Joyner reads a letter received from a listener who is asking for a favor for a person/organization that is in needs or merits rewarding based on situational character. This morning the letter was from a Sumpter County Head Start program director, a nationally funded program, asking for computers for its facility. Tom went on to read that because of a shortage of national funding and cut backs, the facility which served 400 children were unable to repair its computers and were in dire need of new ones to facilitate its technological initiatives with the students. Tom, being the wonderful benevolent person that he is, granted them 5 brand new computers to "jump start" their technology objective. Tom Joyner's continuous acts of kindness reminded me of Rev. Joseph Lowery's words during the 2006 Southern Leadership Conference I attended here in Birmingham

"Will words create deeds that meet needs."

In his case, they certainly have.

Listening to that brings me to this. As a person recently engaged in community philanthropy through the Birmingham Change Fund (http://www.birminghamchangefund.org/), it never ceases to amaze me the needs in our commmunity and the ways in which we have historically risen to meet those needs, as much as we could. My group is ending a grant cycle now that is resulting is giving grants to grassroots organizations that are addressing the needs of the community. Our task is to assess those in need, the area of need, and the capacity at which we are able to assist them. There is a growing network of giving circles like ours that are doing the same thing. http://www.thecommunityinvestment.org/

But what if, in a more informal sense, we all looked around our community, assessed it's needs, the area of need, and the capacity at which we personally are able to assist. Historically, African Americans have followed this model of philanthropy. We all can remember neighborhoods giving money to David, Sadie's son, as he headed off to college, or taking up a special collection during Sunday school to give to Lou Ellen because she just had surgery. Small gestures of kindness like these are what brought my people through the rough times of days gone. I know that a return to these gestures is going to sustain us through the tough economic times we face now as a nation.

Here's one example that came to mind as I was typing this just now. The Head Start program in Sumpter County was in need of computers. I currently have two PC's in my home that I don't use. I have friends in the business of rebuilding computers and for less than $400.00 I can have both of them refreshed and available for use complete with all the basic Microsoft Office tools and the like for another small organization in need of computers. I'm sure if I continue to poke around my home, there are many more items, resources there that will be very useful and can be very critical gifts to my community to help it reach its goal of developing the next generation.

Just last week I received 6 cds in the mail from a former coworker of math software that they used to help their daughter through some difficult classes. Since they were no longer using them, she mailed them to me to use with our youth at my local assembly. I'm not sure how much the software cost them but my budget and the church trustees will be glad about not having to spend that money in these lean budgetary times.

I'm not very knowledgeable about economical issues. I know enough to make me dangerous and able to handle the basic conversation about the "bad" economy and the inevitable cuts that are going to take place in areas that we really need more funding. I'm not adept at policy making, neither do I know the ins and outs of what it takes to get more money in the budget for key programs. But I am good at writing and I think I'll do a lunch and learn on essay writing for high school students. And perhaps my musician friends can help me put on a small recital for the kids in the community that play instruments.

What I'm saying is that each of us have, in our hands, some capacity to help meet the needs of our community. I encourage you to look in your houses, think about your skill set and knowledge, and find small ways that we everyday folk can make up for the lack in governmental support with support from our gifts and personal talents.

I'd like to hear about some ways you have thought of to "meet the needs" in the areas you are in. Let me hear from you....

In closing, a couple of weeks ago I attended a leadership training at my local assembly where our dynamic assistant pastor and pastor facilitated two great sessions. During the first session we learned about teamwork and how it accomplishes goals that feed into our overall mission. One thing she said that stuck out to me was this: "I don't have it all together, but together, we have it all."

So I leave that with you: I don't have it all together, but together, we have it all.