The Official Modest Needs Blog

It's Now Easier Than Ever to Prevent Poverty Before It Starts

Exciting news on the Modest Needs front! It is now easier than ever to help keep people independent and prevent poverty before it begins--the mission that we tackle each and every day.

If you "like" Modest Needs on Facebook, and you should!, you can now donate directly to Modest Needs right from our Facebook page. Not only that, but you can now easily "share" our Facebook donation page on your own Facebook wall. More, better, simpler ways to help people just like you and me who are facing a financial hardship--it's win-win!

And maybe the coolest part of all, you can create a "birthday wish" on Facebook asking that, in leiu of gifts (or in addition to well wishes), people give to Modest Needs on your behalf.

Neat, right?

So, check out our fresh new Donate page on Facebook, like us if you haven't yet already, and see the wonderful world of social media for social change at work.

Where Does Your Money Go?: Track Your Tax Dollars

It's tax day. I'd put an exclamation there if any of us were happy about it, but we aren't. None of us are.* Even if you are getting a refund, you've been loaning your hard-earned cash to the government interest free for a whole year! Boo on that.

But, what we get in return is often quite useful: military protection, working roads and education for all. Lots of our tax money goes to very good use.

Wouldn't it be great, though, if you could tell exactly where your tax dollars are going, broken down into graph form? Well, it's your lucky day:

Where Did My Tax Dollars Go?, created by Anil Kandangath, does all that in spades. The interactive graphic shows, quite simply, how much of your income goes to taxes, and of those tax dollars, it tracks how every last buck was spent. So let's say you make $50,000. On average, you pay $11,088 in taxes.

Check it out for yourself. Pretty nifty.

And in related tax day news, don't forget that every single donation to Modest Needs, no matter how big or how small, is tax deductible.

*Except maybe GE and the like.

Modest Needs via RSS: Make it Super Easy to Give

We're busy. I'm busy. You're busy. Busy is what many of us thrive on. Sudden changes in plans, babysitter cancels, dinner catches on fire. These things happen. So, it's no surprise when our intentions to help others sometimes get pushed to the back burner.

Well, why not make it extra easy to help someone in need? If you use an RSS reader, as many do, to bring your favorite headlines, blog posts, news articles and images straight to you in one stream, then you should know that Modest Needs offers an RSS feed of recently approved applications ready to recieve donations.

All you have to do is subscribe to see new requests for help each day when you open your reader, so that you can read and recommend donations for pleas that speak directly to you.

Add the Modest Needs new applications feed to your RSS reader today, and make it even more simple to change a life for the better.

[Image courtesy of Jon E. Eguiluz]

Easily Refer Someone to Modest Needs

Is there someone you know--a neighbor, an acquaintance or a friend of a friend--who could really use one-time assistance with an unexpected financial emergency? Someone who could benefit from Modest Needs?

Telling someone in need about an organization like Modest Needs can be tricky. There is, sadly, a lot of secrecy and shame surrounding financial hardships, and no one wants to unnecessarily embarrass.

This is why Modest Needs has a "Refer a Friend" page on the website that does all the suggesting for you. You enter the person's name and email, and they get a message that reads thusly:

I'm writing to tell you about an organization that may be of interest to you during your time of need. The organization called - Modest Needs - is an online charity that offers small grants to individuals and families struggling to remain self-sufficient. I'm proud to be a registered member of the Modest Needs community, and though Modest Needs can't help everyone who asks, I've seen the good this organization has been able to do for others. I think they might be able to help you as well.

If you're still having a difficult time, please visit Modest Needs at http://www.modestneeds.org/ so that you can learn about Modest Needs. Their services are completely free of charge, and if you end up posting a request for help, I know they'll do the best they can to find a way to help you make ends meet.

Simple as that.

If you know someone who could use a hand to prevent sliding down a slippery slope, just use our Refer a Friend feature.

[Photo by Ripton Scott]

You Are Their Safety Net. Keep Up The Good Work.

I was going to do a post today about the idea of making donations to charities possible at ATMs. Then I read the "thank you" note from the mother of an autistic boy who is in desperate need of a service dog to keep him safe (last month he jumped from a second story balcony.)

The thank you note reads thusly:

I just want to truly say thank you from the bottom of my heart. As the parent of an Autistic child everything is an uphill battle, especially since autism is not a covered for treatment under health insurance. Your generosity will help change not only my son's life but the life of our family for years to come.

Perhaps I am ignorant for not knowing that autism is not covered by health insurance. I will cop to that. I learned just now that it's because autism is a "pre-existing condition." And apparently there are thousands upon thousands of diseases and illnesses that one can be born with that garner no, zero, zilch health insurance benefits for the entirety of that person's life.

