Tuesday, April 9, 2013

Gates Foundation Donation?

The other day, a person asked that I might want to seek a donation for the library from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, and I told them a little story about the numbers that the foundation asks of its recipients.

"There was a certain man and wife who were beaten and robbed and left for dead on the road to Jericho, named Bill and Melinda.  A man from UNICEF came past and said to himself, I will have no numbers to present to my supervisor to justify this expenditure should I take care of these two, so he walked past.  Then a man from World Vision came past, and he thought the same, so he walked past.  Then a Gandhian came past and said to himself, I will help these two because it will make the world more divine to help these fellow human beings from their troubles.  He took them home, never caring who they were in another life, and helped just to help.

Benevolence cannot be measured to the beneficiaries;  therefore, we shall not ask of the Gates Foundation anything."

Gene Chapman, Founder and CEO
Mahatma Gandhi Global Library and Book Exchange