No time to waste

[Nofear]

Of the $577 million pledge by governments and private organizations, the Church has only pledged $5 million to this new (and not quite tested) program. Apparently that was just enough to buy the Church a table at a UN General Assembly Meeting.

"The governments of Canada, Ireland, the Kingdom of the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom; and the Aliko Dangote Foundation, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the Children’s Investment Fund Foundation (CIFF), the Eleanor Crook Foundation, the Greta Thunberg Foundation, Humanitarian Services of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and King Philanthropies came together at the high-level event during the 77^th annual United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) to address the growing food crisis."
https://www.unicef.org/press-releases/over-half-billion-dollars-pledged-tackle-severe-wasting-july-unprecedented

https://www.unicef.org/press-releases/over-half-billion-dollars-pledged-tackle-severe-wasting-july-unprecedented

https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/church-donates-unicef-global-malnutrition-program

PS: If you have tips about how to more sarcastically present the humanitarian efforts of the Church as it might be viewed from the eyes of a nay-sayer, I'm open to suggestions. Though, just to be abundantly clear, I am quite pleased with the Church's efforts and the stewardship of the resources it has and offer no criticism of those efforts.

[Tacenda]

7 hours ago, Nofear said:

Of the $577 million pledge by governments and private organizations, the Church has only pledged $5 million to this new (and not quite tested) program. Apparently that was just enough to buy the Church a table at a UN General Assembly Meeting.

"The governments of Canada, Ireland, the Kingdom of the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom; and the Aliko Dangote Foundation, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the Children’s Investment Fund Foundation (CIFF), the Eleanor Crook Foundation, the Greta Thunberg Foundation, Humanitarian Services of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and King Philanthropies came together at the high-level event during the 77^th annual United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) to address the growing food crisis."
https://www.unicef.org/press-releases/over-half-billion-dollars-pledged-tackle-severe-wasting-july-unprecedented

https://www.unicef.org/press-releases/over-half-billion-dollars-pledged-tackle-severe-wasting-july-unprecedented

https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/church-donates-unicef-global-malnutrition-program

PS: If you have tips about how to more sarcastically present the humanitarian efforts of the Church as it might be viewed from the eyes of a nay-sayer, I'm open to suggestions. Though, just to be abundantly clear, I am quite pleased with the Church's efforts and the stewardship of the resources it has and offer no criticism of those efforts.

Rainy day hasn't come? Wait, this is serious, that's plain lame. https://www.answers.com/Q/How_much_interest_does_a_100_billion_dollars_earn_a_day

Edited September 23, 2022 by Tacenda

[Nofear]

9 hours ago, Tacenda said:

Rainy day hasn't come? Wait, this is serious, that's plain lame. https://www.answers.com/Q/How_much_interest_does_a_100_billion_dollars_earn_a_day

Really good start, Tacenda. Thank you. Anybody else have another way to spin this in a negative light? Surely we can top this.

 

[Stargazer]

12 hours ago, Tacenda said:

Rainy day hasn't come? Wait, this is serious, that's plain lame. https://www.answers.com/Q/How_much_interest_does_a_100_billion_dollars_earn_a_day

Does stock ownership pay interest? No. Maybe there are dividends, but not all stocks pay dividends. We just had a market dip and valuations tumbled. The church's portfolio may have suffered as a result. A large portion of the church's portfolio is real estate that earns nothing at all. Does real estate pay interest? You may own a house and thus you must realize that while it is a fine investment, it costs money to maintain it. Real estate wealth is non-liquid, and only becomes liquid if it is sold. The church sells very little of it, because much of the RE portfolio consists of church buildings (meetinghouses, etc) that the church will never sell. How much of the church's portfolio is in money-market interest-bearing accounts? Probably not much. These may generate interest.

[Tacenda]

13 hours ago, Nofear said:

Really good start, Tacenda. Thank you. Anybody else have another way to spin this in a negative light? Surely we can top this.

 

I'm your gal and I guess I don't understand your purpose, care to explain? Or were you trying to get a negative response for fun's sake?

[Nofear]

11 hours ago, Tacenda said:

I'm your gal and I guess I don't understand your purpose, care to explain? Or were you trying to get a negative response for fun's sake?

Was feeling ornery and sassy. That aside, it provides some insight into how others see the efforts of the Church to provide good to the world. I like understanding how others see things.

Another example you could respond to: Church's early response to Hurricane Fiona.
https://news-caribbean.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/hurricane-fiona-affects-the-islands-of-the-caribbean

[Tacenda]

1 hour ago, Nofear said:

Was feeling ornery and sassy. That aside, it provides some insight into how others see the efforts of the Church to provide good to the world. I like understanding how others see things.

