TheBanyanTree: Charitable Donations

[Margaret R. Kramer]

It is now –14 at 7:44 am in the morning.  It’s breezy and sunny.  Just the
sort of winter day when it’s good to stay inside.  Again, we will not get
above zero today.  I think the weather people said it will be the longest
cold snap we’ve had in the last 10 years.  Oh, well, our blood has gotten a
bit thin anyway.

I got the taxes done, but not filed.  Ray looked at them and had some
questions and I have the same questions, so until they get answered, the tax
forms will stay snug on my computer.  I thought we would get a bigger refund
than we are, so in the name of greed and getting tired of sending my hard
earned money to that mindless war in Iraq, I want to question some of the
numbers before I send Uncle Sam our confidential financial information.

We can deduct our charitable donations from our taxes in order to increase
our refund.  I gathered up the letters and receipts from the various
organizations we sent money to this year.  Then I remembered a little
incident that happened at the office on Friday which kind of sours me on
donations and the motivation behind giving.

Our office of around 50 people is quite a giving office.  Here is what we
did as a group in 2006:

Raised a total of $1,248.00 for Race for the Cure.
Packaged a total of 41,904 meals for Feed My Starving Children.
Sent off 17 care packages to Iraq. In those packages were snacks, candy,
gum, footballs, Frisbees, magazines, phone cards, trial sized shampoos,
lotions, sunscreen.
Sponsored two Red Cross Blood Drives.
Through the Dakota County Adopt a Highway program, cleaned a two mile
stretch of an area highway, twice.
Every week since September, two volunteers deliver eight meals through the
Meals on Wheels program every Thursday.
Bought Christmas gifts for two families and two seniors through the Adopt a
Family and Adopt a Senior program.
Raised money for The American Cancer Society through their Daffodil Days
fund raiser.
Bought and filled 13 backpacks with school supplies for the Tools for
Success program.

So we’re giving, giving, and giving.  One of my co-worker’s passions is for
the Race for the Cure 5K walk on Mother’s Day.  I don’t do the walk, because
a gazillion people show up at Mall of America and I hate crowds.  But I give
her a check to support breast cancer research.  My mother had breast cancer,
so it is a cause near and dear to my heart.

Well, this year Cindi is going all out for this organization.  Our company
has six underground and heated parking spaces allotted based on our space
usage in the building.  Our manager gives out those spots on a monthly basis
to people who have been nominated by others for doing an outstanding and
exceptional job.  Cindi got our manager, Mike, to donate one of the spots
for the new few months for a Race for the Cure raffle.  The raffle ticket is
$5 for a chance at a spot.

We had our first drawing last Friday.  Remember my co-worker Vicki?  She’s
the office bully that I was stuck working with last year.  Well, in spite of
the fact that I think she should be fired for some of her antics, she’s
still with the company, but has been exiled to Siberia, working on a project
that is way outside of the mainstream, kind of in her own isolated world
where she belongs, because she has the social skills of a three year old and
can’t get along with anyone.

Vicki has different motivators than the rest of us.  She doesn’t want a
promotion or even more money, she wants adulation, acknowledgement, and
credit for her superior project management skills.  The monthly parking
spots are big on her list.  She will go out of her way to get nominated for
one of those spots.  Well, Mike only gives them out to the same individuals
once every four months, so he makes sure she gets one in the late summer or
fall so she can’t have one in the winter.

To complicate things, Vicki has a relationship with another co-worker, Jon,
although they deny anything is going on.  After working with her, yes, there
is more than friendship between them.   Jon is her lackey.  Think of
domestic abuse in reverse.  Jon is the typical abused wife, totally under
her domination.  She even controls when he goes to the bathroom, because
they have to go together.  I’m surprised she lets him to into the men’s room
alone.

Anyway, Vicki will nominate Jon and Jon will nominate Vicki, because they
ride into work together, so they have double the chance of getting a parking
spot.  See how that works?

Back to Race for the Cure . . . How could Vicki increase her chance of
getting a parking spot?  Well, she wrote out a check for $200, which was for
40 chances with Jon’s name on them!  Well, the winning name was drawn, four
times, and none of them was Jon’s.  All four people turned down the spot,
because they just had one.  So, finally on the fifth draw, Jon’s name was
picked.  Of course, Vicki was in seventh heaven.  Then she runs down to the
garage to put Jon’s name on the closest spot to the door!

It’s great Race for the Cure got $200, but the motivation behind it wasn’t
because of concern for breast cancer research, it was for a darn parking
spot.  Now is Vicki going to give $200 each month just to increase her
chances for a parking spot?  It will be interesting to see what happens.  By
the way, Jon and Vicki do not donate or participate in any of the office’s
charitable drives, so it’s quite obvious why this amount of money was given
at this time.

I guess even the act of giving to a good cause can be corrupted.  I wonder
if I will increase our donations just to get a bigger refund next year?  Is
that why I donate?  Would I donate at all if I didn’t get it credited to my
taxes?  Parking space or tax refund – what is the motivation?

Margaret R. Kramer
margaretkramer at comcast.net

I love thee to the depth and breadth and height my soul can reach.
~Elizabeth Barrett Browning