The Official Modest Needs Blog

It's A Wonderful Life: Modest Needs' Christmas Miracles

Christmas miracles aren't just the stuff of claymation holiday specials and Frank Capra films. They happen to real people every year, and Modest Needs has proof. In the two days leading up to Christmas 2011, Modest Needs donors from across the country pooled their resources to fully fund seventy-four applications in just forty-eight hours.

That means seventy-four individuals (plus their family members) woke up on Christmas morning to the news that their grants had been funded. Families were pulled back from the edge of eviction. Outstanding medical bills were paid. Heat and hot water were restored to homes. Funds for auto repairs were released to car owners. And, in one very special case, an Army National Guard member was granted the money to pay for his mother's burial expenses.

It's a wonderful life indeed.

Modest Needs was overwhelmed by the outpouring of warm words from our Christmas grant recipients, words which were the true embodiment of "holiday cheer." We felt it only fair to share these words with you, our donors and supporters, since you were the ones who made each of these Christmas miracles possible:

Application: Autistic Boy Given Up By Parents (Shrewsbury, MA)

On today of all days, you don't know how huge a gift you've given to me and my nephew. What a wonderful day indeed. I can't wait to call my sister to tell her the good news. She has supported me through the advocacy process and comforted me when she knew I needed it. I have to tell you that I feel comforted and blessed right now. Thank you from the bottom of my heart, I will keep you in my prayers, always.

Application: Single Mom Desperately Needs Help (Terra Haute, IN)

My daughter and I want to THANK YOU from the bottom of our hearts for helping us to get our van fixed. This is has turned out to be a wonderful Christmas for us, truly a miracle. God Bless each and everyone of you, you are our angels. I am sitting here crying happy tears because of you. There was no money for gifts this year, but this is the best gift we could get. We have been praying everyday. Thank you again for your help, we will remember this for the rest of our lives and be forever thankful for all of you.

Application: Urgent Rental Help Needed (Meriden, CT)

I was amazed to wake up and see that our application was funded this morning! What a wonderful Christmas gift for my family! We're feeling a great weight lifted from our minds and hearts. The relief is uplifting and we're overwhelmed with the generosity of the donors who made this possible. We honestly can't thank everyone enough, it feels like we had angels watching over us. We can go into 2012 confident that our year will be so much easier now that we'll be caught up with our finances. And we'll be welcoming our daughter in March! We're blessed to have had these people come into our lives and we won't forget how they changed not just our situation, but our lives!

Application: Disabled Couple Needs Working Vehicle to Stay Well (Youngstown, AZ)

"Thank You" is truly not enough. You have given us a True Christmas Miracle today. Your warmth and generosity will get our 'wheels,' and us, back on our feet safely, so that I may pursue the position of Dialysis Patient Technician and be able to perform dialysis at home for Kimberly in the New Year. No more getting up at 3:00AM to struggle under the hood with the car battery, or check the tire conditions and pressures, before driving her to her dialysis unit three days a week! Thank you and God Bless You, Modest Needs!

Application: Funeral Expenses to Bury My Mother (Providence, RI)

Your generosity, selflessness and sacrifice, which led to the funding of my Modest Needs application to help me with my mother's burial expenses, are the best Christmas present I could have ever received. As you know, I am a soldier in the Army National Guard. When my sister died unexpectedly this April, I was devastated. As my family and I tried to come to terms with her loss and move on, my mother became gravely ill. I could only hope I would not be deployed and would be in the country to be with her during her last days. Well, God granted me those days with her. However, since I had incurred the expenses of my sister's funeral just 4 months ago and was now on active duty orders for the Army, there was no money leftover to use or even try to save to pay for my mother's final expenses. That was a painful and devastating reality. After I submitted my application I waited and anxiously checked the status of my application each day. I had all but given up hope that the application would be funded when I received the wonderful news, and all I could do is say prayers of thanksgiving and praise to God for all of you as tears of joy streamed down my face. You cannot imagine how deeply I have been touched by your kindness. I will never, ever forget this.

 

From our Modest Needs family to yours, thank you for making these holiday miracles possible.

The Most Important Gift You'll Give All Year

There are two weeks left until the end of 2011.  

This is a crucial time for Modest Needs--the generosity of others between now and New Year's will be the foundation upon which all the work we do in 2012 is built.

Click here to read why any donation you make over the next fourteen days will be doubly valuable, and to discover several ways you can help keep Modest Needs going in 2012. 

Calling all Twitter (and Facebook) Junkies!

 

On December 12, 2011, we made a push on Twitter for our followers to join the #DecafCharity experiment.

(You can read the full story about the #DecafCharity Experiment here.) 