Another example you could respond to: Church's early response to Hurricane Fiona.
https://news-caribbean.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/hurricane-fiona-affects-the-islands-of-the-caribbean

I absolutely appreciate every single LDS member that does everything possible for flood/hurricane/earthquake/fire and any life problem or need out there. The members are the most giving selfless people among many non members as well. The world is full of beautiful wonderful loving caring selfless people. It's the church's bank account I'm attacking. I know they need to keep money in but 5 mill is less than a days interest unless I'm totally off the mark. So it's for world hunger and yes I think there could be more spent for world hunger. We don't need the most expensive decor for the temples, sorry but we just don't. WE DON'T! And the Lord is disgusted I'll bet! There, have my sassy remark. And BTW, it's the member's donations mostly that help with the humanitarian fund. It's not the slush fund or the rainy day fund most of the time. The members rock and always have and I love the times I was able to serve especially at the homeless shelter for a year with a RS presidency I was in. The members...they are where it's at!

[Rain]

The September 2022 donations from the church I can find:

Project from this thread: 5 million

Electricity (Navajo) project - 500,000

Unicef malnutrition- 5 million (edit: hadn't read the links. This is a duplicate of the first project).

Hurricane in/near Puerto Rico - ?

New DI, welfare services in Saratoga Springs - ? (Technically not paid for in September, just opened)

$32 million to World Food Program

Cost of running Just Serve - ? (The charity I am with gets calls of people wanting to help almost daily through people finding us there).

The help the church is giving my charity financially.

The help I know the church is giving a number of refugee organizations in my city.

Those are just the ones I know/have seen.

‐--

I think it's great that the church Is giving money for environmental causes.  Those of us working with refugees are seeing signs that the refugees numbers will be increasing for environmental reasons as well as the violent reasons we already have.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited September 25, 2022 by Rain

[Calm]

13 hours ago, Tacenda said:

but 5 mill is less than a days interest unless I'm totally off the mark.

CFR please on the fund that is providing this interest to the Church.

[Tacenda]

11 hours ago, Calm said:

CFR please on the fund that is providing this interest to the Church.

No CFR needed, I pointed out that I may have been off the mark. I assumed the fund makes interest on the billions. And wondered if anyone in the finance world may know. I never stated it factually. But sorry if it came off that way. But I'll concede that I don't know for a fact. But I thought all accounts earn interest, mine does. I make a few measly dollars on my accounts. ETA: But I guess stocks run differently and have gains instead, which could be more or less depending. I guess you could call me a big dumb lug though. And thanks @Stargazer for the correction.

ETA: Not sure if this will help. But the elephant in the room is that the church could have done more and those funds could help the needy stat not later.

https://www.fox13now.com/news/local-news/fox-13-investigates-how-lds-church-investment-fund-made-6-billion-in-pandemic

 

Edited September 25, 2022 by Tacenda

[Tacenda]

Making a post because I'm a thorn in everyone's side I guess. I usually don't communicate my feelings very well and my posts come off badly. 

My biggest problem is that the church's financial arm, real estate, or the Ensign Peak account doesn't pay out for humanitarian funds that I know of. I believe I remember an apostle or general authority say that the funds for humanitarian efforts come from the members. I feel like the church's financial arms/rainy day fund could also donate too. I'm grateful that the church does funnel the donations from members to the various agencies though and am grateful for the organizing of it all. And I believe the church will do even more going forward. And thanks for the posters on this thread to open my eyes up a bit more to the good the church does! 

ETA: Forgot to include this report:

https://www.latterdaysaintcharities.org/blog/10-facts-about-latter-day-saint-charities?lang=eng

Edited September 25, 2022 by Tacenda

[Rain]

6 hours ago, Tacenda said:

No CFR needed, I pointed out that I may have been off the mark. I assumed the fund makes interest on the billions. And wondered if anyone in the finance department may know. I never stated it factually. But sorry if it came off that way. But I'll concede that I don't know for a fact. But I thought all accounts earn interest, mine does. I make a few measly dollars on my accounts. ETA: But I guess stocks run differently and have gains instead, which could be more or less depending. I guess you could call me a big dumb lug though. 

ETA: Not sure if this will help. But the elephant in the room is that the church could have done more and those funds could help the needy stat not later.

https://www.fox13now.com/news/local-news/fox-13-investigates-how-lds-church-investment-fund-made-6-billion-in-pandemic

 

I don't find you a "big dumb lug".  I find that you have a good heart.  I love that you are helping out in schools and other places. 

But I do feel frustrated that nearly every time someone mentions something good the church does financially you post why the church should do more. You ask for the church to do more, we share when it does more and you complain that it's not enough. 

