Cheap Houses — Paying It Forward
From a Childhood of Poverty to Helping the Next Generation
Not the kind of poor where you have to postpone buying something you want. I'm talking about the kind of poverty where families struggle to put food on the table, buy clothes for their children, or afford the basic necessities most people take for granted.
That's the world I grew up in, and it's a big part of the story I tell in my recently published memoir, Cheap Houses.
But now I'd like that story to accomplish something more than simply telling people about my past.
I'd like to use it to help change someone else's future.
Remembering Those Who Helped Us
When I was growing up in rural Alabama, my family didn't have much. We struggled financially, and there were times when we needed help.
One place where we found that help was Elm Grove, a very small rural church that I talk about in Cheap Houses.
It wasn't some big, fancy church with a huge congregation and a multimillion-dollar budget. It was a little country church where people cared about their neighbors.
And when my family was struggling, those people helped us.
That was many years ago, but I've never forgotten it.
Looking back over my life, I realize that sometimes the smallest acts of kindness can make the biggest difference. When you're struggling to get by, a little help can mean more than the person giving it will ever know.
I've been fortunate enough to have a life that turned out much differently than the one I experienced as a child.
Now, at 70 years old, I've written a book about those experiences, and I find myself thinking about the people who helped my family along the way.
Maybe it's time I returned the favor.
Introducing Cheap Houses — Paying It Forward
I've decided that I want to use the royalties I receive from Cheap Houses to help people who are struggling with poverty.
My goal is simple.
Sell more books so I can help more people.
And I've established a goal for how I want those royalties to be used.
75% of my book royalties will be donated to charitable organizations, including Elm Grove and organizations such as Feed the Children and Homeless Veterans.
The remaining 25% will be reserved for personally helping people in need.
Now, you might be wondering something.
Why 75%? Why Not 100%?
Actually, my goal is to use 100% of those royalties to help others.
The difference is how the money will be distributed.
I want 75% to go through established churches and charitable organizations that provide assistance to people living in poverty.
But I also want to keep 25% available so I can personally help someone who needs assistance.
Because sometimes you don't need an organization, a committee, or a complicated application process to recognize that someone needs help.
Sometimes you simply see a person struggling and have an opportunity to do something about it.
And sometimes that person needs help today, not weeks or months from now.
I want to be able to provide that help when I can.
Of course, royalties are taxable income, and there are expenses associated with publishing and promoting a book. My intention is to fund this commitment from the royalties available after those necessary obligations are accounted for.
The important point is that my goal isn't to keep 25% for myself. It's to personally distribute that money to people who need assistance.
In other words, whether the money goes through an organization or directly into the hands of someone who needs help, the objective remains the same.
Use the proceeds from Cheap Houses to help people struggling with poverty.
Giving Back to Elm Grove
One of the first places I want to begin is Elm Grove, that same little church that helped my family when I was growing up.
My intention is to contribute toward helping children from financially struggling families in the surrounding communities of Northern Alabama, including Fayette and Walker counties.
I'm talking about practical things. School supplies, shoes, clothing, food, and other necessities that some families simply cannot afford.
I know firsthand what it's like to grow up without things that other children take for granted.
And I know what a difference a little help can make.
If the royalties from my book can help provide a child with a new pair of shoes, school supplies, or a few decent meals, that's something worth doing.
I also intend to support charitable organizations such as Feed the Children, which work to provide food and other essential assistance to children and families facing hardship.
I can't go back and change my childhood, but perhaps I can make childhood a little easier for someone else.
And there's something especially meaningful about helping children through Elm Grove.
That little church helped a poor boy many years ago. Now that boy has grown old and wants to help the next generation of children.
Life has an interesting way of coming full circle.
Poverty Doesn't Stop at the American Border
As many of my readers know, I now live in the Philippines.
Living here has given me another perspective on poverty.
There are hardworking families who struggle every day to provide the basic necessities for their children. There are elderly people who have little financial support, and children whose opportunities are limited simply because their families don't have the money.
And when I say these people work hard, I mean they work hard in the scorching heat and then go home to a shack with no air conditioning and many don't even have a fan because they can't afford the cost of electricity.
Let me put things into perspective for my American readers.
Imagine working eight hours a day and earning just ₱700, or roughly $12.
That's less than $1.50 an hour.
Work six days a week, and you've earned approximately $70 before expenses.
From that money, you somehow have to pay for housing, electricity, transportation, food, clothing, and everything else your family needs.
And if someone gets sick?
Well, that's another problem entirely.
And here's something else that might surprise you.
That ₱700 daily wage is actually more than the minimum wage in many parts of the Philippines.
In Central Luzon, where I live, daily minimum wages are generally around ₱515 to ₱600, depending on the type of employment.
Even in Metro Manila, where wages are among the highest in the country, minimum daily pay is around ₱718 to ₱755.
And if you're fortunate enough to have an in-demand skill, you might earn around $17 a day, although skilled workers' earnings vary considerably.
Think about that for a moment.
You can work hard, show up every day, do everything you're supposed to do, and still struggle to put food on the table.
These aren't necessarily people who don't want to work. Many are people who work every day and still can't escape poverty.
It's heartbreaking to see people struggling when sometimes a relatively small amount of money could make a meaningful difference in their lives.
I also recognize that not everyone who needs help receives it from government programs, churches, or charitable organizations.
Sometimes people simply fall through the cracks.
That's why I want this initiative to extend beyond the United States.
And it's also why I want to reserve part of my book royalties for personally helping people in need.
I've Already Started Paying It Forward in the Philippines
Although I'm just now announcing this initiative for Cheap Houses, helping people directly is something I've already begun doing here in the Philippines.
And I want to share a few examples.
Not because I'm looking for recognition or a pat on the back, but because I want readers to understand what even a relatively small amount of money can mean to someone who is struggling.
A Woman Who Couldn't Afford to Bury Her Mother
Imagine losing your mother and then facing the additional heartbreak of not having enough money to give her a proper burial.
That's exactly the situation one woman faced here in the Philippines.
I was able to help by paying the funeral expenses so she could bury her mother.
Losing a parent is difficult enough without having to worry about how you're going to pay for the funeral.
Sometimes helping someone isn't about changing their future. It's about making one of the worst days of their life a little less painful.
A Single Mother Whose Son Broke His Collarbone
Another situation involved a single mother whose young son had broken his collarbone.
The boy needed medical attention, but his mother didn't have the money to take him to a doctor.
Think about that.
Your child is injured, you know he needs medical care, and the only thing standing between him and seeing a doctor is money.
I helped with the expense so the boy could receive medical attention.
For many Americans, a visit to the doctor is something we take for granted, even if we complain about the cost.
For some families here, the cost can mean choosing between medical care and putting food on the table.
No parent should have to face that kind of decision.
An Elderly Filipino Who Needed Diabetes Medication
I also encountered an elderly Filipino who needed medication for his diabetes but had no money to purchase it.
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