Better pesos and sense

Are you a charitable person? Are you one of the millions of Filipinos who volunteer for altruistic endeavors? Let’s say you are part of a national donor pool that contributes to good causes every year. Do you sometimes wonder why your efforts don’t seem to make a difference?

Fifteen years ago, Robert Egger asked himself this same question as he reluctantly climbed aboard a food-service truck for a night of volunteering to help serve meals to the homeless.

He wondered why there were still people waiting in line for soup in this day and age. Where are the street counselors, the job trainers, and the support team to help these men and women get off the public roads, which a lot of people call home?

Situate the questions locally, and you, too, may wonder. Why are volunteers buying instant noodles, biscuits in large tin containers, canned sardines and cheap candies from grocery stores when first-rate restaurants and fast-food eateries are throwing away unused food every night? Why are politicians, citizens, and businesses allowing charity to become an end in itself? Why isn’t there an efficient way to solve the problem?

Egger knew that there are more efficient ways. In 1989, he started the D.C. Central Kitchen by collecting unused food from local restaurants, caterers, and hotels and bringing it back to a central location where hot, nutritious meals were prepared and distributed to partner groups around the metropolis. Since then, the D.C. Central Kitchen has become one of the most respected and emulated non-profit organizations in the world, producing and distributing more than 4,000 meals a day. Its highly successful 12-week job-training program equips former homeless transients and drug addicts with culinary and life skills to gain employment in the restaurant business.

In his book Begging for Change, Egger vividly tells his story and reveals the utter lack of reason, misuse, and incompetence he faced during his years in the non-profit sector, and cries for change from the inside out in this billion-dollar industry. With amusement and uniqueness he mixes and matches tales from his days in music — his encounters with legends such as Sarah Vaughan, his understanding of what he calls the hunger movement and his non-paying stint with a beleaguered volunteer organization.

Innovativeness and results-orientation are what Egger believes non-profits should have. He pushes for a more focused and responsible leadership as he urges people who contribute their time and money to be smarter and more demanding of non-profits and what they offer in return. Egger’s appeal to common sense resonates with readers who are tired of hearing the same fundraising appeals and pity-driven calls to action. Instead of asking about the “who” and “what” of giving, he pushes for the “how” and “why.” To him this will move non-profits beyond the 19th-century concept of charity, and usher in a 21st-century model of change and reform.

One of Egger’s main observations is that there are far too many non-profits offering duplicate services, with probably 25 percent operating unnecessarily. And if you are one of those individuals who have dedicated your life to doing non-profit work, here are some of Egger’s thoughts for your consideration:

• Look at what you do. Are you a 19th-century charity or a 21st-century community corporation?

• Submit real, workable plans to targeted funders. Your public has had enough of pity and platitudes. The Filipino people want an honest-to-goodness plan.

• The era of talk is over. Say what you’ll do and do what you say. As John Gardner said, it’s better to be an excellent plumber than a bad philosopher.

• Nirvana was a great brand, but it’s a terrible non-profit mission statement. Pie-in-the-sky visions need to be replaced with ground-level goals.

• Everybody and everything can and will be. Always be open to opportunities to push further and go faster and bring as many supporters as possible.

• Credibility isn’t tied to money. It doesn’t matter how much money you raise. It’s how much money makes something happen for your constituents.

• Be committed to mentoring and training. Younger generations of advocates and volunteers need it.

• Don’t participate in mediocrity. Be an aggressive builder in your community. Make sure every partnership, every policy and every plan has teeth.

• Make sure volunteers and donors see how their contributions help. Show them tangible links with other efforts.

• Be aware of the language you use. Are you elevating the dialogue about what you do and whom you serve, or are you relying on outdated images or desperate calls for help to keep the funds coming in?

• Changing the world isn’t a nine-to-five business. Volunteers, clients and funders need programs that operate with their needs in mind.

E-mail bongo@vasia.com or bong_osorio@abs-cbn.com for comments, questions and suggestions. Thank you for communicating.