Built on the old idea that a small sacrifice--like giving up a single latte and donating the leftover money to charity--can make a big difference, The #DecafCharity Experiment was created to remind people that there is no donation too small when it comes to changing a life.

While Twitter can seem ridiculous (does a person really need to share with the world what they've eaten for lunch?), the reality is that it's one of the best platforms in the world for crowd-sourcing. Since Modest Needs is the original charity to be funded largely by crowd-sourced donations, Twitter is one of our best resources for spreading good news fast, making appeals when the occasion calls for it or starting conversations with others working within the philanthropy world.

 

It is with this in mind that we ask you Twitter users to follow Modest Needs at @ModestNeeds (http://twitter.com/#!/modestneeds), and to both participate in (by making a small donation) and spread the word about the #DecafCharity Experiment. Spreading the word is as simple as sending a single Tweet mentioning the project and linking to our list of current applicants.

 

Here's a sample Tweet you can cut and paste to your followers:

I donated the price of my coffee to @ModestNeeds #DecafCharity experiment. Join in and change a family's life here: http://tinyurl.com/cspbcuq

If Twitter's not your thing, the same sample text above can be cut and pasted into a post on Facebook, yet another platform that helps keep Modest Needs connected with donors, applicants and the charity world at large. Simply copy and past the text above into your status window with a brief note encouraging others to do the same. 

We gently ask as you communicate with your friends and followers this holiday season that you consider mentioning #DecafCharity on your Twitter and Facebook profiles. This small investment of time can pay big dividends to Modest Needs applicants, leading to the kind of big changes that can turn a life around.

Thank you and happy Tweeting (and Facebooking) to all!

Cheers,

Modest Needs 

 

Meet Kimberly Kaye, The Newest Member of the Modest Needs Family

The Modest Needs family is growing! Today we would like to introduce Kimberly Kaye, Modest Needs' new Director of Marketing and Public Outreach. Please allow our newest team member to introduce herself, and explain why she'd like to talk to YOU:

 

Few things make me break into a cold sweat faster than the phrase, "Tell us a little about yourself." It’s been that way since kindergarten. Every first day of school my teachers would ask each student to state their name and sum up their lives in a few sentences for the rest of the class. Every year I'd find myself staring back at a room full of faces, stuttering as I tried to figure out what to say. Anticipation of the "Tell Us About Yourself" exercise used to drive me into my parents' closet, where I'd hide under my father's jacket until some adult coaxed me out and loaded me onto the school bus.

Which is why my palms are sweating as I try to answer that question now at Modest Needs' request. Can someone please define "a little?" How much is too much? Where's the line separating "sharing biographical information" and "boring people to death?"

And am I certifiably nuts, or does this wave of anxiety hit other people too?

While the "Tell Us About Yourself" gauntlet makes me squirm, I adore meeting new people and, even more so, having an actual conversation with them. The irony being that it's hard to start a conversation without first saying hello and telling the new face in front of you a bit about yourself.

So here it goes: I'm a born and bred New Jersey native. I have an addiction to social media that is, at this point, incurable. I’m good with words and have a violent, physical aversion to geometry. And I've spent the last five years as a journalist reporting on arts and culture.

Reporting on the arts, a world which has always relied on the generosity of patrons to sustain itself, helped me discover what can only be described as the art of giving. And I mean art in the most literal way; philanthropy is an art form. It is particularly special because, unlike music or painting, it is a craft that anyone can be good at from the moment they decide to take it up. Giving is the one art form in which the novices can lead the masters.

Uncovering the art of philanthropy pulled me into the essential ongoing conversation about giving, a dialogue I was thrilled to discover has been furthered by Modest Needs’ groundbreaking approach to helping those in need. The first organization of its kind to crowd-source for donors, Modest Needs asks people to tell others a little about themselves in order to start a dialogue about giving. Once that conversation gets rolling everyday people take action, making everyone from neighbors to strangers’ lives better in the process. You can watch it happen in real time as grants are funded on the Modest Needs web site.

It’s an ongoing conversation that I’m proud and excited to be joining now as a member of the Modest Needs family, but one that only works if both sides are talking and listening. So I’ve talked a little. Now it’s your turn. I invite you to talk to me, and keep talking, anytime day or night. Ask questions. Voice concerns. Bring the attention of Modest Needs anyplace it needs to go. Show us how you practice the art of philanthropy, or praise the work of others when they do.

Let's get talking now. What would you like to see more of from Modest Needs? And what would you like to see less? You can reach out right here in the comments section of this blog, email me at [email protected], find us on our Facebook page, or Tweet at us directly at @Modestneeds.

And, of course, please remember to tell us a little about yourself in the process.

