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| SEEKING FUNDING SOLUTIONS |
If
you think lawyers don't have heart let this story serve as an eye opener…
The
Salvation Army realized that it had never received a donation from the city's
most celebrated lawyer. So a uniformed Army’s lass volunteer paid the lawyer a
visit in his lavish office.
The
volunteer opened the meeting by saying, 'Our research reveals that even though
your annual income is over two million dollars, you don't give a penny to
charity, at least not the Salvation Army. Wouldn't you like to give something
back to your community?
The
lawyer thinks for a minute and says, 'First, did your research also show you
that my mother is dying after a long painful illness, and she has huge medical
bills that are far beyond her ability to pay?' Embarrassed, the rep mumbles,
'Uh... No, I didn't know that.'
'Second
says the lawyer, did it show that my brother, a disabled Afghanistan Veteran,
is blind and confined to a wheelchair and is unable to support his wife and six
children?’ The stricken rep begins to stammer an apology, but is cut off again.
'Third,
did your research also show you that my sister's husband died in a dreadful car
accident, leaving her penniless with a mortgage and three children, one of whom
is disabled and another that has learning disabilities requiring an array of
private tutors?' The humiliated ‘church lady’, completely beaten, says, 'I'm so
sorry. I had no idea. “
And
the lawyer says, 'So, if I didn't give any money to them, what makes you think
I'd give any to you?’
Fortunately
the cheap-skate lawyer is not typical of the average charitable giver. Charitable
giving in the US reached a new record in 2014; almost $360 billion. However,
religious giving slowed as fewer Americans claim religious affiliation and turned
their focus to a wider variety of charitable causes; “congregations shrink and
givers embrace a wider variety of charitable causes”. (USA Foundation, a
Chicago-area nonprofit)
Religious
giving has been ceding ground to other categories over the past few decades,
and that trend continued in 2014. CSM June 16, 2015
"While
the overall growth is indicative of robust philanthropy … we would be remiss to
gloss over what is happening with giving to religion,” Giving USA chairman
David King said in the report’s release.... But religious giving “is continuing
its 30-year dramatic downward slide,” Mr. King notes. Donations to religious
institutions has dropped from 53 percent
of all donations in 1987 to 32 percent in less than three decades. Unsurprisingly,
demographics have a lot to do with religion’s shrinking piece of the charity
pie. The number of Americans who don’t
have any religious affiliation grew to about 56 million last year, a nearly 7
percent increase in just 7 years. The trend is even more pronounced among
Millennial adults; those with no
religious affiliation outnumber both mainline Protestants and Catholics in that
age group.
A
similar pattern of declining charitable giving is found in in Europe as the
center of Christianity has shifted from Europe to the global South. A century
ago, 80 percent of Christians lived in North America and Europe, compared with
just 40 percent today. And today 25% of all Christians in the world is in
Africa, and the Pew Research Center (USA) estimates that will grow to 40
percent by 2030.
Christian charitable
giving in the UK
In
spite of impressive flurries of interest in matters spiritual here and there in
the UK, the downward trend in altruistic giving has continued unabated the last
20 years. In that time almost every branch of Christianity has felt the reality
of this decline. And according to a recent study Muslims will soon
outnumber Anglicans attending church in England.
The recession has
impacted evangelicals giving
Twenty-five
per cent of evangelical donors stated that their giving has been impacted by
the recession. While most evangelicals are keeping their regular giving
commitment some of them are making fewer one-off donations in response to
appeals and nearly half of them are not taking on new giving opportunities.
Today
churches and Christian charities are facing significant fund raising challenges.
Here are some of them: The
continuing decline in church attendance points to a 2015 Sunday church
attendance drop in England to below 2.5 million, just 4.7% of the population.
Lack
of attendance is likely to translate into reduced giving to support church’s
mission. New Christians who have been brought up in non-Christian homes have no
real understanding of stewardship and a very limited knowledge of Christian
charities and their work and may be reluctant (like the attorney) to donate any
moneys. And most churches and Christian charities have not developed robust
strategies to engage with new Christians and younger younger givers.
A
growing number of churches and charities are competing for a limited pool of
funds and this situation is made worse by the current recession which has
forced several Christian charities, including the SA to close their doors and
reduced their programming. At present UK SA budget re-analysis have a large
majority of lay staff wondering if they’ll soon be made redundant.
More
and more donors evaluate where and how they give – so it is becoming harder for
charities to generate increased support without insights on dynamics of giving.
The most compelling reasons for giving according to recent surveys are: trust
in a charity’s effectiveness and transparency about how the money is used,
followed by donors having some kind of first-hand experience of a charity’s
work and personal interest in the people or the area where the charity is
helping. The types of religious activities that motivate people to give are
evolving and churches and Christian charities need to understand people’s
attitudes towards mission and ministry to inspire and challenge them
effectively.