I really, really want to have a positive thing between us. Giving to charity and serving others is very important to me and what I see in the church as I talk with people at many charities this is growing more and more, but also has been sort of hidden for decades.  So while I have struggle with some church things, I love what I see happening with the church in giving to others.

So I'm not going to reply anymore when you criticize the church for not giving enough. I don't feel that what I say matters to you on this subject so there is no point in me doing it more.  I just don't know how to do it and keep positive.

Edited September 25, 2022 by Rain

[Rain]

Misread the topic of this thread by skipping the links.  I thought the money was going directly to environmental concerns (which I would support), but is actually for malnutrition of children which are affected by the climate and other things.  I've edited my post above because I thought there were 2 separate donations, but one in my list was a repeat.

[CV75]

On 9/22/2022 at 4:32 PM, Nofear said:

Of the $577 million pledge by governments and private organizations, the Church has only pledged $5 million to this new (and not quite tested) program. Apparently that was just enough to buy the Church a table at a UN General Assembly Meeting.

"The governments of Canada, Ireland, the Kingdom of the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom; and the Aliko Dangote Foundation, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the Children’s Investment Fund Foundation (CIFF), the Eleanor Crook Foundation, the Greta Thunberg Foundation, Humanitarian Services of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and King Philanthropies came together at the high-level event during the 77^th annual United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) to address the growing food crisis."
https://www.unicef.org/press-releases/over-half-billion-dollars-pledged-tackle-severe-wasting-july-unprecedented

https://www.unicef.org/press-releases/over-half-billion-dollars-pledged-tackle-severe-wasting-july-unprecedented

https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/church-donates-unicef-global-malnutrition-program

PS: If you have tips about how to more sarcastically present the humanitarian efforts of the Church as it might be viewed from the eyes of a nay-sayer, I'm open to suggestions. Though, just to be abundantly clear, I am quite pleased with the Church's efforts and the stewardship of the resources it has and offer no criticism of those efforts.

Yeah, and I'm sure the luncheon buffets have one item: Atmit. And how many pounds of potential food will never be grown in the process of flying all those representatives to the meeting?

[Tacenda]

9 hours ago, Rain said:

I don't find you a "big dumb lug".  I find that you have a good heart.  I love that you are helping out in schools and other places. 

But I do feel frustrated that nearly every time someone mentions something good the church does financially you post why the church should do more. You ask for the church to do more, we share when it does more and you complain that it's not enough. 

I really, really want to have a positive thing between us. Giving to charity and serving others is very important to me and what I see in the church as I talk with people at many charities this is growing more and more, but also has been sort of hidden for decades.  So while I have struggle with some church things, I love what I see happening with the church in giving to others.

So I'm not going to reply anymore when you criticize the church for not giving enough. I don't feel that what I say matters to you on this subject so there is no point in me doing it more.  I just don't know how to do it and keep positive.

Thanks for you once again patience! 

[Kenngo1969]

22 hours ago, Rain said:

... I do feel frustrated that nearly every time someone mentions something good the church does financially you post why the church should do more. You ask for the church to do more, we share when it does more and you complain that it's not enough. ...

This.  Tacenda has a good heart.  The same, however, cannot be said of some others with whom, perhaps, she casts her lot.  For example, she may wish that the Church of Jesus Christ did a better job acknowledging some of its warts, historically speaking, while (unwittingly, most likely) she casts her lot with others who want it to set its face on fire.  She may wish that the Church of Jesus Christ spent more on humanitarian aid, while (unwittingly, most likely) she casts her lot with others who would be perfectly happy to see "the Golden Goose" die, and so on.

[Stargazer]

On 9/25/2022 at 6:08 PM, Rain said:

So I'm not going to reply anymore when you criticize the church for not giving enough. I don't feel that what I say matters to you on this subject so there is no point in me doing it more.  I just don't know how to do it and keep positive.

Sometimes I think that the only way the church could satisfy some of these Judas-esque* types (not talking about you, Tacenda!), is for the church to sell everything it has, lay off every church employee, and completely disband. Once it has given everything to "charity" (and doubtless they would be the "wrong" charities), the critics would probably still grouse and grumble. And wish they had gotten a cut.

* By "Judas-esque" I mean how Judas reacted when Mary the sister of Lazarus anointed Jesus's feet with spikenard taken from an alabaster box. "'Why wasn't this perfume sold and the money given to the poor? It was worth a year's wages.' This he said, not that he cared for the poor; but because he was a thief, and had the bag, and bare what was put therein." Do those who make such public noises about the Church's charitable work really care about the poor? Or are they just puffing themselves up to appear virtuous to others? They have their reward already.