Cheers,
Kimberly Kaye

You Did It Again. You Changed Lives to the Tune of a Matched $30K!

Way to go team. You can wake with a smile this morning in knowing that the full $30,000.00 grant from the generous Herb Alpert Foundation will be matched so that your "small change" goes even farther to prevent families and individuals from slipping into poverty through no fault of their own.

$30,099.36 was given through 27 September 2011. We'll start a new match on 1 October 2011. In the meantime, thank you so much for your kindness and support of this very important work!

[Photo by Richard Moross]

Poised to Reach a Major Milestone at Modest Needs

Our founder and president, Dr. Keith Taylor, shares an exciting and remarkable milestone that, with your help, we'll easily reach and more.

Take a few moments to read the news. We promise it's feel-good news.

A Note Regarding Hurricane Irene

Today's blog post was written by Modest Needs' CEO. It contains very important information about application processing:

Good morning, everyone.

It's been a very long time since I've sent out a personalized news update. That's because, now that we have such solid Facebook, Twitter, and Blog presences, generally, people who want to follow all the latest goings-on at Modest Needs are able to receive up-to-the-minute news, on demand, almost 24 hours a day (don't you love that?) But today, I wanted to send out a quick note as we at Modest Needs prepare to face our first bona-fide natural disaster.

As you probably already know, Hurricane Irene is slated to hit the coast of North Carolina on Saturday. From there, the storm's projected path takes it straight up the "Northeast Corridor." At present, the eye of the storm is forecast to pass directly over New York City / Western Long Island as a Category 1 or 2 hurricane. NYC's office of emergency services is telling us to expect the worst sometime between 8:00am and 2:00pm on Sunday, and the impact of the storm on New York City itself - not to mention our neighbors up and down the Eastern Seaboard - is projected to be 'extreme.'

As many of you know, I've been in New York almost ten years now. I've seen a lot of warnings and various types of preparations for disasters, real and anticipated. I can tell you that I have never seen anything like this. As I write this, hospitals and elder-care facilities in certain parts of the city are being evacuated. If nothing about the storm's path changes, then sometime tomorrow afternoon, NYC is expected to shut down mass transit - the entire subway system - which will be offline until after the storm passes (this is absolutely unprecedented). And if the subway system itself floods, it is very likely the all of NYC will lose most of its utility services, as here, power lines and such all run underground.

What does all of this mean, for those of you who've applied for help from and support Modest Needs? Simply this: if the storm does not change course or weaken substantially, it is very likely that Modest Needs' office will be closed until the storm has passed and both power and Internet access have been restored.

The good news, of course, is that Modest Needs' website should remain up and running; our servers are located well outside of NYC and away from the worst of the storm, so if you need to apply for help or would like to make a contribution to this very important work, which I suspect we'll need very much after the storm, you should be able to do so (fingers crossed).

But if the storm hits NYC as expected, and with the intensity expected, it's very likely that we will not be able to process applications, answer calls, or respond to email until power and Internet access are restored (Modest Needs' office is so 'connected' that even our phone runs through the Internet.)

Please rest assured that, if the worst does come to pass and the storm hits NYC and its neighbors to the north and south as projected, all of us at Modest Needs will be back in the office and back to work at the very first possible moment. But in the meantime, I wanted first, to alert everyone to the possibility that Modest Needs' office will almost certainly be affected by this storm, and secondly, to tell all of you in the path of this massive storm that we'll be thinking of you as the storm moves through the Northeast Corridor this weekend.

If you live in a hurricane evacuation zone (as I do, unfortunately - I have to prep my 'go bag' the moment this is published), please take every precaution to protect yourself and your loved ones, and please know that all of us at Modest Needs are thinking of you.

Here's hoping this storm changes course and we're all back to work on Monday. But in the meantime, to everyone in the Modest Needs family, and especially to those of you in the path of this massive storm, take care and be well.

Warmest Personal Regards,

Dr. Keith P. Taylor
President / Executive Director

 

5 Kids Dead Due to Space Heater?: Tips to Stay Safe this Winter

Last night, something horric and saddening happened in Central Florida. Five children, ages 15, 13, 12, 8 and 6, were killed after their home went up into a fiery blaze. It is suspected that the killer fire was started by a space heater.

We see lots of requests for help with heating bills at Modest Needs. It is one of the utilities that low-income families most often have difficulty paying. Adding central heat or floor heat or other, more safer sources of warmth, can cost an enormous amount. Space heaters are often used by those who have no other means of keeping from freezing. And often those space heaters are quite old, and not as safe as some of the newer models.

Sometimes it is the only option. It's that, or let your children shiver through the night, possibly risking frostbite or worse.

