Donative

“ During National Donate Life Month, we honor our Nation's organ and tissue donors and their families. Their decision to share the gift of life through America's donor programs serves as a positive example for all our citizens. ”

“ Through the "Gift of Life Donation Initiative," my Administration is working to educate our Nation about the importance of becoming a donor. During National Donate Life Month, more than 6,000 partners, including Federal agencies, State governments, private industries, unions, fraternal organizations, and associations have committed to promoting organ and tissue donation awareness. As a result, millions of Americans will learn about the many ways they can help those in need and save lives. ”

“ I remit to you, therefore, not merely a token of my approbation, but an acknowledgment of my desire to participate in your charity.
O my child, were my fortune equal to my confidence in thy benevolence, with what transport should I, through thy means, devote it to the relief of indigent virtue! yet let us not repine at the limitation of our power; for while our bounty is proportioned to our ability, the difference of the greater or less donation can weigh but little in the scale of justice. ”

“ So I want each of you to take one of these cards and go round to all your friends to see how much you can collect. It doesn't matter how trifling the amounts are, because the smallest donations will be thankfully received.
'Now I hope you will all do your very best. Ask everyone you know; do not refrain from asking people because you think that they are too poor to give a donation, but remind them that if they cannot give their thousands they can give the widow's mite. ”

“ I have often, on previous occasions, felt bound to urge, not only the evils of indiscriminate alms-giving, but the duty of withholding all such gifts as the rich have been accustomed to give to the poor. At the same time I have realised so fully how tremendous the responsibility of abstaining from such gifts is considered by the donors, that I have not thought they could act on my advice without themselves seeing that it would be merciful as well as wise to withhold such gifts. ”

“ In the beginning of my article I have referred to "donation parties," and have said that some ministers are guaranteed a certain number of dollars and a "donation" as a yearly salary. The donation party is, I believe, a strictly American institution, which originated [331] about a century ago in the very thinly settled regions of the United States among the pioneers. It is still extremely popular in country towns and farming neighbourhoods. Say that a clergyman receives eight hundred dollars a year and a "donation," or it may be that he is promised two donations. ”

“ First of all ask those who you will feel certain will give; then ask all those who you think may possibly give; and, finally, ask all those who you feel certain will not give; and you will be surprised to find that many of these last will donate abundantly.
'If your friends are very poor and unable to give a large donation at one time, a good plan would be to arrange to call upon them every Saturday afternoon with your card to collect their donations. And while you are asking others, do not forget to give what you can yourselves. ”

“ That they give a personal donation, each week, of from one to twenty-five cents, or more, according to their ability. The object of this second suggestion is to embrace those who have ability to earn, but have little or no property. The necessity and equality of the system are plead before all; yet all are left to assess their own property, and give, in the love and fear of God, according to their prosperity. Widows, the aged, and the infirm, who are in straitened circumstances, are excused. ”

“ How much more useful a charity would it be, to give the same sums to their parents to help them to raise their families, and breed up their children to spinning or hard-labour; to help them to maintain themselves, and to depend for the future upon their own hands for subsistence? ”

“ We should recognize that our greatest ambassadors for organ and tissue donation are donors, donor families and recipients. Their personal stories have motivated and inspired others, and we should take better advantage of these great resources. Taken together, these and other efforts will save the lives of countless loved ones. And we should take the opportunity to recognize and celebrate Americans who donate these gifts of life. ”

“ Never since the Orphan work has been in existence, have I asked one single human being for any help for this work; and yet, unasked for, simply in answer to prayer, from so many parts of the world, as has been stated, the donations have come in, and that very frequently at a time of the greatest need. ”

“ The pleasure of seeing them on your table, and hearing them talked about, and the donor’s name speculated upon, is often sufficient to induce a repetition of the anonymous deed, or an acknowledgment of it, which is very embarrassing, as you must either break your rule, or hurt the feelings of the donor. Of all the votive offerings made to the young and the fair, flowers are the most beautiful and most unexceptionable. ”

“ Resolved, That while sharing in the delight of our citizens in view of the valuable gift thus unexpectedly placed at their service, we congratulate them even more upon the presence among them of men whom Providence has blessed in three-fold measure—with hearts abounding in philanthropic instincts, with material resources ample for the gratification of such impulses, and with that rarer gift than either, the judgment requisite to secure for their donations the widest and most permanent range of influence. ”

“ Organ donation is one of humanity's most noble expressions of compassion and generosity. It reflects the extraordinary selflessness of the donor and gives the recipient a second chance to experience life's abundant blessings. ”

“ As I judge that we have all that is needed for the fitting up and furnishing of the house, and as there is more in hand than usual for the missionary objects, the circulation of Bibles and Tracts, and for the various Schools, and as we have only about 60l. for present use for the Orphans, towards meeting all the heavy expenses before us, I took the whole of this donation for the Orphans, as the donor has kindly left the disposal of the money entirely to me. ”

“ In ten years I will put six, a hundred, or a thousand individuals, whom we have to support now by donations, in a position not only to support themselves, but they shall be wealthy, shall ride in their carriages, have fine houses to live in, orchards to go to, flocks and herds and everything to make them comfortable. But it is not every man that can do this. ”

“ Stalinski well knew that you cannot run even a tiny temple for a handful of worshippers without vain oblations on the side to the false gods of this world, and these imply—oh, Art's desire!—a donor. And of all possible varieties of donor, that most to be desired is the absentee donor—the donor who donates as God sends rain, unseen. ”

