By Barb Nadeau –
We have entered the holiday giving season, when everyone hopes to receive gifts and every cause and non-profit agency is hoping good will help its organization thrive, or survive.
Many senior citizens would rather reduce their holiday giving, and focus on other priorities. We can be thankful that gone are the days of standing in long lines for a chance to get a Cabbage Patch Kid. Midnight runs to Toys “R” Us? Well, we just do not have to do that anymore. We do feel the need to give, though, to our kids, to our grandkids, and to causes in the community.
From turkey dinners, and holiday gift boxes, to hats, mittens, scarves, and lap blankets, seniors often are beneficiaries of community holiday giving programs. At the same time, many seniors enjoy giving back to their communities through food drives and delivering gift baskets. It is not easy to pull up to a home and encounter a friend or colleague who answers the door. It is a sobering reminder of the fact that most Americans are only a paycheck or two away from needing support themselves. It is one reason why many of us feel it is important to participate in community events such as these and especially to notice the plight of the poor, the elderly, and the disabled.
An interesting phenomenon, though, is that many younger adults do not see the need to participate in these philanthropic causes. Some young adults want to save the turtles, which is an admirable cause. They want to save the climate; that one is a little more difficult, unfortunately. They want to save the world, but they rarely seem to relate to the plight of their more unfortunate community members.
Unfortunately, in some ways we have made life look so easy that many young adults cannot relate or empathize with seniors who have less.
In years past, grandparents lived in the family home. Children grew up learning that it was important to take care of each other. In many cultures, multigenerational homes are still common, most probably because of economic need, and many younger adults continue to stay under their parents’ roof. However, many middle class American families have sheltered their young from experiencing some of the more difficult parts of life. Many younger persons never have entered a nursing home, or ever attended a funeral. How then can we expect them to relate the needs of the extremely poor or the frail elderly?
Younger adults are learning about the world from different sources, too. They depend on social media as a major news source. If they see an image that compels them, they are more likely to endorse it or respond to a donation request.
Unfortunately, kids’ causes are cute, and seniors are somewhat wrinkled. Our challenge in the non-profit social service world is to find ways to make our story compelling, to be sure our seniors look sweet and cuddly in their needs. We hope that the message we send is compelling enough to get noticed, and ultimately that people will respond.
All of us should expect to see many compelling messages this holiday giving season, in mailings, commercials, and online urging that we click to support donation drives for many different causes.
After Black Friday, Small Business Saturday, and Cyber Monday, #GivingTuesday has become a national initiative to ask us to support our community organizations. Through the #ILGIVE program, Illinois residents can help causes in their own communities by giving online Tuesday, Nov. 27.
Well-informed older adults should be ready to share the importance of donating for senior causes to their family members and friends, and to express the importance of online giving.
If we make giving to our senior causes fun, interactive younger members of the community might just participate. Our senior activity centers, meals on wheels providers, and senior care centers are want you and your loved ones to remember them this season of giving.
Let’s help them in any way we can. Participate online in the #ILGIVE project on Giving Tuesday and share this with your friends and children. By giving to senior causes we make a real difference in the lives of the entire community.
Barb Nadeau is the External Affairs Manager for the Voluntary Action Center of DeKalb County. Barb has worked in television, radio, and print as well as in volunteer coordination and networking amongst non-profit social service agencies. She is a freelance writer and television host. Contact Barb at bvnadeau@gmail.com.