If…

Years ago, I clipped and saved the article below. Even then, the source was unknown. Surely by now, the numbers/percentages have changed somewhat. But I doubt that they have changed enough in a positive direction to modify the important message of the piece.

• “If… you have food in the refrigerator, clothes on your back, a roof overhead and a place to sleep, you are richer than 75% of this world.
• If… you woke up this morning with more health than illness, you are more blessed than the million who will not survive this week.
• If… you have money in the bank, in your wallet, and spare change in a dish someplace, you are among the top 8% of the world’s wealthy.
• If… you can attend a church meeting without fear of harassment, arrest, torture, or death, you are more blessed than three billion people in the world.
• If… you have never experienced the danger of battle, the loneliness of imprisonment, the agony of torture, or the pangs of starvation, you are ahead of 500 million people in the world.
• If… you hold up your head with a smile on your face and are truly thankful, you are blessed because the majority can, but most do not.
• If… you can read this message, you are more blessed than over two billion people in the world who cannot read at all.”
• The reason I kept it all these years is so that I might never lose my sense of gratitude or my sense of responsibility to those who are not nearly as blessed as I am.

While the article above has a worldwide focus, many members of our own local communities suffer from issues of poverty, ill health, lack of food/shelter, illiteracy and fear of violence. What we might consider to be the basics of living are denied to all too many.

There are many local not-for-profit organizations that are laboring on the front lines of the fight against all of these issues and more. In addition, there are organizations working toward improving the lives of us all through the arts, education, environment, healthcare, public safety, animal welfare and beyond.

If…you wish to learn more about these organizations, you can find more information on The Giving Marketplace. This is a database accessed through the website of Community Foundation of the Lowcountry. It is searchable, and gives a great depth of information.

If…you wish to encourage your favorite nonprofits that don’t appear to develop a profile there, please do so, and ask them to connect with Debbie Cahoon at the Community Foundation.

If…you wish to provide financial support to any of the organizations listed there, a Donate Now button is provided to make this easy.

If…you have more blessings than most, and want to live generously, know that Community Foundation of the Lowcountry is here to help. Questions? Call 843-681-9100 for more information.

Denise K. Spencer
President and CEO