I got an email at work the other day about a an encouraging response to a sad situation. One of our staff members nephews has cancer and is undergoing surgery to have his arm and shoulder amputated…! Full on stuff for a young kid to go through, and on top of that his mum has recently been diagnosed with Breast Cancer. This sort of thing tends to give me perspective, and makes me think how lucky I am, even when I have a rotten cold (like I currently do!), it’s really nothing to complain about compared to what some people are going through.
I was surprised when I read this email because I’ve never received an email like this at work before, but I was encouraged to see my workplace promoting generosity like this! It’s so simple – this is really just people getting beside other people in need and offering what they can to help – no elaborate programs or charity organisations behind this – just simple human generosity! And one of the best things is that Roland is keen to support it by backing it up by matching the giving dollar for dollar!
Workplace giving is a great tool to raise funds for something you are passionate about giving to, and matching gifts further boosts this if your employer is keen to support it (the tax benefits are a good incentive for employers!). So if you have something you are passionate about supporting, perhaps you could ask your boss if it’d be ok to ask the staff to support it and if they are keen to get behind it by matching the giving dollar for dollar… here’s a couple of helpful links you can check out and show to your boss if they are interested:
- ATO Article on Workplace Giving
- Australian Charities Fund has some workplace giving programs
- Charities Aid Foundation also has programs in place to facilitate workplace giving
It’s always encouraging to see people taking action when someone is in need, even if its low-key and simple. Let’s face it, in this world there’s always going to be someone in need, and there’s stacks of ways to take action. Even though we live in an excessively greedy world, I do believe that we are by nature created to be generous, so I encourage you to unleash your generous heart, live life a little less greedy and take some action to help those in need.
LIFE LESS GREEDY 