Northern Michigan in Focus: The Need for Giving

Even though the holidays are behind us, having the giving spirit is still important.

Corey Adkins explains in this week’s Northern Michigan in Focus.

“The need never ends,” said Elaine Keaton with the .

And it truly never does. The “giving season” is over but the need for giving is at its height.

“Sometimes the need increases because the utility bills are high. We find that most of our guests work hard but things happen: car breaks down, health issues arise, lost my job, limited hours,” explained Elaine.

This is the perfect time of year to set up your giving budget. Say you only have $15 a month to give. 

“One of the things we really like is monthly giving. For instance, our Blessings in a Backpack, for $175 you can support a student for the entire year. So what if you want to give a certain amount per month divided by 12 and that really helps with count on that money. It really helps for us to budget for our needs and our expenses,” said Elaine.

Remember some of those resolutions some of you have made? It’s not too late for one more.

“What a great resolution to have. We all need to take care of our bodies and our health, but doing something like this it’s supporting your community and that’s a great way to really get back,” explained Elaine.

From Jan. 26 to Feb. 3 the Father Fred Foundation is having its annual Frostbite Food Drive and their looking for your help.

“We’re looking for additional companies that want to be a place of business for either customers or even their employees, so if you’re interested in doing that just give us a call and will drop off a collection bin,” said Elaine.

Every penny that goes to Father Fred comes from the community, so every penny is important because you never know when giving becomes needing.

“It’s incredible how much need there really is. And even with the economy is better we have an average 70 a day. We completely rely on the generosity of the community. We do not take any state or federal funding, so everything we have is from donations so we really need people to help us. Help us help others,” explained Elaine.