[Tacenda]

2 hours ago, Stargazer said:

Sometimes I think that the only way the church could satisfy some of these Judas-esque* types (not talking about you, Tacenda!), is for the church to sell everything it has, lay off every church employee, and completely disband. Once it has given everything to "charity" (and doubtless they would be the "wrong" charities), the critics would probably still grouse and grumble. And wish they had gotten a cut.

* By "Judas-esque" I mean how Judas reacted when Mary the sister of Lazarus anointed Jesus's feet with spikenard taken from an alabaster box. "'Why wasn't this perfume sold and the money given to the poor? It was worth a year's wages.' This he said, not that he cared for the poor; but because he was a thief, and had the bag, and bare what was put therein." Do those who make such public noises about the Church's charitable work really care about the poor? Or are they just puffing themselves up to appear virtuous to others? They have their reward already.

I think I lack expressing my thoughts well. I really just wanted the for-profit companies and Ensign Peak to donate but maybe the church doesn't work that way. But alas, I'm like a broken record for sure!

[Tacenda]

On 9/22/2022 at 2:32 PM, Nofear said:

Of the $577 million pledge by governments and private organizations, the Church has only pledged $5 million to this new (and not quite tested) program. Apparently that was just enough to buy the Church a table at a UN General Assembly Meeting.

"The governments of Canada, Ireland, the Kingdom of the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom; and the Aliko Dangote Foundation, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the Children’s Investment Fund Foundation (CIFF), the Eleanor Crook Foundation, the Greta Thunberg Foundation, Humanitarian Services of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and King Philanthropies came together at the high-level event during the 77^th annual United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) to address the growing food crisis."
https://www.unicef.org/press-releases/over-half-billion-dollars-pledged-tackle-severe-wasting-july-unprecedented

https://www.unicef.org/press-releases/over-half-billion-dollars-pledged-tackle-severe-wasting-july-unprecedented

https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/church-donates-unicef-global-malnutrition-program

PS: If you have tips about how to more sarcastically present the humanitarian efforts of the Church as it might be viewed from the eyes of a nay-sayer, I'm open to suggestions. Though, just to be abundantly clear, I am quite pleased with the Church's efforts and the stewardship of the resources it has and offer no criticism of those efforts.

I just happen to go on LDS.org and saw this video. I may have known about it but had forgotten, it happens. But I was thrilled that this donation was made which looks fairly recent. Unless my ears are playing tricks I thought they said the love and the charity of the members made the gift possible. Again, from the members. 

https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/church-of-jesus-christ-32-million-world-food-programme

Edit to mention that Rain posted a list of the donations and had already mentioned this donation. 

Edited September 27, 2022 by Tacenda

[Bernard Gui]

On 9/23/2022 at 10:01 PM, Nofear said:

Really good start, Tacenda. Thank you. Anybody else have another way to spin this in a negative light? Surely we can top this.

 

If the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints were Christian it would know that Jesus commanded people not to brag about their charitable giving.

 

[Nofear]

This is a 2020 article but I didn't realize this (should have though). "Planning the Church’s readiness for the annual U.S. hurricane season begins months in advance. 'A group of various special area welfare specialists get together once a year,' said Lavoie, who explained that the Church’s preparedness process begins during the first quarter of each year." The Church gathers items and strategically places them ahead of time before the disaster hits. (Did this with Ukraine too.)

https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/how-the-church-organizes-before-after-disasters-provide-helping-hand

I can just imagine all the wasted stuff when disaster doesn't strike.

[Calm]

1 minute ago, Nofear said:

This is a 2020 article but I didn't realize this (should have though). "Planning the Church’s readiness for the annual U.S. hurricane season begins months in advance. 'A group of various special area welfare specialists get together once a year,' said Lavoie, who explained that the Church’s preparedness process begins during the first quarter of each year." The Church gathers items and strategically places them ahead of time before the disaster hits. (Did this with Ukraine too.)

https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/how-the-church-organizes-before-after-disasters-provide-helping-hand

I can just imagine all the wasted stuff when disaster doesn't strike.

I bet they can always find a use for the stuff since most won’t be perishable…probably all, in fact.  Just save it for the next year even.

[Nofear]

2 minutes ago, Calm said:

I bet they can always find a use for the stuff since most won’t be perishable…probably all, in fact.  Just save it for the next year even.

Surely we can do better than offer people assistance than with year old bottled water! What good are our billions upon billions if we are going to be stingy.

Edit to add clarity: the above is sassy sarcasm.

[bluebell]

4 hours ago, Bernard Gui said:

If the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints were Christian it would know that Jesus commanded people not to brag about their charitable giving.

 

This is a good one.  I've heard this complaint often.

[Tacenda]

Hopefully this is a trend that will take over, YAY!!

The native Americans have suffered far too long. Elder Uchtdorf had a wonderful message about being our brother's keeper.