On a regular basis I am asked about what we do; is it hard to do; has the economy had an impact upon our work and/or our fundraising ability? Are we seeing different people? Are there routinely people who “abuse” our services? Etc. etc. I think a lot about my answers prior to giving them and I think about them a lot after I leave the conversation. I do so because each and every one of the questions asked are important to me. They make me realize what people think about in regard to our work, our customers and our economic environment, particularly now.
First of all, yes, this work is very hard to do. This work is not for everyone. It is always sad for me to see people go to work in the non-profit field and although they are great people, they believe that this work is all fun and easy. They come in thinking that there is not a lot of “real” work that goes on and that it is all only the good stuff. Although working in this field, particularly at Ballard sounds like very rewarding work (and believe me it is, it is not a job to me and I love the work immensely) the reality is that it is very hard work. It is hard in many aspects, hard because you have very few people doing the majority of the work. Sadly, funders do not want to provide money for administrative costs of organizations and unfortunately, in order to be an effective business – for profit or non-profit– you need good leaders. You need leaders who can effectively run all aspects of your business and ensure that the work being completed is done so in a cost effective, productive manner. If you could imagine owning a business where you sell a product and you are told that in order to get paid, you cannot use any of the profit you make to actually run your company. That is what non profits face every day and challenges us to find good talent in a variety of ways.
Secondly, yes, absolutely the economy has an impact upon what we do and in many different ways. First and foremost our customers change. Our early education families change, their financial situations change, the number of people that we see increases drastically and the types of situations facing families change. Particularly during this economic crisis, those who have been teetering on the edge of middle class are falling into an abyss at a staggering rate. We see greater numbers of people who would never have envisioned themselves asking for help coming through the door needing assistance. In a three month period of time we experienced a 40% increase in requests for assistance. When I am asked if it is getting any better, it always surprises people to learn that there is a “lag” in our work in regard to the economy. A lag in the number of people we see needing assistance in the beginning of an economic crisis and an even bigger lag when the economy improves as it takes about a year and a half for people to get back on their feet again. In this particular instance, people have been experiencing so much for so long that I am not at all certain when we will begin to see a decline.
In the aspect of fundraising, we have been very fortunate for the past few years that our donors understand the needs that we have and understand that people really, truly need help. However, in regard to other funding, we haven’t been so fortunate. Funding gets cut at the state and/or Federal level and our funds get cut. States determine that non profits need to carry the burden so they shift the focus to non profits requesting that we provide more services without the funding to actually provide the services. Add the funding changes to the funding cuts and throw in other funding sources deciding that they need to change their objectives and their focus regarding who and what they fund and you have the “perfect storm” in the non-profit world. All of these changes although singular in nature are occurring at the same time and during a time when all non-profits are facing higher degrees of needs from those that they serve. That, however, is another aspect of non-profit work that is different from the for profit world. We are used to movement – a sort of ebb and flow if you will – in regard to how we operate. We are used to finding ways to bring together people and resources to meet the needs of others and so each day is a new challenge and tests the skills of those fortunate enough to work in the field.
As far as the question about “abusers of our services and repeat customers,” I tend to look at this issue a bit differently. First of all, I do not feel that it is my place to judge someone else’s status in life. I cannot make the call that simply due to the fact that they return that they are in fact “abusing” the system. However, even more than my own personal thoughts, my firm and fast rule is this: If we are doing our job and we are seeking understanding of those who are requesting our services, if we are truly invested in understanding what their situation is and how they came to need us, then perhaps we can help them identify why they may need our assistance more than once. If all we are is a handout, then yes, perhaps we will have repeat customers, if we are truly making a difference, meeting our mission, identifying problems and becoming part of the solution, then no, we will not have those who “abuse” the system. Besides that, I have rarely met anyone who WANTS to have to walk into a building and tell another that you cannot feed your children….that is devastating to anyone.
I guess my bottom line would be that the work is amazing, the impact is great and the day to day interactions with many different types of people mean the world to me and keep me coming back for more. Rarely do I think that one has the opportunity to be with children they love, meet new, interesting people, donors and customers and get to envision how to help make lives better. It is not for everyone but after 23 years…..it is for me….thank you Lawrence for making it a great place to do good work.
A lil’ peek at our 2nd annual Ballard B3 – blues, brews & barbecue….for more pictures check out our website, www.ballardb3.org.
A Little Smokin' Hot Blues courtesy of Josh Vowell & the Rumble
If you want to help us help others, you can visit our Ballard website, www.ballardcenter.org there is a Donate now button on the left hand side of the home page. You can also follow us on Facebook, Ballard Community Services or on twitter, BallardCS.
