Sweet charity

Here in the Bay Area, our already high housing costs, coupled with inflation, are making it harder and harder for people to live, even for some who own their homes. Having seen the conditions in which some of our fellow residents live today, the phrase “there but for the grace of God go I” has taken on new relevance. In response, my wife and I have done what we can to help out, for instance by working through Rebuilding Together Peninsula to repair, repaint and replant the homes and yards of homeowners living in difficult circumstances.

For the last eight years we’ve been combating food insecurity by delivering nutritionally balanced meals to a variety of people in and around Redwood City as part of Peninsula Volunteers’ Meals on Wheels program. And in years past we’ve sorted donated food at our local Second Harvest Food Bank. Plus, we’ve made regular donations to these worthy organizations and to other similar ones that, for one reason or another, we cannot assist more directly.

Because we’re all human, we all have our own priorities. Thus, we’ll never fully agree on the best way to deploy our funds and our efforts. Fortunately, however, we don’t have to. There are a seemingly infinite number of charitable and service organizations to choose from working to meet almost every need. And if they aren’t enough — if we find a need that still isn’t being met — we can start a new one, as did two people when creating the Magical Bridge Foundation.

That foundation came into being after a Bay Area mother with two daughters, one disabled, came to realize that although there are playgrounds designed specifically for the disabled, we lack ones where people of differing ages and abilities could come together and play. That realization resulted in the creation of the Magical Bridge Playground in Palo Alto and, shortly thereafter, the creation of a foundation to create more.

When I learned that Redwood City was on track to become the home of the second Magical Bridge Playground, I paid a couple of visits to the one in Palo Alto to see it in action, did some online research, and then attended one of the in-person presentations on the Redwood City project. All of that resulted in my wife and I contributing to the project — even though our own kids were already grown and gone.

I can sympathize with those who are fed up with humanity. While I’ll point out that there remain a lot of good people who could use a helping hand, I will also note that there are plenty of worthy organizations that focus on our animal populations and on our environment instead. My wife and I discovered one such organization some 40 years ago, while exploring the Bay Area as part of our honeymoon. After crossing the Golden Gate Bridge, we came across The Marine Mammal Center, which back then was a tiny organization whose primary aim was to rehabilitate ailing seals and sea lions. We gave them $20 on that first visit, the first of many ever-increasing donations to help the center grow into what it is today: the world’s largest marine mammal teaching hospital, and a place that is “leading the field in ocean conservation through marine mammal rescue, veterinary medicine, science and education.”

Lastly, my wife and I happily support the institution that not only brought us together, but that provided me with the foundation I needed to embark on the career that today allows us assist so many worthy organizations: our alma mater, Northern Arizona University.

These days the world’s problems can feel overwhelming. And as individuals, we can only do so much. But by working with others — either directly, or by supporting an organization — we can have a surprising effect. As I can personally attest, helping others this way is not only good for them, it’s good for me too; suddenly the world’s problems don’t seem nearly so insurmountable.

Greg Wilson is the creator of Walking Redwood City, a blog inspired by his walks throughout Redwood City and adjacent communities. He can be reached at greg@walkingRedwoodCity.com. Follow Greg on Twitter @walkingRWC.