Experiencing a city like Portland doesn’t just happen by
accident. From our creative neighborhoods to our lush urban forests, we are
proud of the environment in which we live. We have some of the best music and
arts on earth. We are humane and care for one another. We ride bikes and offer random
acts of kindness to strangers. We love animals.
Portland is an ever-changing city made up of immigrants and
innovators, entrepreneurs and freaks, geeks and truth seekers — all
collectively working to make the city and the world we live in a better place.
We live in neighborhoods that connect to one another, doing the best we can to
take on some of the toughest issues that make up a great society. Many of these
issues are taken up by Portland’s robust nonprofit sector.
Is all of this enough to be content? Absolutely not. We have
miles and miles to go on a long journey to achieve real greatness and equality.
We will continue, one generation to the next, seeking justice and a better
quality of life.
Thousands upon thousands of individuals contribute in small
ways to make Portland what it is. Possibly, you work or give to a good cause
yourself. Possibly, you have a friend or family member dedicated to improving
the world around us and you support them by giving a donation to something they
work so hard towards. Maybe it’s
political, or a feeling of social responsibility.
The reasons for giving back the community are many. Hundreds
of nonprofits are doing amazing work on any number of important issues.
According to a recent report from the Oregon Community
Foundation, individual giving by Oregonians shows signs of recovery from the
recession. Oregonians, across income levels, are giving more generously than
national averages. Oregon continues to rank in the top 20 states for charitable
giving. In 2010, Multnomah County residents gave nearly $765 million to
nonprofits. That’s impressive.
If you are a longtime philanthropist, or this is the first
year you have given a donation, thank you. Your amazing efforts continue to
inspire.
If you have never given before, or are on the fence this
holiday season, we challenge you to step up to the plate this year and give a
donation to your favorite cause. Even a modest figure makes a real and concrete
difference to the city you live and the peers you admire.
Engagement and support doesn’t always mean money. It can
begin by simply paying attention to your peer network’s social media posts or
having a conversation over beers with friends about their favorite groups. You
can check out local foundations website or tune into projects like Willamette
Week Give!Guide where more than a hundred nonprofits are highlighted.
The reality is that giving is fun. It’s easy, and there’s
not a person alive who doesn’t feel good after giving a donation to a group
they are connected too. More importantly, it’s contributing to making the city
we love a better place.
This article appears in 2012-12-07.