CHARITIES

Charitable giving is very important to me.  When I stayed home raising my children I sometimes could not give as much as I would have liked to, so I promised myself that when I went back to work I’d give 10% of whatever I made to charity.  Then it occurred to me that since I find giving a joy, I shouldn’t keep it to myself.  Whenever I complete a reverse mortgage, my client chooses where 5% of my paycheck should go, and I send the other 5% to where I think it should go.  I can’t tell you how much fun this has been!  Through my clients I’ve been made aware of so many people working hard for the things they love – and ultimately I’ve received far more than I’ve ever given. The list gets longer all the time, and this is just a small sample of the organizations that my clients and I have been able to contribute to:

Hospice of York
South Church – Portsmouth, NH
Cocheco Valley Humane Society
Rain for the Sahel and Sahara
Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals
Boothbay Civic Association
Lincoln County Humane Association
St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital
American Cancer Society
Alzheimers Association
York Lodge of Elks

In 2006, I was very fortunate to be invited to be on the Southern Maine Agency on Aging’s Planning Committee for the 29th annual Active Aging Expo, held in Portland in May 2007.   I am also the local Corporate Sponsorship Chair for the Memory Walk for Alzheimers, the Alzheimers Associations’ largest annual fundraiser.  If you run into difficulty deciding where to send 5% of my paycheck, either one of these fine non-profits would be an excellent choice!