Sat, February 20, 2010 - 12:49:02

One Half Can Mean a Whole Lot

How many of you out there could imagine selling your house, buying one half the size, and then donating half of the profits of the sale to charity?  Well, that’s exactly what co-author of The Power of Half: One Family’s Decision to Stop Taking and Start Giving Back, Kevin Salwen, and his family did when they realized the power their little family held to make an enormous impact on the lives of others around the world.

Mr. Salwen, an entrepreneur in Atlanta Georgia tells the Wellesley Townsman that their unusual journey began after his daughter Hannah, then 14, saw man in a new luxury car drive by a homeless man on the street and remarked, “If that man there had a less nice car, that man there could have a meal.” Her insightful comment sparked the ongoing conversation around the family dinner table and eventually led them to make the most important decision of their lives: sell their multimillion dollar house and donate half of the profits to charity.

Although the Salwen’s gesture was unusually grand, Hannah, now 17, tells the Wellesley Townsman that others with less means should not be discouraged; in fact, even our smallest actions can have an enormous impact. Of course, it’s an opinion we share and a philosophy in which we believe whole-heartedly.  Even though most of us can’t afford to make such a dramatic sacrifice as selling our homes and donating massive sums of money to causes we support, that certainly doesn’t mean we can’t make a difference, every one of us, in our own ways. 

As Hannah Salwen explains, “Just do something doable. If your family watches six hours of TV a week, maybe cutting back to three to help out in a homeless shelter [is doable].”  Whether you choose to donate money, your time, or your talent, doing so in a small way can effect real change.

For example, if you’re skilled with computers, why not offer up your services to a local senior center and teach free computer basics classes to the elderly or donate a free web design to an animal shelter in need?  If you love gardening, why not organize your neighbors to create a green community spacein which you each work a few hours a week? If you want to donate money to a charity you believe in, but think you can’t afford it, why not start by emptying your pockets?  Grab an old jar and start filling it with your loose change each night.  By the end of the year, you’ll have effortlessly collected more than you might have imagined you could afford to give away.

So, remember, you don’t have to have a Bill Gates-sized bank account to make a difference.  Little by little, if we all pitch in to do our part, we can change the world.

Posted by Linda and Robin