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Five bucks and five things meme
Aug. 31st, 2005 12:17 pmI've seen a few LJ entries lamenting that they don't have cash to spare to make donations right now. People need to keep in mind that while $25 is good (and $100 is better), even $5 can help. If every adult in the US donated $5 today, that would be over $1 BILLION dollars available for immediate relief.
For folks who can't scrape together $5 today, and I know they are out there, here are some ideas.
1) Donate blood. Yes, in every disaster the Red Cross always asks for blood. There's two reasons it's needed-- first to help victims of the disaster, and second because the impacted areas aren't going to be able to run their usual blood drives for some time. Even if the collection centers still existed and had electricity and running water, their regular donors aren't going to be able to make it in. Someone has to pick up the slack.
2) Volunteer. You don't have to head to the disaster zone to make a difference. Your local Red Cross, Salvation Army and other relief organizations can use help answering phones, opening envelopes as they get donations in the mail, and filling in for the trained volunteers that they are sending south. As an example, the Red Cross is using volunteers in Denver to staff the hurricane Katrina hotlines. Call your local charity and ask what you can do to help.
3) Hold a garage sale. Sell something on ebay. Come on, surely you have something worth $5 you can part with.
4) Spread the word. Paste the message on your Livejournal, talk to friends about taking up a joint collection of spare change and sending the money in.
5) Think long term. The need isn't going to go away anytime soon. These folks need money today to pay for food, water, and shelter. And thousands of people will need the same thing tomorrow, next week, next month, and likely months from now. If you can't give money today, then make it a priority for when you do have $5 to spare. $5 is less than a movie ticket. It's 2 lattes at Starbucks. It's less than a single paperback book.
For folks who can't scrape together $5 today, and I know they are out there, here are some ideas.
1) Donate blood. Yes, in every disaster the Red Cross always asks for blood. There's two reasons it's needed-- first to help victims of the disaster, and second because the impacted areas aren't going to be able to run their usual blood drives for some time. Even if the collection centers still existed and had electricity and running water, their regular donors aren't going to be able to make it in. Someone has to pick up the slack.
2) Volunteer. You don't have to head to the disaster zone to make a difference. Your local Red Cross, Salvation Army and other relief organizations can use help answering phones, opening envelopes as they get donations in the mail, and filling in for the trained volunteers that they are sending south. As an example, the Red Cross is using volunteers in Denver to staff the hurricane Katrina hotlines. Call your local charity and ask what you can do to help.
3) Hold a garage sale. Sell something on ebay. Come on, surely you have something worth $5 you can part with.
4) Spread the word. Paste the message on your Livejournal, talk to friends about taking up a joint collection of spare change and sending the money in.
5) Think long term. The need isn't going to go away anytime soon. These folks need money today to pay for food, water, and shelter. And thousands of people will need the same thing tomorrow, next week, next month, and likely months from now. If you can't give money today, then make it a priority for when you do have $5 to spare. $5 is less than a movie ticket. It's 2 lattes at Starbucks. It's less than a single paperback book.
