POLL --- Where will your Charity be

I love polls - They are fun and help us get to know each others feelings.

I know we are all going to give and share our new wealth with others.

Where will that be for you ?

I was limited to 10 selections. I am sure there are many other places people plan to share their new wealth.



YOU MAY SELECT MORE THAN ONE

The salvation army is about the most careful with the dollars they receive. In fact, the guy who runs the thing barely receives enough to live on, where as most other orgs, like the united way, the red cross, etc, spend millions on salaries and advertising. You get the best bang for your dollar with the salvation army. I intend to give much to people directly, but through a church. It will be through a corporation set up, so they won't know who it is from.

I am such a fan or soup kitchens and homeless shelters! There are so many people here in the US who cannot put a decent meal on the table let alone have a roof over theirs heads. Pan handeling has gone nuts here in Florida. There are so many people living in the woods now. It is very sad! I want to keep the money in the USA.

Yes, I did read that 60% of the Iraqi's are poor and I pray the IQD RV will help them all. I am grateful for this windfall coming to Iraq and the US.

Come (not go) IQD RV to the USA!

MartyM wrote:Though I admit to being partial (for personal reasons), I can't imagine that anyone does not know of someone In the Millitary (Active/Veteran) that cannot use help. I hope we all remember what we owe our servicemen and woman.

You are correct MartyM, here in my home town we have veterans living on the streets here and in the woods. I am constantly taking lunch to some of these people. My husband is in law enforcement and asks me every day to be careful when I take food to them!

Thanks for your post MartyM.

MartyM wrote:Though I admit to being partial (for personal reasons), I can't imagine that anyone does not know of someone In the Millitary (Active/Veteran) that cannot use help. I hope we all remember what we owe our servicemen and woman.

I agree many of the homeless people and people who need the soup kitchens are our US verterns that have no home or job to feed themselves.

I certainly will not forget them and all they have done for our country. I am a vietnam era veteran and was fortunate enough to find a job when I got out of the service. Many were not so fortunate and are now living on the streets.

SueR wrote:

MartyM wrote:Though I admit to being partial (for personal reasons), I can't imagine that anyone does not know of someone In the Millitary (Active/Veteran) that cannot use help. I hope we all remember what we owe our servicemen and woman.

You are correct MartyM, here in my home town we have veterans living on the streets here and in the woods. I am constantly taking lunch to some of these people. My husband is in law enforcement and asks me every day to be careful when I take food to them!

Thanks for your post MartyM.

Marty is right and your intentions are good SueR, but your husband is right! You must be very careful because a very LARGE number of the homeless are there because they have gone insane on mind altering medications. That is even more true for our troops - most of those who are now homeless are there because our government has drugged them out of their minds. & these medications can make them very violent as they go into breaks from reality!

That is also why we have more deaths from suicide now than combat deaths & why so many vets are involved in murder/suicide cases. These are direct effects of these meds & the withdrawal from these meds as well. A listed side effect on antidepressants is "homicidal ideation" - that is not just homicide, but constant ruminating thoughts of killing someone/anyone & constant ruminating thoughts on methods of killing someone. I hear from the troops all the time that antidepressants were almost required as a condition of them going to Iraq because there was so much pressure put on them to take these drugs in spite of FDA warnings that antidepressants taken by someone under the age of 25 will DOUBLE their chance of suicide!!! Many more are so medicated that they are coming home & dying in their sleep y young healthy men!

This has been a holocaust among our troops & our entire nation (to get a glimpse of just the tip of this iceberg think of Columbine & school shootings that were rare before these drugs & see if a case you wondered about is on a database of these antidepressant-induced nightmares - www.ssristories.com.) I intend to do all I can to help stop these nightmares.

I also want to cover the nation with fruit trees so that people will always have a source for food. Just call me Johnny Appleseed!

Church, church, church,



In that order

Yes TRB Veterans. Also I would like to set something up where I feed familys. Buy a months supply of food for a family and have it delivered anonymously, so as not to embarass the recipient or draw any attention to myself.

I have been reading all the great suggestions, and I agree with them, but what about the American farmers and keeping them on their farms?

Yes VETERANS!!!!

Did you know that our gov will not help the VietNam vets IF they were drafted? Not for anything? Disgusting!!!

Did you know that even if enlisted in the war in Vietnam that our gov refuses to help those that THEY sprayed with agent Orange unless they can provide VISUAL proof they were there? Double Disgusting!!!!

Also I am going to pay for the rents for some of the folks that I know so they will not have to scrap by. Most of these folks are seniors and have been so mistreated by the system.

Not so sure about that ... I have a couple of clients where were there and receive full disability actually, they do fairly well. I will try to remember to ask them next time I see them though. If someone is having problems have them contact their local Legion or Vet's Club, they have contact information for advocacy groups that can help with the red tape. BTW I am a Vietnam Era Vet although never exposed.

I am friends with a man that was drafted. He can recieve no benefits for anything because he was drafted. He suffers from PTSS and was told he is on his own.

I have a tenant that enlisted. He was also a Chicago cop for decades. He is now riddled with cancer from agent orange and the VA told him he has to provide them with pictures of himself over there. Silly man forgot his camera back in the states and has no proof. Apparently the office that housed his records burnt in a fire. Now they will not help him. There were men in his plattoon that had pics but they are now deceased. Yep... died from agent orange exposure.

