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Poverty rate may be only economic indicator on the rise

24 Oct 2010 - Preaching the News for Sunday

“The Lord hears the cry of the poor,” we affirm in the psalm response this Sunday. Unfortunately, the Lord is hearing from a lot more people these days. Thanks to the recession, 2009 was one of the worst years for poverty in America in more than half a century, according to data released by the U.S. Census Bureau. The total number of Americans living in poverty hit 43.6 million, and the national poverty rate rose to 14.3 percent. Many expect it to reach 15 percent this year. All told, a startling one in seven Americans are living in poverty. To make matters worse, state governments, facing a combined estimated budget shortfall of $380 billion for 2011, have begun cutting crucial services and laying off thousands of employees. Last year’s steep rate of job losses also caused millions of Americans to lose employee-provided health insurance. Nearly 17 percent of the population, more than 50 million people, has no health insurance, the highest level since the Census started collecting such data in 1987. The Lord rescues the poor from their distress, the psalmist says. Many charitable organizations serve a similar purpose. But more bad news: At a time when increasing numbers of people need some help, charitable giving has decreased sharply. Contributions to the nation’s 400 largest donor-funded nonprofits fell 11 percent in 2009, The Chronicle of Philanthropy reported this week. The drop was by far the steepest since the Chronicle began tracking those numbers 20 years ago, nearly four times as great as the next biggest annual decrease: 2.8 percent in 2001, when charities also struggled to raise money from recession-battered donors. Catholic Charities USA was one of only a few of the top 10 charities to report increased contributions last year, with a healthy 5.2 percent jump. But overall observers don’t expect charities to do much better in 2010; most fundraising directors say they’re expecting growth of only 1.4 percent this year. Source: Articles by Arthur Delaney for HuffingtonPost.com and by Noelle Barton and Holly Hall for The Chronicle of Philanthropy

poverty recession health insurance united states americans census bureau charitable giving catholic charities usa

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Charity begins close to home

19 Dec 2010 - Preaching the News for Sunday

This Sunday’s first reading announces the birth of one who shall be named "Emmanuel”--the one the gospel says “saves his people from their sins.” As we contemplate the great gift the world receives with the birth of Jesus, thoughts also turn to charitable giving. This year, observers say, much of that action is local. With budgets tight, financial advisors suggest you might get more mileage from your contribution by giving to smaller, local organizations rather than to the big, brand-name charities. Indeed, overall charitable giving is down in 2009 but signs suggest givers are still supporting local charities. When times get tough people tend to steer their giving toward groups that provide basic needs, experts say, and the groups best able to meet those needs tend to be local. The few nonprofits that saw increased contributions in 2009 by and large rely on donated goods such as clothing and food. Those aren't the sorts of things people go far to give. After seeing school budgets cut and neighbors' homes foreclosed upon, many people are also focused more on improving their own community, says Bob Ottenhoff, chief executive of GuideStar, which serves as a massive repository for information on more than 1.8 million U.S. charities. The move toward local giving may also represent a shift toward more efficient giving. Charities are often able to spend more of the money they raise on programs, says philanthropy consultant Jeffrey Cain, largely because they don't usually employ professional fundraisers or a powerful chief executive with a big salary to match. Local organizations may also be easier to vet than national groups. That means a better shot at assessing whether a group accomplishes its aims, says Tim Seiler of The Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University. Before you write a check, you could, for example, volunteer for a shift at the soup kitchen to see how it's run and how many people it serves nightly. "That visit is usually a pretty good indicator of whether you like what's going on," he says. Finally, there's an advantage to giving locally in that you can have an impact on, say, homelessness or literacy rates in your area. "It's an investment in your community," Cain says. Source: An article by Kelli B. Grant for SmartMoney

charitable giving charities nonprofit organizations bob ottenhoff jeffrey cain tim seiler

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Charitable cutbacks? Parish the thought!

25 Dec 2011 - Preaching the News for Sunday

The various Christmas liturgy readings, as well as those for its Octave a Sunday later, are filled with good news and glad tidings. The news on the charitable-giving front, however, is decidedly more mixed. While one survey suggests people in the U.S. give more to help others than the residents of any other country, another survey reveals that charitable contributions to Catholic parishes--and the charities that rely on them--have been feeling the pinch of the financial downturn. Americans give more to help others than the residents of 152 other countries, according to a survey released by the Charities Aid Foundation of about 1,000 residents in each country who were asked whether they had donated money to a charity, volunteered their time, or helped a stranger in the previous month. At the same time, contributions in the U.S. declined at more than half of Catholic parishes from 2008 through 2010, according to a survey by the Center for the Study of Church Management at Villanova University. Consequently, about 55 percent of parishes reported that they have reduced the amount of money they contribute to mission projects and charities. Other responses to falling donations included: postponed or canceled building projects or capital campaigns (53 percent of respondents); salary reductions or freezes (52 percent); delayed hiring for staff positions (30 percent); and layoffs or furloughs (22 percent). “The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it,” promises the Christmas Day reading from the Gospel of John, but as the economic gloom continues, some of the steps parishes have had to take to balance their budgets might become permanent, says Charles Zech, director of the Center for the Study of Church Management. “One of the first things they cut back on was giving to charity,” Zech said. “That might be a permanent theme, that the church looks more inward and takes care of its own needs first as opposed to benevolences and charity to outside groups.” Sources: Articles by Nicole Wallace and the editors for The Chronicle of Philanthropy

americans charitable giving charities aid foundation parishes charles zech center for the study of church management

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