ABOUT CHARITY REIMAGINED

About

“We’re helping people build better lives, not just making sure one meal is taken care of.”

Clint Schroeder

CDA/Post Falls Press

 Why Charity Reimagined?

Decades of spending hundreds of millions on well-intentioned social programs that were intended to eliminate material poverty have fallen badly short of their goals. Many of those programs resulted in the creation of dependency for generations of poor Americans at the national, state and local level.


Many different forms of charitable efforts exist to help those in need because no single organization can address the complexities of poverty—of resources, spirit or strength. These efforts often become a band aid, siloed approaches that at best assist people in coping and do not help with moving out and staying out of poverty. 


Charity Reimagined is dedicated to helping reverse the trajectory of chronic dependence created by one-way giving. We assist a growing movement in Kootenai County that is asking the question: “Why, when we know instinctively that dependency is not for the strong and healthy, have we created systems of dependency for those in need”?


Charity Reimagined works with non-profits, civic groups and ministries to broaden their approach to addressing poverty of resources, spirit or strength by implementing new and effective ways to help those who need it most.



Click here to be introduced to amazing local individuals who have discovered their potential.

“CASA was lucky enough to be named a referring partner with Christmas for All in 2019 at the inception of the Charity Reimagined change. The founding principles of the county-wide program were to instill the capacity for participants to be independent of handouts and work towards goals of personal accomplishment. The foundation of this new program breeds empowerment that becomes contagious. From this, Project Permanency was born. We believe there is no place like HOPE. We are forever grateful for our Charity Reimagined and CFA family.”

Kristen Linville Ludwig

Director of Development

North Idaho CASA

FAQs

  • What is CHARITY REIMAGINED?

    Charity Reimagined is a 501(c)3 tax exempt, non-profit created in 2018 to educate, inform, and influence faith and non-faith charitable organizations in Kootenai County to focus on development resources that will build capacity, not dependency, in the people they are serving.

    ​

    1. EDUCATION and TRAINING

    • Hosting seminars with national poverty experts
    • Providing access to training resources through True Charity Network, Lupton Center and others
    • Local presentations on complexities of poverty

     

    2. INFORM through GATHERING METRICS AND MEANINGFUL DATA

    • To better understand needs and available resources
    •  2022 launch of Charity Tracker

     

    3. INFLUENCE, through NETWORKING BENEVOLENCE EFFORTS IN KOOTENAI COUNTY


  • Why reimagine or change how we do charity?

    1.  We cannot serve the poor out of poverty.  Historical data going back to the 1960s proves that despite spending trillions to eradicate poverty, today 83% born into generational poverty never leave it.


    2. ​Well intentioned, but hurtful charity results from having a heart for the poor without a mind for the poor.  Myriad gifts and talents are lost to poverty because of built-in disincentives to leave the system. Too many living in poverty have accepted the lies that they are destined to live a meager existence.


    Inspirational stories of changed lives here

  • How do I know if I'm helping or hurting in my charity efforts?

    ​Honestly asking the question: “Would I feel good about myself if I was on the receiving end of the charity help I’m providing?” is a critical first step for evaluating our methods for helping people in need.  If our charity erodes dignity and self-worth, if it is merely helping people to cope, if it does not include the people being helped, we wind up “serving” a lot of people but seeing very little change in their long-term situations.

  • How do we help if we don’t give away free clothing and food to people in need, especially children?

    ​The question is not if resources are needed, but rather, how resources are deployed.  If children are coming to school hungry or cold because they don’t have a winter coat, we need to understand what is happening at home and provide the right resources to help the family successfully care for itself. 

  • ​Isn’t poverty too big of a problem to solve? How can we impact change?

    ​We may not be able to change government handouts, but we can change private charitable help to provide the right tools and motivation that people need to improve their lives.  At a local level we can shift our resources from sustaining chronic dependency to building individual capacity so that people living in poverty have hope and the support needed to get out and stay out of poverty.  

  • What is Charity Tracker?

    Developed in response to Hurricane Katrina, this is a community-wide communication and collaboration web-based software that collects data and measures outcomes for services that are provided to help people in need.  It is being used in several hundred communities throughout the US with over 25,000 users.