“ Thus the first requirement for a good work is that it be commanded by God. But why was it said that a donation to an orphanage may not be a good work? Surely God commands us to take care of the widows and orphans in their affliction. ”

“ I conversed with many wealthy persons, whose sole errand was to offer part of their possessions, upon condition of relief from the malady under which they suffered. The patrimony of this church is now considerable, from the numerous donations which have been made; some of these have been advanced on credit, the donors being fully confident of repayment in the manner which they desire; others have been made, owing to the persons who gave them having been really cured;—faith has done what medicine could not do. ”

“ All come to us in answer to prayer, and are received by us as answers to prayer; and with every donation, however small, we receive thins a fresh encouragement, to continue in prayer, and have, as it were, another earnest from our Heavenly Father, that at last He not only will give larger sums, but the whole amount which is needed for the Building Fund. ”

“ Do we make donation-parties to other people whom we pay honestly for honest service? Are bakers and lawyers and tailors and doctors surprised by donation-parties? They are public confessions of our meanness. ”

“ When we remember how many offerings, numbering tens of thousands, were, like the widow's mites, very small in themselves, yet, relatively to ability, very large, it will be seen how incongruous it would have been to use the gifts, saved only by limiting even the wants of the givers, to buy for the orphans what the donors could not and would not afford for themselves. ”

“ If I were you, I would explain to my neighbours that, finding this mode of charity create more misery than it relieves, I should discontinue it in the way which appears to inflict the least hardship. I would give notice that, after the next Christmas donation, no more coals and blankets shall be given except to those aged and sickly people who at present look for them; and that no new applicants whatever shall be placed on the list, the object being to have the charity die out as soon as possible. ”

“ One donor, formerly living in Tunbridge Wells, followed a principle of giving, the reverse of the worldly way. As his own family increased, instead of decreasing his gifts, he gave, for each child given to him of God, the average cost of maintaining one orphan, until, having seven children, he was supporting seven orphans.
An anonymous giver wrote: "It was my idea that when a man had sufficient for his own wants, he ought then to supply the wants of others, and consequently I never had sufficient. ”

“ I know that God hears me, on the ground of the worthiness of the Lord Jesus, and that at last He will give me the full amount needed for accomplishing this work. How the means are to come, I know not; but I know that God is almighty, that the hearts of all are in His hands, and that, if He pleaseth to influence persons, they will send help. In this donation of 300l., received this evening, I have seen afresh, how easily God can send means. The donor, who sent it, was not even known to me by name this day month; but, on Oct. 12th, he sent me 200l. for the Orphans, and now 300l. ”

“ It has long been regarded as a wise policy in establishing endowments for charitable purposes to invest the original donations given by the generously inclined, and use only the interest upon them for the charitable purpose, and thus place the charity upon a basis sure to prolong its life of usefulness. ”

“ Other proverbial lines are quoted by Thomas Fuller, and a fresh turn is given to the thought, in his “Cambridge History.” “It is the life of a gift, to be done in the life of the giver; far better than funeral legacies, which, like Benjamin, are born by the loss of a parent. For, it is not so kindly charity, for men to give what they can keep no longer: besides, such donations are most subject to abuses.
“Silver in the living Is gold in the giving; Gold in the dying Is but silver a-flying; Gold and silver in the dead Turn too often into lead.” ”

“ Lords-day. The Lord kindly remembers us before there is absolute need. A sister who is going to leave Bristol, called on me to bid me farewell, and gave me, in parting, 1l. 10s. for the Orphans. It is remarkable, that almost every donation given within the last four months and thirteen days, since our funds have been low, has come from unexpected quarters, to make the hand of God so much the more manifest. ”

“ This donation, coming in just now, has been an exceedingly great refreshment to my spirit; for it is, at the commencement of the great increase of our expenses, in connexion with the 300 Orphans, instead of 120, like an earnest from God, that He will supply us also with means when the demands for the 300 will be more than twice as great as they are now. ”

“ To hundreds of us, large donations from just and well-meaning but unaffectionate [Pg 231] fathers have failed to waken the smallest throb of genuine gratefulness; while some mere trifle given by a loving mother—a flower from a well-remembered rose-tree, a scrap of her needlework—has filled our eyes with tears. ”

“ We are inhabitants of a part of one of the smallest of the United States, and our donations must therefore, of necessity, be more limited than those from the larger and more wealthy cities; yet such as we have, we give in the name of our dear Saviour, with our blessings and our prayers. ”

“ The year closes under the smiles of our Heavenly Father upon this work, in giving us another proof that He is indeed mindful of our need and attentive to our supplications. I received today 100l., to be used as most needed. I took of it 50l. for these objects and 50l. for the Orphans. I scarcely ever received a donation more seasonably; for there are only means enough for next week for the teachers, Bibles and tracts are needed, and I have been long waiting upon God for means for home and foreign labourers. ”

“ Perhaps the point which will strike you most, when you have learned what I have to tell you this evening of the charities of Kensington, is the circumstance that, from small sums of money left for purposes of charity, great and ever growing results may spring, fulfilling purposes of good far beyond the most sanguine anticipations in which the original donors could have ever indulged. ”

“ Becoming a donor is simple, requiring only that we complete and carry a donor card and inform our families and friends about our wish to donate. This second step is a critical one because, according to a new study issued by HHS, almost all Americans would agree to donate their loved one's tissue or organs if they knew their loved one had requested it. ”