A10

by Paul Merrigan
This Week Staff

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When is the proper time to teach your children about giving to those less fortunate? Is there an age at which your children should consider volunteering some time to local groups or to help raising money?

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Teaching your children about charity is great way to get them thinking about others.

Generally, this is a question that is answered differently in each home, based on factors such as your own personal beliefs and situations, but it is widely known that by learning about those less fortunate, children are able to appreciate their own circumstances.

Charities for many different causes are constantly looking for help, either financially or from people giving their time and once children reach school age, they are quickly lassoed into fund-raising for various school projects every couple of months, even if they're not really sure of the reasons.

In most of these cases, children are essentially bribed to perform the fund-raising by the dangled carrot of prizes for most chocolate bars sold or other rewards, rather than relying on their desire to help others.

The author Jack London wrote that "A bone to the dog is not charity. Charity is the bone shared with the dog, when you are just as hungry as the dog."

While doing things such as donating excess toys, clothes and other household items is a good practice to model to your children, it is also important to realize education is vital in raising your children to see the true value of charity.

The Salvation Army, for example, is not just a place to recycle your unwanted things or to find inexpensive games and clothes, but a vital part of communities. There are people that shop there out of need - because they have to, not because they choose to.

If your family supports any particular charities, or even when you put money in one of the many containers on the counter at grocery stores, explain to your children exactly what you are doing and what the money will go towards.

If you volunteer your time with any community organizations, educate your children about why you do it and how important volunteers are. You may actually be surprised how valuable the volunteer and charity efforts within your community are when you stop and take a look.

If your child is interested, ask them if they would like to pick a specific charity to help. If they are, help them to research the kinds of charities available to them and see what options are out there.

Maybe your child is old enough to do canvassing or help with "one off" events, where the time is condensed into a single day. At the very least, they can set aside a "Give" jar where they can put spare pennies when they feel so inclined. It may not add up to a lot, but the experience and learning involved is priceless.

* Paul Merrigan is a certified private personal counsellor and stay-at-home dad to two boys. He holds a M.Ed. in Counselling Psychology. To contact him or ask a parenting question for a future column, email paulmerrigan@hotmail.com or call 364-7401.