Giving Back - Follow Up.

JACK
Last week we spoke about giving back, and I expressed my feelings about our responsibility to each other. I have a great belief in doing ‘localized’ charity, so that we can see the results of our philanthropy, as in the case of our Keep the Music Playing Program that is going to take place in Santa Barbara at the Lobero Theatre on the evening of June 12th. The beneficiaries are the SB Sansum Clinic and local pediatric services of American Cancer Society. I am looking forward to these various entities getting together for the common good and to immediate gratification. The results can actually be seen rather than writing a check for some grand causes, thousands of miles away. But now what I’d like to hear from you is, what is your take on the business of giving back?

HILLARY
Since you and I started these conversations last year, I have adopted your philosophy on giving to local charities. My fiancé and I don’t have the resources to give large amounts, but we have the ability to share what we can, and give our time. For example, we have both done Habitat work, building houses, and then, on a day-to-day basis, we have what Jews call a Tzdakah box, which is a small box in which we collect the spare change from the end of each day. When the box is full, we change the coins at the bank and give the money to a local charity. It’s usually between $40-$50 a month. This month we became aware of a young man working at the Midnight Mission who is trying to raise the funds to try out for the NBA Summer League, a dream from his life before drugs. We have seen that he has the talent and commitment; we are excited to get him closer to his goal – a very personal, direct donation.

JACK
That’s sensational. Knowing the actual persona of the people benefiting is a tremendously enriching experience. What is Habitat, what do they do?

HILLARY
Habitat for Humanity is an organization that brings together volunteers to build houses for those living in shanties or out in the open. Volunteers pay the cost of travel, and supplies, and then build a house from the ground up. Someone who has being living without a house - has one. It’s a very rewarding experience to meet people who are living 8 or 12 in one hut, and then bond with them over meals, and ultimately to hand them the keys to a house, albeit small by American standards, but 2 rooms, four walls, windows - a real home.

JACK
Is this locally or in other parts of the world?

HILLARY
It’s both. My fiancé did his Habitat work in El Salvador. I did my version, in Tecate, Mexico. But there are also groups that are doing the same work in the Katrina disaster area.

JACK
I should imagine that this gives you much more satisfaction than writing a check. I am not putting down all the people who donate great sums of money, but they themselves do not get physically involved – as far as my wife and I are concerned, we are right in it up to our elbows. We even found that in our keepthemusicplaying.org, we are not only expanding the number of shows but we are receiving applications from young entertainers who would like to participate, entertain, get experience, and just feel good about what they are doing. And, Hillary, when you boil it down this is what it’s about – how we can feel good, and how we can help the others around us feel good.

HILLARY
You know, Tecate is just a few hours away from our home, and when I came back I had a complete different perspective. I still believe that the world is a very unfair place, where people live in conditions that are very upsetting, however I felt for the first time that I could help. If I can bring a home to one group of people, that changes a whole generation. These children are growing up with a roof that I physically put over their heads. It won’t solve the problem of poverty, but it changed someone’s life for the better. I carry that with me always.

JACK
We always must be aware that we do not have the power to change the world, but we do have the ability to change the fate of individual people, and hopefully they in turn will pass it on. There is no magic bullet for the ills of the world, but you can address problems where you can truly have an effect. It beats the blazes out of wringing your hands and saying "isn’t that terrible." You are now actually performing kindness that continues to extend itself. That’s an amazing thing.

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