The $40 Challenge

Letter from the Publisher: The $40 Challenge

As we settle into these waning days of 2022… wow, it’s been a crazy year.
The real estate frenzy has cooled, at least somewhat. Cars are still hard to find — and so are some of the strangest things, due to the supply chain shortage. You can get an iPhone no problem. But kitchen cabinets (for example)? That’ll be six to nine months, thank you very much.

But there’s one thing that shouldn’t be in short supply. We don’t have to rely on anyone to build it for us. You don’t have to spend any gas money to go pick it up. We don’t have to wait for computer chips to make it work.

You likely guessed what I’m talking about: good will and giving.

I am so proud that the FLL team, again this year, wanted to present our Fine Giving special section, highlighting a number of impactful organizations for your consideration. All of the featured nonprofits are locally-based, and each is working diligently to make our small place in the universe a little better for all. I am always so grandly moved by the people I meet as we produce this holiday issue every year — by how they rise every single day with a strong and singular focus on doing what they can to help others.

So, I pose a challenge — to myself, to my team, and to you. Let’s make the end of this year — and all years moving forward — “the glut of giving” years. Let’s take the $5 we would have spent on an iced coffee (or hot… I’m not trying to start a fight about the best temperature for coffee here), and give it to a local cause. And sure, you could just send five bucks, but, if you are able, how about $10 a week to a different cause each month? $40 x 12 months, spread out to different causes. Imagine if just 10-percent of the folks that read this magazine did that in 2023? The results would be amazing for our community!

In fact, tell you what… I’m going to do it! If you want to keep tabs on me, send me an email at mark@markpontz.com by December 31, 2022 — and each month, I’ll email you to let you know which nonprofit I sent my funds to and why. We’ll be posting my donations on www.fllmag.com, as well.

And if you chose to join me in this year ahead of monthly donations, email me to share who you chose to send your donations to! This time next year, we’ll select a few of you to feature in the 2023 Fine Giving section, to tell our readers who you donated to and why. I am very excited to see how much of a difference we can make working together.

So there you go — let’s do this. Let’s commit to making the world a better place for all, together. I can’t wait to hear from you regarding your giving choices. And, if you see me out and about, please feel free to say hello and share your choices with me in person.

But if I seem a little on edge, please bear with me… I won’t be drinking much coffee next year.

Wishing you and yours a very happy holidays,
Mark Pontz
Publisher