The
major cause supported by evangelical donors is Christian mission outreach, and
which is the key focus of the FSAOF mission projects.
Designated Gifts –
Targeted Projects
Some
potential donors take a very restrictive view, claiming that the SA and other
major charities are already well supported by the United Way (USA), Children in
Need (UK) and World Vision (Canada), and that individual churches should be
supported by ‘its own’ and their denominational headquarters. Sometimes though, as the FSAOF has recently
witnessed, the beneficiary is its own malefactor in impeding delivery and
receipt of urgently needed donations.
Considerable
confusion exists in the charitable supported world regarding public, private
and corporate giving and perhaps most of all as it concerns designated gifts.
In
the same way that financial analysts research to find the best possible investment
opportunities, the FSAOF, relying on the far-reaching resources and experience
of its members concerning specific SA Commands-units, investigate their unique
needs, the country’s customs and import laws, and the local physical and
financial distribution chain. There isn’t a country or command where FSAOF
members haven’t served or been in command. Consequently, we can assist outside
donors and our own member donors to create a balanced giving portfolio to best
reflect the giving interests and the change we all hope to achieve. We have the
tools they need to give ‘better’ and to ensure higher returns on their
donations, based on our own FSAOF and recipients’ evidence.
From
experience attracting donors and securing early, on-going commitments of
financial and general support is critical to start-up and expanding programs. And
these are the focus of our nine-year mission projects’ funding which have moved
us to visit and contribute funding and material donations to more than fourteen
SA centres in 7 countries. Our early focus was on the SA work in Latvia.
Subsequent to FSAOF inspection visits a delivery of 600 new winter coats for
children and adults was coordinated by the FSAOF in cooperation with the SA
Norway. Summer camps and Christmas parties were conducted for four years. The
FSAOF provided all necessary staff, including nurses and qualified-experienced
camp leaders, food, equipment, instruments, computers, AV audio/video
equipment, and more. For the last 4 years we have wired regular funding
totaling in the thousands of dollars and delivered medical and dental equipment
to a Salvationist operated free mobile dental clinic serving the Crimea Russia
region.
All
in all our mission projects have impacted directly on several thousand needy
persons, families and SA members. And FSAOF designated giving and gifts in kind
total more than $25,000.00 per annum to Eastern Europe SA centres alone. Our
activities, while not highly publicized, are well known and appreciated by IHQ,
many THQs, active Salvationists and staff especially in E Europe. Request for
FSAOF support are received almost daily and passed on for immediate action.
Regrettably our offer of support is not always welcomed. And nothing impedes or
causes disinterest by our members and other donors more than strong-handed, hard-driving
‘corporate’ bullying. Recent exchanges have caused a debilitating emotional drain
on our volunteer members. There have been (documented) instances of dishonest
bullying leaders moving in a contrived Christian culture. The leader’s demands,
duplicitous conduct and the ‘in-your-face’ self-exaggerated status of their
office have taken supremacy over any sense of ethical conduct, courtesy or
grace.
A
universal ethic respected among charities is that they are not free to use or allocate funds designated for a specific purpose or
person in a manner falling outside the strict parameters established by the
donor. Some SA commands, in order to ‘manipulate’ designated donations
obfuscate to conceal their experience, knowledge and actions. Others have been disingenuous
in their methods in working with the FSAOF and have been untruthful. (Verbatim
exchanges in our ‘private files’) Yet some take a very expansive view, asking
that the FSAOF SA assist the receiving command in designing and accomplishing
joint charitable and religious goals. The practicality we are experiencing and
the ideal team work wished for sit somewhere between these extremes.
NEXT WEEK - THERE'S A REAL PERSON TAKING IN YOUR CYBER SPACE MISSILE
Public
and private Face-Book chat message exchanges with the FSAOF the last thirty
days revealed a very unattractive characteristic of the SA’s leadership culture in some cultures. Their hard-driving ‘corporate’ bullying must cause many of
their indigenous colleagues to raise an eyebrow or two....
Sven Ljungholm
First, my qualifications: I have a doctorate in
psychology, with concentrations in human cognition (how thinking works) and
human development. I have taught at a Christian university in the S.E. United
States for just under 20 years, teaching a broad range of courses, including courses
in human development and personality. A standard part of many human development
and personality courses is a discussion of sexual development – including our
identification of ourselves as female/male and the development of sexual
orientation. I have also taught seminars in human sexuality, sexual
orientation, and child sexual abuse (and its consequences).
