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The philanthropists who solicited Ebenezer Scrooge on Christmas Eve in “A Christmas Carol” made the following pitch: “A few of us are endeavouring to raise a fund to buy the Poor some meat and drink, and means of warmth. We choose this time, because it is a time, of all others, when Want is keenly felt, and Abundance rejoices.”
Miserly Scrooge would have none of it and sent the two on their way without a farthing. Scrooge paid taxes to support public welfare programs, such as prisons, workhouses and treadmills. The treadmill was a machine where inmates continuously walked on a wheel to grind corn. “I help to support the establishments I have mentioned—they cost enough.”
However, Scrooge’s perspective changed after being haunted by the Ghosts of Christmas. In these encounters with the spirits, Scrooge saw the actual conditions of the poor and destitute of his time. His heart and checkbook then opened up!
Today, local charitable organizations provide the help many need during the holiday season. Secret Families in East Central Indiana is a great example. Muncie’s Al Holdren and his wife, Chris, founded Secret Families in December 2004, when they decided that, rather than buy Christmas presents for each other, they’d use their resources to buy presents and a tree for a needy family. The program has mushroomed under their leadership. Hundreds of needy households receive a Christmas tree, wrapped presents for their children and a $100 gift card, all worth around $550. Hundreds of volunteers support Secret Families with their time, talents and money.
At dawn on the first Saturday in December, a crew of volunteers buys gifts at a local big-box store. A second crew delivers the gifts to a nearby car dealership, and a third crew wraps the presents. Then, the fourth crew delivers the gifts to the needy families. This year, Bohanon was part of a delivery team that included fellow Rotarians. We delivered the bags of presents, the gift card and a Bible to six households. The crew and the households typically engaged in heartfelt prayer. Tidings of “comfort and joy” were exchanged.
Like Scrooge, Bohanon saw real people. None would starve or freeze without Secret Families, but the relief, gratitude and joy on the face of parents and grandparents warms the heart and opens the checkbook of the most stubborn old miser. “And so, as Tiny Tim observed, God bless Us, Every One!”•
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Bohanon and Horowitz are professors of economics at Ball State University. Send comments to ibjedit@ibj.com.
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