FAQs

  • What is CHARITY REIMAGINED?

    Charity Reimagined is a 501(c)3 tax exempt, non-profit created in 2018 to educate, inform, and influence faith and non-faith charitable organizations in Kootenai County to focus on development resources that will build capacity, not dependency, in the people they are serving.

    ​

    1. EDUCATION and TRAINING

    • Hosting seminars with national poverty experts
    • Providing access to training resources through True Charity Network, Lupton Center and others
    • Local presentations on complexities of poverty

     

    2. INFORM through GATHERING METRICS AND MEANINGFUL DATA

    • To better understand needs and available resources
    •  2022 launch of Charity Tracker

     

    3. INFLUENCE, through NETWORKING BENEVOLENCE EFFORTS IN KOOTENAI COUNTY


  • Why reimagine or change how we do charity?

    1.  We cannot serve the poor out of poverty.  Historical data going back to the 1960s proves that despite spending trillions to eradicate poverty, today 83% born into generational poverty never leave it.


    2. ​Well intentioned, but hurtful charity results from having a heart for the poor without a mind for the poor.  Myriad gifts and talents are lost to poverty because of built-in disincentives to leave the system. Too many living in poverty have accepted the lies that they are destined to live a meager existence.


    Inspirational stories of changed lives here

  • How do I know if I'm helping or hurting in my charity efforts?

    ​Honestly asking the question: “Would I feel good about myself if I was on the receiving end of the charity help I’m providing?” is a critical first step for evaluating our methods for helping people in need.  If our charity erodes dignity and self-worth, if it is merely helping people to cope, if it does not include the people being helped, we wind up “serving” a lot of people but seeing very little change in their long-term situations.

  • How do we help if we don’t give away free clothing and food to people in need, especially children?

    ​The question is not if resources are needed, but rather, how resources are deployed.  If children are coming to school hungry or cold because they don’t have a winter coat, we need to understand what is happening at home and provide the right resources to help the family successfully care for itself. 

  • ​Isn’t poverty too big of a problem to solve? How can we impact change?

    ​We may not be able to change government handouts, but we can change private charitable help to provide the right tools and motivation that people need to improve their lives.  At a local level we can shift our resources from sustaining chronic dependency to building individual capacity so that people living in poverty have hope and the support needed to get out and stay out of poverty.  

  • What is Charity Tracker?

    Developed in response to Hurricane Katrina, this is a community-wide communication and collaboration web-based software that collects data and measures outcomes for services that are provided to help people in need.  It is being used in several hundred communities throughout the US with over 25,000 users.

“Doing for, rather than doing with, those in need is the norm. Add to it the combination of patronizing pity and unintended superiority, and charity becomes toxic.”

Dr. Robert Lupton

“You can’t go back and change the beginning, but you can start where you are and change the ending.”

C.S. Lewis

How Does Charity Reimagined Work With Charitable Organizations?

Analysis.

Consulting directly with managers and board members to rethink methods that may not be producing the expected outcomes for the people being served.

Connections.

Making connections and improving networks among charitable groups to better coordinate resources and outcomes for those in need. The power of many exceeds the power of one.

Metrics.

Assist with establishing goals and outcomes, along with identifying metrics to continually assess whether the services provided are achieving the outcomes sought.

Training.

Provide training on how to more deeply engage with the people being served; arrange on-going training with local and national experts about changing how charity works - from unintentionally creating dependency, to promoting dignity and responsibility for the people being served.

“You can’t go back and change the beginning, but you can start where you are and change the ending.”

C.S. Lewis

“You can't come at people as if, 'You are deficient, and I am going to fix you.' It ain't going to work.”

Julia Dinsmore

The Butterfly Circus




The greater the struggle, the greater the triumphs. This 20-minute video captures the beauty of the truth that we all have God-given gifts and talents if we only stop believing lies and accept encouragement to discover our abilities. 

The Butterfly Circus


The greater the struggle, the greater the triumphs. This 20-minute video captures the beauty of the truth that we all have God-given gifts and talents if we only stop believing lies and accept encouragement to discover our abilities. 

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