This is not going to be a rant about insurance coverage in the U.S., but there is something wrong with this scenario. Medical care is prohibitively expensive without major financial assistance, and to be without, for your entire life, because you were born with a disability is an unfair burden to bear.

All of this is to say that you are doing essential, life-saving work when you donate to or tell someone about Modest Needs. Often these individuals and families have no where else to turn when their loved ones need medical assistance. But you come in, with your donations large and small, and change these people's lives for the better.

Just a reminder that, as a Modest Needs team member, you are the safety net that keeps people who, through no fault of their own, can fall into a cycle of poverty just to receive medical attention. You are coming to the aid of your neighbors--people just like you--when other outlets fail them.

So, good work. Keep it up.

[Photo by Pete Markham]

Five Changed Lives in Two Day (How You Helped)

Since we are always asking you to read the often saddening requests from our applicants, I think it is important to highlight the positive outcomes of these individuals once their grant has been funded. In just the past two days we've gotten ten testimonials from families whose lives you have changed through your generous donations. Here is just a small selection from five of them that will do your soul good when you see just how far your dollars go to make an enormous difference.

• "Thank you so much from me and my kids.  You have saved our life.  I cant thank you enough for what you have done for us.  I am a tough person but I cried for hours when I got the news, I was going to get help.  I didn't think anyone cared.  I want you to know how much you have changed our lives."
• "Your help literally saved the day for our family.  We tried so hard to give our son the help he needed and still take care of ourselves, but we just couldn't manage.  I told our son what you had done for us, and he was so eager to pay your kindness forward, that he organized a 'polar plunge' in Minnesota with all pledges going to the local cancer society.  He can't participate in the plunge, of course, but just organizing it and helping that way provided a wonderful way to thank all those that helped him."
• "Thanks to you all, I have one less thing to worry about this up coming month. This means so  much to me, and I deeply appreciate everything you have done to help me. If it wasn't for people like you, I would still be sitting here worring about what I was going to do."
• "It will make such difference in our lives financialy and emotionaly to no longer have to live with the burden over our heads. There should be more people in the world like you and I know that from this day forward I will try to be one of those people. As soon as we are back on our feet, I have made a promise to myself, that I will fund someone's request for help on Modest Needs so that I can pay this wonderful gift forward and make the same difference in someone else's life."
• "As the snow is falling, and we have made it through a bitterly cold arctic blast, I am waking up to find in my email that some wonderful and generous people have acted quickly and thoughtfully to fund our need for heat assistance this winter.  We cannot thank everyone enough for coming through for us in our most desperate hour."

[Image by Jon Ashcroft]

There Is Help for Those Without Heat This Winter

Snow is blanketing the South, freezing rain is falling in the Midwest and the Northeast region is preparing for half a foot or more of snow in the days to come. The long and short of it: It's cold. Really cold. And for one woman in New York City, it is deadly cold.

A tragic story out of Manhattan's Lower East Side is that of an elderly woman who was burned and killed while trying to light her stove and over for warmth. Her buidling had been without heat or hot water for a short time, and in effort to keep warm she attempted using her oven. This turned out to be a fatal move.

Now, while this victim's landlord should be questioned about the lack of heating in the dead of winter, there are many people just like this woman who are without heat due to no fault of their own. Maybe they own a home, but became unemployed and now they can't afford their gas or heating bill. We come across such circumstances at Modest Needs all the time.

And while Modest Needs is certainly established to help those with one time emergency expenses, there is also a federally financed program called HEAP that is in place to help those who cannot afford heating in their homes during the winter.The Home Energy Assistance Program can help pay for "Electricity, Propane, Natural Gas, Wood, Oil, Kerosene, Coal, or any other heating fuel."

There are three ways to obtain assistance through HEAP. They offer supplemental assistance to low income families, emergency help for those who need heating now, and heating equipment repair. Although this is a federal program, HEAP is run at the base level by state. All you need to do to learn more about HEAP benefits in your area is to search google for Home Energy Assistance Program plus the name of your state.

No one should be forced to live in deadly cold, no matter the cicumstances that put them there.

[Photo by dr.mafisto]

Who We Can Help: Types of Modest Needs Grants

Today I thought I'd use this space to remind everyone about the types of grants Modest Needs offers to its applicants. If one of these situational grants applies to someone you know in need, please let them know. It's why we are here. And we'd like to fulfill as many grants as we can, so here's a rundown of how you can help your friends and neighbors by way of Modest Needs.

Self-Sufficiency Grants

This grant is for normally self-sufficient individuals and families who are burdened by a one-time, emergency expense. This could be an unforseen medical bill, car repair bill or an unexpectedly enormous electricity bill. This grant aims to prevent applicants from falling into a vicious cycle of poverty by preventing them from going completely under--something that should never happen to those who are blindsided by expenses, but otherwise keep themselves afloat. The maximum grant available under this program is either $1,000.00 or 7.5% of your household's verifiable annual income, whichever is greater.

