It’s hard to find the perfect gift. I was reminded recently why charitable giving is so important and may just be the perfect gift. East Texas Communities Foundation was contacted by the Plunkett family in 2020 to help them solve a difficult dilemma. Members of the family had been operating a private foundation, the T.J. and LaVerne Plunkett Foundation for 24 years. What they had discovered in that time is what Andrew Carnegie had said in his famous 1889 essay, The Gospel of Wealth, “It is more difficult to give away money intelligently than to earn it in the first place”. T.J. and LaVerne’s children were looking for a simple way to continue their family’s charitable legacy, and late in 2020, the T.J. and LaVerne Plunkett Foundation transferred the assets of their private foundation into a permanently endowed fund at East Texas Communities Foundation. The T.J. and LaVerne Plunkett Foundation is now a fund at ETCF that continues their annual giving, supporting a wide variety of charities in Rusk, Gregg and Smith Counties.
In early December, fifteen charities gathered at the Henderson Civic Center for a simple reception to receive grants for 2025 and briefly tell their stories. As each organization’s representatives shared their work and how they are changing lives in their community for the better, I could see the Apostle Paul’s words from Acts 20:35 come to life as he wrote, “In all things I have shown you that by working hard in this way we must help the weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he himself said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’” As the Plunkett’s discovered, the perfect gift is not the one you receive, but the one you give to others.
If you are looking for the perfect gift, you should seriously consider making a gift to support a local charity like one of the organizations the T.J. and LaVerne Plunkett Foundation recently supported. See if this brief summary of their recipient charities can inspire you to find the perfect gift this season. Grants were made to the Boys and Girls Club of Rusk County, to support their after school and summer programs for youth; Champions for Children, to support childcare worker training and autism testing for families; Christian Women’s Job Corp, for job skills training and adult literacy; Gold Network of East Texas, supporting families going through childhood cancer treatment; Parenting Resource Center of East Texas, providing parenting skills training (because children do not come with an instruction manual); Camp Gilmont, for their free Circle of Friends Camps for families with children who have special needs; East Texas Food Bank, for the fresh produce program providing locally sourced fresh produce to East Texas families; Rusk County Friends Helping Friends, to provide prescription medication and resources to connect patients with pharmaceutical company medication programs; Rusk-Panola Children’s Advocacy Center, supporting children who have been abused; Texas Ramp Project, building wheelchair ramps for people of all ages with mobility challenges; Texas Shakespeare Festival Foundation, providing summer theater performances and theatrical performances in local schools; The Fostering Collective, supporting permanent Heart Gallery displays in Rusk County which greatly improve adoption rates for children looking for a forever home; The King’s Storehouse Food Bank, providing food to numerous local food pantries; The Salvation Army-Longview Texas, providing household supplies for families in need; and The Evie Effect, providing suicide prevention workshops and programs. As I listened to stories from the leaders of these organizations, I made a couple of observations that might help you this giving season. First, many of these organizations have been affected by delays or reductions in government funding. Regardless of your political opinion on government funding for local charities, it is apparent that at least some of those disruptions or delays may be permanent as this administration seeks to address the $38 trillion national debt. It calls on each of us to increase our private support for local charities in areas where the government is reducing their support. It may be painful for a time, but it may also result in a more secure charity funding stream as the balance of support tilts back to private rather than government funding. My second observation was the overwhelming sense of community-connectedness. Each of these organizations plays an important role in the success and vitality of our communities. Whether it is a meal, a safe after school program, a job training program or an inspiring theatrical performance, these organizations work together with precision, like the individual musicians in a symphony, to deliver a masterpiece which is our thriving community. My hope for you this season is that you will find the perfect gift, the gift of giving to others, as your next best opportunity to Give Well.
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