Give… But Smartly!
This is the smart era – there’s smart phones, smart TVs, smart everything these days, except of course for smart people. Maybe this is the downside of modern technology – it robs us, bit by bit, of our self-reliance, in the name of convenience. It started a few decades ago, with the remote-control breakthrough, when we no longer needed to get up and go to the TV to manually increase or decrease the volume or flip channels. It was all at the click of our fingers.
And as technology progressed (?), we were introduced to computers and super computers and pagers and cell phones and innumerable gizmos… we didn’t need to remember phone numbers or messages or math tables or anniversaries and birthdays anymore. It wouldn’t be amiss to say that smart technology has had an inversely proportional impact on us – the smarter the tech, the less smart we get!
But I digress… what I really wish to convey through this editorial today is that we need to up our smarts when it comes to giving, in the name of donations or charity. Over the past few years, an increasing number of community members have written in about being fooled with false appeals and requests, by none other than some of our own community members, asking for funds, usually by faking their own illness or that of family members and friends. This is also one of the reasons that Parsi Times does not publish appeals for donations unless thoroughly vetted, or unless we get these from extremely reliable sources like WZO Trust Funds, WAPIZ, ZTFI (Zoroastrian Trust Funds of India), WFA or AWARE (the latter two being NGOs for street animals) – all fabulous institutions which have made more than a difference in the lives of humans and animals.
What is more unfortunate than the fact that your generosity was taken advantage of by underserving rogues, is that genuine people in need of your support, were denied your he much needed support. To top even that, you have now probably been pushed away from philanthropy because you feel no one is to be really trusted. But here’s a better alternative – if you’re kind-hearted enough to help another, put in just a little extra effort to verify the authenticity of the appeal.
Make a couple of calls to relevant people (or if you have the time, visit personally) who can validate the reality of the situation. Check the banking details to ensure the money is being deposited in the right account. Or else, simply connect with known philanthropic organisations, like those above, and depending on the kind of charity your heart resonates with, make that most-needed donation to help the ill-fated.
So, give by all means, but give smartly to ensure that your generosity reaches its intended recipients. And what better time than now to give to those less privileged than us! Just be smart about it – like those gizmos we are so addicted to! It is, after all, the season of giving… smartly!
Have a good weekend!
– Anahita
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