New Employment Grants

Most of us have been there. You get a new job after being without from simply switching careers, but the lag time between pay checks is enough to put serious strain on your budget. Many of us have friends or family who can loan money to tide us over. Sadly, many do not. That's what this grant is all about. In making a New Employment Grant, our goal is to provide a willing but temporarily unemployed individual with the means to return to work. This may mean helping with the cost of tools, necessary education or required permits. It's a bridge for the gap between jobs.

Independent Living Grants

Those that are disabled or otherwise unable to work often must get by on very limited resources. This often means a social security check, disability benefits or other governmental assistance. However, these people remain self-sufficient on the little that they have. Which is why a one-time emergency can mean sending them tumbling into poverty. Individuals who are unable to work who find themselves in a bind qualify for the Independent Living Grants.

Non-Profit Grants

As a non-profit, Modest Needs knows that those who do good for others can sometimes struggle to fund their projects. Non-profits who are working for the good of the public are sometimes unable to make ends meet, which means that those they serve also suffer. Animal shelters, domestic violence homes and educational charities sometimes need supplies to help those in need. They can go before Modest Needs donors in hopes of fulfilling these urgent needs.

If you know of anyone to whom these situations apply, let them know we are here to help. Applications are done exclusively online, so all you need to do is tell them our web address to get them started: ModestNeeds.org.

[Photo by nicht mehr hier]

How to Help Modest Needs Applicants

Each day Modest Needs features an "Application of the Day," a highlighting of one family or individual in need of one-time financial help. And while it is easy to click through to read the Application of the Day, it may be a little more difficult to figure out how to help those who need it.

If you have never donated to Modest Needs before, but would like to, all you have to do is register with our site as a donor. Registering is quick and easy, and after that you will have your own log in and password. Once logged in you will see a list of the following options on any application you view:

• I would like to give some of my points to this application
• I would like to give as many points to this application as it needs to be funded immediately
• I would like to see a different application

Clicking one of the top two options will allow you to help fund the application directly.

If you have donated to Modest Needs in the past, then you are already registered as a donor with our website, and should see the above options when viewing applications.

That's it!

You can opt to have your donation be a monthly or one-time contribution. You can also opt to help individuals seeking grants, or give to Modest Needs Foundation to help with operating expenses. It's totally up to you.

And that is one of the very cool things about being a donor to Modest Needs: You have control over where your money goes and can select an applicant to help and do so directly.

Hopefully this tiny tutorial will help those who want to donate but are not sure how to get started. Once registered, it is as easy as a few click to change lives.

[Photo by Cory Doctorow]

In Debt? Know Your Rights

Most of us, except for the very lucky or very diligent, have some kind of debt. Student loans, credit card balances, 30-year mortgages, car notes--the list can go on. And on and on and on.

And while just about everybody plans to pay off their debt in full, sometimes life gets in the way. The loss of income, an unexpected illness, a debilitating auto accident--any number of things can keep honest, hardworking people from paying off the debt they owe in a timely manner.

But, that doesn't mean that you don't have some rights as a debt holder. Anyone who has ever fallen behind to debtors know exactly how intimidating debt collectors can be. They'll threaten wage garnishing, taking you to court, and in some unscrupulous cases, even worse.

Even (or especially!) if you are in a tough spot that is not allowing you to pay off debts as quickly as you'd like, inform yourself about what rights you have as debt holder and educate yourself on how best to achieve as few penalties as possible.

This MSN Money article by Liz Pulliam Weston is a great start:

Federal law typically requires credit bureaus to drop negative information after seven years. The clock usually starts ticking 180 days after the account first goes delinquent (in other words, when you miss your first payment). There are exceptions: Bankruptcies can remain on your credit reports for up to 10 years, and some debts, such as unpaid tax liens, can stay on your reports indefinitely.

The other curb on debt collection is the statute of limitations, which gives creditors a certain time period -- in most states, three to six years -- in which to sue you over a debt.

In either case, you'll still owe the money, unless the debt has been forgiven or discharged in bankruptcy court. Lenders can try to collect it forever -- and probably will -- but they can't sue once the statute of limitations period has passed.

You can read the rest of that article at MSN Money. And here are a few other online resources to read to inform yourself about The Credit Cardholder's Bill of Rights Act of 2009, how to handle harassment from debt collectors and more. See below:

• New Rules for the Credit Card Industry
• Credit Card Bill of Rights: These are your rights as of February 22nd, 2010
• What the Credit Cardholders Bill of Rights Means for You
• Debt Collection FAQs: A Guide for Consumers
• Debt collectors calling? Know your rights
• What are my rights as a consumer with debts in collection?

[Photo by meddygarnet]