The Official Modest Needs Blog

Bad Times Inspire Good Deeds

One look at the enormous number of Modest Needs applications coming in these days, and it's hard to refute the idea that low-income families in this country are under siege. But they're not alone. It seems that the more our neighbors are hurting, the more other people are deciding to step up to the plate.

Take one particular Modest Needs donor, for example, who has contacted us on almost a weekly basis for the past month, every time to INCREASE his pledge by $5 or $10 dollars. His response to the doom and gloom surrounding our economic crisis? Action. Positive, generous, glorious action.

This USA Today article chronicles a few other individuals doing wonderful things not in spite of -- but BECAUSE of -- these treacherous economic conditions. My favorite is Bob McIntire, owner of McIntire's Florist in Fulton, MO. He surprises one, two, or three people a week with free bouquets. His bottom line is surely feeling the impact of the economic downturn, but he doesn't use that as a reason to cut back. Rather the opposite. And I applaud him for it. 

The True Economic Stimulus: You

This testimonial, from an applicant whose car you paid to repair last week, is among the most beautiful I've read in years. It brightened our day here at the Modest Needs offices; I hope it does the same for you.

"To the kind people who helped fund our need: I lost my good job over three years ago and since then had been subsisting working simple jobs along with all of my children -- all of us equally bringing in and pooling our minimum-wage jobs.  I finally was able to update my professional license, take the required courses, and apply for jobs appropriate to my training, and gratefully just got a job when the car broke down and it all looked hopeless, as having consistent and reliable transportation was necessary. "

"The bill was high, and the kids and I were stretched beyond breaking point to just make the minimal necessities of life. It was a luxury even to pack a lunch, which was a necessity for me because I am insulin-dependent diabetic. They went to work often without lunches, not being diabetic. Your help is a godsend, and an inspiration to my family.  This is exactly the kind of stewardship I want to participate in -- a real, practical, on-the-street ministry that compassionate creeds and ideologies speak about, but Modest Needs members actually practice. Thank you, thank you so much. I pray all other things considered, and this job survives these economic tsunamis, count on me to be added among the stewards of Modest Meeds -- the real stimulus behind keeping people hopeful, productive, and helpful to their neighbors."

A Modest Needs Love Story

Money can't buy you love, but it turns out that it can buy you togetherness. Or at least for one very special couple it could.

Imagine that you find the love of your life, but $545 threatens to separate you. That was the very frightening predicament for this woman, who applied to Modest Needs for the money to renew her husband's permanent residence card. Without it, he would have been shipped back to his native England.

"How can I thank you enough for keeping two hearts together? For being an instrument of God? With all of our hearts, we thank you for our future together in one country."

And you thought Valentine's Day was LAST week.

 

Do Something Random

We've still got a few days left in Random Acts of Kindness Week, everybody!

Pet-sit for a friend.

Let that person with a gallon of milk and a loaf of bread cut in front of you in line at the grocery store.

Introduce yourself to a co-worker you pass every day anonymously in the hallway.

Or, of course, donate a few bucks to an Iraq war veteran who's about to lose his house, a single mom who's getting back onto her feet after fleeing domestic abuse, or one of dozens of other hardworking families awaiting assistance at modestneeds.org.

You have the power to make the incremental... monumental. It doesn't take money so much as kindness. This week and always.

Spread the Love (to Others) this Valentine's Day

I just wanted to remind you that Modest Needs Gift Certificates are available all year-round, not just during the holiday season. For example, have you ever considered one for a Valentine's Day gift?

Let's see...

Thoughtful?
Check.

Reasonably priced?
Check.

Original?
Check.

Memorable?
Check.

By purchasing a gift certificate to Modest Needs, you'll not only be showing your love for that special someone...You'll also be giving him/her the power to show compassion to someone else in desperate need of a helping hand.

And on that note, I wish you all a wonderful weekend!

Apologies to Dr. King

"The time is always right to do what’s right." - Dr. Martin Luther King

I'm a week late on this MLK post, but it's such a beautiful, simple sentiment that I couldn't resist sharing it.

Have a wonderful Monday.

One Little Application, Plenty of Big Hearts

Sometimes, the very best thing about reading through an application is recognizing all the OTHER people who've done their part to help someone in need.

Take this application.

It's written by a social worker (big heart #1) who's determined to help her 22-year-old client, a wheelchair-bound young man who's had a very rough upbringing. The man who helped raise him (big heart #2) is building a home for this young man -- a home outfitted with special accessibility considerations. He has already spent $35,000 of his own money. The septic and well are installed. The house is framed.

Now all he needs from us is $1,000 to install automatic door openers to ensure that this applicant can get around his bedroom and bathroom without too many problems.

What do you think? Can we keep this string of kindness going a little bit longer? We're only a small grant away from helping this young man secure a home!

Suburbia, Without the White-Picket Fences

Who said that U.S. suburbs were all bake sales and leaf-blowing?

This Newsweek article makes the assertion that our suburbs are drowning in the wake of economic hardship, and notes that more of the working poor now live in our suburbs than in our cities. 

So many of us, when we imagine poverty, think only about urban poverty. But we've got streams of Modest Needs applicants hailing from places like Grapevine, Texas, Norristown, Pennsylvania, and Winder, Georgia. Suburban and rural areas pose their own set of challenges for low-income families -- like no public transportation, for example. And if you take a gander through Modest Needs' list of applications, you'll see firsthand that tough times just don't discriminate by geography.

Good News About Your Taxes (Seriously!)

Who knew that the economic downturn would elicit a softer, friendlier side to the IRS?

According to this Wall Street Journal article, the IRS will go easy on taxpayers having a hard time paying their bill this year -- specifically, those who've lost their jobs, rely solely on Social Security or welfare income, or face a devastating illness or significant medical bills.

If you find yourself having trouble paying your taxes this year, the IRS Commissioner's advice was to get in touch with the IRS sooner rather than later. If you can save yourself a call from a collection agency, it's well worth it, no?

Your Easiest New Year's Resolution Ever

I heard on the news this morning that 60% of us abandon our New Year's Resolutions at some point during the year. And to be honest, I was flabbergasted by that number. Not because it was so high but because it was so low! I assumed that most people, like me, almost never stuck to their resolutions.

And no wonder. Consider a few of the most popular New Year's resolutions -- losing weight, quitting smoking, getting out of debt, getting organized. They're all REALLY HARD.

But one of the most popular resolutions is also REALLY EASY. And that's the one about being more charitable. On Modest Needs' website, it takes 2 minutes to donate toward any family of your choosing. Give a helping hand to a single mom trying to re-establish her family after fleeing domestic abuse. Pay the electric bill for a senior citizen whose budget has been derailed by an unexpected medical emergency. 

With a donation as little as $5, you can cross off resolution #1 before most people even finish making their lists. Even more importantly, your self-improvement regimen will leave a family in need in a much better place to start off 2009. Talk about an amazing way to ring in the New Year.