As news of this terribly tragic accident that killed five children in Central Florida, it's best to keep in mind some safety tips when using alternative heating sources like kerosene heaters or space heaters:

*Keep space heaters at least three feet from anything that will burn. (sofas, curtains, bedding, etc.)

*Never leave space heaters unattended.

*Do not use space heaters at night while people are sleeping.

*Be aware that pets can knock over space heaters.

*Keep space heaters out of doorways or hallways, where they can be tripped over.

*Aim space heaters at the center of the room.

*Do not overload the extension cord where your space heater is plugged in.

*Do not use space heaters to dry clothes or thaw pipes.

*Turn off space heaters before leaving your home.

My dad is a firefighter, and I have heard horrible stories from him every winter about how many people are hurt or killed due to space heaters. But space heaters are an affordable source of warmth, and so they will continue to be used each frigid season.

If you feel moved by this story out of Florida today, but helpless, browse through some requests for assistance at Modest Needs. You can search by keyword "heat," "gas," "electricity" to aid someone who just might go without heating this upcoming winter. You don't have to give a lot to make a huge difference.

[Photo by Gopal Agarrwal]

The Modest Needs Cyber Monday Report

I'm thrilled to report that, yesterday, in response to our first ever 'Cyber-Monday Special,' individual donors to Modest Needs contributed a RECORD SETTING $27,780.00.  What a way to start December!

When you consider that the vast majority of those contributions were tripled in value - thanks to the generosity of the Zegar Family Foundation - all told, over the next few days, we're going to be able to fund just over $75,000.00 worth of applications for assistance.

If you contributed to Modest Needs yesterday and asked for us to allocate your points for you, you'll see your point balance cleared shortly as we work to get help to as many hard working individuals and families as we can.  And if you opted to allocate your points yourself, please do so as soon as you can!

More tomorrow - we're all exhausted over here, but in the best possible way.  Have a wonderful evening!

The Modest Needs Cyber Monday Special!

Good day, everyone!  In yesterday's post, I mentioned that today, we'd have a big announcement at Modest Needs.  And as promised, just in time for 'Cyber Monday,' here it is:  the project that has kept me quiet for nearly a month.

I'm thrilled to report that, thanks to the generosity of the Zegar Family Foundation, and just in time for the holiday season, Modest Needs has been able to secure an enormous, last-minute matching grant.  This new matching grant will double the value of any contribution that you make between now and the end of the year up to a maximum possible value of - are you ready? - $300,000.00!

What's more, in the spirit of the season, the Zegar Family Foundation has specifically requested that each of you - the individual donors who will ultimately help us to claim the whole of this very generous match - be the persons to decide how these matching funds are spent. 

In other words, every time you make a new pledge or one-time contribution to Modest Needs between now and 31 December 2009 (or until the whole of the $300,000.00 match is claimed) you'll see double points post to your Modest Needs account for INSTANT distribution.  With these matching points, you can help three or four times as many people facing a short-term financial crisis, buy three or four times as many gift certificates for your friends and family members - whatever you like!

But that's not all!  In honor of Cyber Monday (when many of you will be doing your online shopping anyway) we're going to do something very special - something we've never been able to do before. Modest Needs is actually going to PARTICIPATE in Cyber Monday!

Today ONLY, from 9:00am to midnight, we'll give you TRIPLE points for any one-time contribution that you make to Modest Needs, up to $10,000.00.  And if you make a new weekly, bi-weekly, or monthly pledge of at least $25.00 (or if you increase the amount of a current pledge by at least $25.00) then today only, we'll give you QUADRUPLE points the second you make your first pledge payment. 

Yes, you read that right.  Today only, if you make a contribution to Modest Needs of, say, $100.00, your Modest Needs account will instantly be credited with 300 points.  If you make a new pledge of $25.00, your Modest Needs account will instantly be credited with 100 points. 

The Monday after Thanksgiving - is traditionally the biggest online shopping day of the year, and there are huge bargains to be found all over the net.  But today at Modest Needs, your tax-deductible contribution has more power to change a life of a hard working individual or family than ever before. 

Together, and with this special 'Cyber Monday match' in place, we have the power to help hundreds of struggling individuals and families with nowhere else to turn.  All you have to do is visit Modest Needs, make the contribution of your choice, and then decide how many lives you'd like to change. 

This much I can guarantee:  when you receive the 'thank you' note from the person whose life you've changed today, you'll agree that your quick stop at Modest Needs was the best investment you made on Cyber Monday.  And together, for hundreds of individuals and families who aren't doing any shopping online today, we can make this the best Cyber Monday ever!

I'll report tomorrow on how many people we were able to help on this, Modest Needs' first official Cyber Monday.    Until then, have a wonderful day, happy bargain hunting, take care, and be well!