giving shouldn't make you feel dirty

after thoughtful consideration, i've decided i am no longer going to participate in my company's United Way campaign.

i signed up just as soon as i got hired because i thought it was a great way to donate to charity without having to think about it. i tell them once a year to take X number of dollars off my paycheques and bam said the lady! charitable donation and tax deduction all in one, with little to no effort on my part.

as the years have ticked past, i've always made it a point to check the little box on the form which directed my measly contribution towards the area of need i feel most connected with: seniors. i've tried to ignore all those news reports about the money such big charities waste on salaries and advertising and kept my Pollyanna belief that it wasn't my money being wasted. my money was helping elder citizens get out for a field trip or have a helping hand in their declining years.

well, it's charity season at my workplace and when the form came around for filling out, there was no little check box. suddenly, my choice of where my money went was gone and i got a little upset. i didn't like the feeling that my money was no longer ear-marked for what i believe in most. so, as of January 2010, i will no longer be donating, through automatic payroll deduction, to the United Way.

instead, i'm going to take the same amount of money each pay and have it get auto-magically sucked out of my bank account and into a TFSA at ING Direct where it will build up until, every year at this time, i will withdraw it and write a cheque to the charity(ies) of my choice. somehow, this makes me feel even better about donating and, while i know giving shouldn't be about making me feel good, i don't think it's entirely bad if it does.