SAM GETT, Publisher and Editor
Posted: Tuesday, February 2, 2010 11:09 pm

There’s a global reach to the generosity of Northfielders. People here are engaged with what’s going on beyond the limits of city, state and nation. But Northfield Area United Way Executive Director Elizabeth Schott is hoping that local citizen support of crises elsewhere doesn’t inadvertently lead to problems back home.

It’s hard to imagine a place with more need than Haiti, which suffered a devastating earthquake last month. The heart-wrenching media coverage combined with technology advances have led to a remarkable mobile fundraising initiative. Customers of participating wireless carriers sent the text message “Haiti” to 90999, which authorized a $10 donation that appears on their monthly bill. The program has raised nearly $30 million dollars so far, demonstrating the power of multiplying many modest donations.

That effect works on a smaller scale at the local level, too, Schott said. “People don’t think their $10 or $25 contribution makes a difference, but it does.” And she emphasized that, if at all possible, donors with means shouldn’t transfer those funds from one charity pot to the other. “When disaster strikes, we hope people will dig deeper,” she said. “We don’t want to create a mini-disaster in our hometown because of the response to an emergency somewhere else.”



How many local dollars are on their way to Haiti is anyone’s guess. There’s a need for every one. But there are also people in need right here and the 2009 United Way campaign is currently trailing last year’s results. As of last week, the campaign had inched its way to about 80 percent of the $500,000 goal. Last year, United Way allocation committees interviewed organizations applying for funding and the board of directors distributed most of the dollars to agencies that serve people in crisis. Donations provided food, transitional housing, support for victims of domestic violence and much more.

Schott knows the need won’t diminish in 2010. Poverty exists here, she said, it’s just much more discreet than in places like Haiti. Many of those who aren’t struggling remain skittish due to ongoing economic instability. She also worries about the impact of the recent cold snap on local residents’ heating bills; it doesn’t take much to push some families into a crisis situation.

All of which circles back to the powerful impact of combining many donations, regardless how small they may be. “If everyone in town gathered their spare change and donated it to United Way, it would make a huge difference,” she said.

Making the donation isn’t as easy as sending a text, but it certainly isn’t difficult. You can send a check in any amount to the Northfield Area United Way, P.O. Box 56, Northfield. Or you can contribute with a credit card by visiting www.northfieldareaunitedway.typepad.com and clicking the donate link.

Dollars donated to the Northfield Area United Way touch the lives of nine out of ten local people through partner agencies Your donation can help avert a crisis for one of them.



— Reach Sam Gett at 645-1112 or sgett@northfieldnews.com.