I am appalled at how this gov treats any vet. I am friends with a group of Harley riders and we are organizing rallies to help this man. I do not know if it will even begin to ease the costs of his chemo but I feel so bad for him and am trying to do anything to help him. I have been helping him sell his belongings so he can have the cash to recieve some treatments but it is only a small amount. He will be the first one that I try to help. Just hope I will be able to in time.

Something is not right there ... first of all, benefits are the same whether you enlisted or were drafted. Secondly according to the Va's own guidelines, they are to: "Presume that a veteran who served on active duty in the
RVN during the Vietnam Era was exposed to a herbicide agent unless there is affirmative evidence to
the contrary."

There is a lot of Agent Orange related info here: http://www.vba.va.gov/bln/21/benefits/herbicide/

Again, I would contact the local veteran's office (I assume he has already doen that,) if no joy there, contact the local veterans groups. They likely have someone who can assist, or contact info for such a person. You may also want to contact your local congress persons. You will be amazed at how they can cut through the red tape when you have a case.

Thanks Kevin for those suggestions. I also wondered but have no reason to not believe them.

Had not thought of contacting a congress person.

Great info on that link Kevin! Thanks much!

purpleskyz wrote:Thanks Kevin for those suggestions. I also wondered but have no reason to not believe them.

Had not thought of contacting a congress person.

Great info on that link Kevin! Thanks much!

As an insurance agent specializing in the retired and retirement planning I encounter a lot of Viet Nam vets. Many of them with disabilities, so I am perhaps a little more aware of what's out there than most. Hope it all works out OK for your friend ... He SHOULD be getting help. If you have trouble locating someone to talk to, let me know, my brother is a legion post commander and he may be able to get the info for the local contacts.

Good one sunnysideup, glad to hear from you for your very first post. Keep up the good work !!!!

I have a special needs child, and I have to recommend Children's Miracle Network and the Shriners Hospitals.

We could not have given her the care she has received without their help. She was never supposed to walk, and by the grace of God and the hands and financial support supplied by these two organizations, she walks, without braces, and is doing very well. Most people who meet her have no idea that she has any kind of problem.

May God bless them and You in any endeavor you participate in.

There ar some really good ideas on here! I plan on giving to many on that list. I also want to give to the organization that provides facial surgery for those children who have the severe hairlip and cleft palatte deformaties. Does anyone have info on that? ANd to continue building water wells in Peru. Our family has been doing that for years. It would just be nice to do it on a larger level.

Church, fire department and vetrans are going to be my first and then we'll see?

Indeed- Veterans, and anything that is dedicated to the feeding the hungry, and animal shelters, and children's hospitals, like the Shriners, to help children in dire need of medical services, and deformities-

Ponee wrote:There ar some really good ideas on here! I plan on giving to many on that list. I also want to give to the organization that provides facial surgery for those children who have the severe hairlip and cleft palatte deformaties. Does anyone have info on that? ANd to continue building water wells in Peru. Our family has been doing that for years. It would just be nice to do it on a larger level.

I have a brother in law who volunteers with Operation Smile ... http://www.operationsmile.org/

Wow, this thread is an oldie but goodie. It reminded me of some of our friends who haven't stopped by to visit in a very long time.
There are some great ideas for good works once we have the funds to begin. I still plan to do something with shelters for battered women and children; animal shelters and funding spay and neuter clinics; scholarships; helping veterans. I understand it's taking nearly a year after applying for veterans to receive any benefits. That is a crime, and I'd like to help with advancing them some living money in the interim. I plan to keep my eyes and my heart open to do some anonymous donations as the needs present themselves.

Oh, and I do plan to give up my "day job" ... immediately!

P.S.--Operation Smile is a fantastic organization! I've seen how that surgery can change a life. Wonderful work!

Yes they do, I have some nieces who just volunteered with someone who does dental care in Africa, but don't remember if it's the same group or not.

Good Ideas here ! Hey newbies, Do you have some thoughts?

OOOps I forgot I was in admin mode. It is the only way i can do some things on the board. Like get rid of the annoying ads.....And they are POOOOOF GONE !!! YAY! I am off to do some errands, I will return and chat with you all later! Hugs !

Whew, thanks Ponee. I was afraid "Big Sis" was watching us from Homeland Security.

I think she probably is-- we "terrorists", you know. Oops, that word will get them on here for sure.

Who cares if 'Big SIP' ,is watching, she should go pizz up a rope- She's as bad, if not worse than the rest of those commie prikks- {Feinstein- she's a Zionist, so what's that tell you}

terbo56 wrote:Who cares if 'Big SIP' ,is watching, she should go pizz up a rope- She's as bad, if not worse than the rest of those commie prikks- {Feinstein- she's a Zionist, so what's that tell you}

You scare me sometimes Terbo.......

Nah Feinstein's probably a commie just like Marx and Lenin ... Kinda ironic considering the persecution other Jews suffered at the hands of the communist party.

Like Troyboy, i checked them all.  I would love to be able to give to as many people and organizations as I could.  I already do, but I would love for it to be on a larger scale