An Uncomfortable Truth About Giving
Just over three years ago, MacPherson College in McPherson, Kansas made the decision to shut down its Automotive Restoration Department — bringing an end to the only four-year degreed major in that field.
This small private school, with about 875 full-time students, is located about an hour north of Wichita.
When the collector car community heard about the school’s decision, they responded with force and conviction — raising $1.5 billion for the college. 💰
1.5 Billion 🤯
The math is interesting. If that endowment generates a modest 5% annual return, that equals roughly $75 million per year — about $86,000 per student annually. And only about 25% of the students are in the Auto Restoration major.
The details can be easily found online, but I bring this up for another reason.
Here is the uncomfortable thought:
What if generosity has less to do with “need”… and more to do with identity and passion? 🤔
People Give to Causes They Can Relate To
Because we all need to eat, it is easy to feel for those who are starving. That plays out in most things related to human existence.
Most of you reading this would likely struggle to get excited about preserving the future of automotive restoration. Similarly, supporting a candidate for public office is a tough ask unless you are passionate about politics.
At a deeper level, we do not all see causes the same way. It is possible — even within the same household — to have opposing views and support different issues.
Connection matters.
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Maybe “Need” Is Not as Critical as We Thought
Musical concert campaigns like Live Aid and more recently Fire Aid have each raised over $100 million. Some have questioned whether this is driven primarily by urgency… or by star power.
Deborah and I will be attending a concert next week. I had to hold my breath when buying those tickets. 😅 It might have been slightly easier if there were a charitable beneficiary beyond the musicians and promoters — but even that would not have been the deciding factor.
In our example, the “need” may actually belong to the donor. That feels uncomfortable to say, but it is worth considering.
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Giving to Save Something Is a Powerful Request
In the case of MacPherson’s Auto Restoration Program, was there a physical crisis? Were people dying? No.
But something a well-resourced, like-minded group cared deeply about was being lost. And they did not want to lose the resources that supported their passion.
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What Is Charity Anyway?
Definition: the voluntary giving of help, typically in the form of money, to those in need.
In this example, the generosity shown may not fully fit the traditional definition of “charity,” yet it was tax-deductible and beneficial to those who will learn a craft, gain employment, develop a future, and contribute positively to others — including car collectors.
Impact does not always look like urgency. Sometimes it looks like preservation.
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Get People Talking
If social media has taught us anything, it is the power of sharing information, opinions, and convictions within connected communities.
Automotive clubs, websites, and social networks were almost certainly critical in raising this staggering amount. It is important to find ways to tap into the networks of like-minded communicators.
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The Often Overlooked Variable
Perhaps the often overlooked factor in generosity is the donor.
Many of these wealthy donors are self-made. They generated their ability to be generous through passion and persistence, and they showed up in a big way — capable and committed, as they have been throughout their lives.
There was no campaign goal.
No huge gala events.
No donor cards.
No emotional videos of crying students being forced to take accounting instead of working on old cars.
And yet — $1.5 billion.
The quote below speaks to this situation and reminds me that even when generosity is shown in extraordinary ways, we often overlook the benefit to the donor:
“People rightly say that money cannot buy happiness. But money and happiness are still related in a curious way. Happiness can be the result, not of spending more money on oneself, but rather of giving money away to others.”
— The Paradox of Generosity
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