The united American : a magazine of good citizenchip., October 01, 1922, Page 10, Image 10

October, 1922
THE WESTERN AMERICAN
10
Purposes of the Portland Community Chest
By Hugh H. Herdman, Executive Secretary, Portland Community Chest.
The people of this city are already fa­
miliar with the Community Chest of
Portland, its distinct public service and
its organized dispensation of public char­
ity and benevolence. By the establish­
ment of the Chest in this community,
the public has been protected against
contributing to the support and main­
tenance of illigitimate, unworthy schemes
of charity. The Community Chest is
one of the community service institu­
tions in this country of which all
good citizens can properly speak with
pride. In view of the fact that the next
chest drive for 1922-23 will soon be en­
gaging the attention of the citizens of
Portland, the Western American asked
the executive secretary of the chest to
tell the readers.of this magazine the story
of the chest. The following article is
his answer.—Editor.
PORTLAND Community Chest
T HE
was conceived with the idea of ser­
vice, and its energies have been devoted
to rendering that service to Portland.
Realizing that there rests upon every
community an obligation to promote the
charitable and philanthropic work of the
institutions which are organized for that
purpose, the men and women who in­
stituted and carried out the Chest idea
devoted their energies with this idea of
promotion in their minds. The real pur­
pose of this organization is to render
assistance in meeting and overcoming
the social problems of the community.
This purpose is carried out by assisting
the agencies in their work, in promot­
ing economy in operation, and in co-or­
dinating their programs of activity. Ly­
ing behind this purpose is the belief that
the work of these institutions is of the ut­
most importance in developing charac­
ter in individuals and in groups, in pro­
moting a higher type of citizenship, arid
in relieving material distress.
The function of the Chest includes
assistance not merely to these institu­
tions which relieve poverty and want,
but also to other institutions that are
doing the work which will so develop
both the individual and the community
life that there will be less likelihood of
the necessity for charity. In other
words, the sound doctrine that preven­
tion is of greater importance than cure,
runs through the minds of those en­
trusted with the conduct of the affairs
of the Chest. They are not content to
deal with the results of misfortune or
incompetency, but are striving to bring
about the condition where there will be
less both of misfortune and of incom­
petency.
One of the great handicaps under
which most of the institutions have pre­
viously worked is that of not having
sufficient funds with which to conduct
their work.
From month to month,
boards of directors and superintendents
were harassed with doubt and misgiv­
ings over their financial situation. Much
of their time was necessarily given to
the solicitation and collection of funds
at the expense of the work of their in­
stitution. In relieving them of this bur­
den through the one big campaign for
funds, and at the same time eliminat­
ing the repeated solicitation to which
the contributing public was subjected
under the old competitive plan for rais­
ing money, the Community Chest has
performed a distinct public service.
Only a short time ago, each agency was
a competitor of every other agency so
supported, to the consequent detriment
to its work and the unnecéssary annoy­
ance to the public. This condition has
been done away with and, to a very large
extent, misunderstanding and mistrust
which grew out of the financial compe­
tition has disappeared. The public has
come to understand more thoroughly the
work of the various institutions and
each institution has- a better compre­
hension of the work of the others.
On the financial side, mention might
properly be made of the care and super­
vision which are exercised by the offi­
cers of the Chest over the financing of
the institutions. Every effort is made
by the Budget Committee to get a com­
plete comprehension of the work of the
institutions, to try to realize their prob­
lems, to understand their hopes and as­
piration, and to meet their needs. At
the same time, their accounts are prop­
erly scrutinized; monthly financial re­
ports to the Chest are required in which
itemized statements of their receipts and
disbursements are made; and an audit
of their work is made at regular inter­
vals. Results of this have been very
helpful to the institutions themselves,
as well as to the directors of the Chest
in understanding the work and the
needs. While business has been put into
“charity,” it has been done with the
idea of rendering assistance.
While orderly business methods have
been insisted upon, great care has been
taken to avoid letting sentiment, ideal­
ism, and the unselfishness be interfered
with. Various means have been sug­
gested also, to be followed, to keep the
institutions in touch with their contrib­
utors and friends, in order that the per­
sonal contact may be maintained.
A word should be said about the good
faith of the contributors to the Chest.
Despite the fact that the Chest was
started in the early part of 1921, one of
the worst years financially that the coun­
try has seen for a long time, approxi­
mately 95 per cent of the pledges that
were made for that year have been paid.
Financial reverses, removal from the
city, unrealized expectations, and various
other minor causes have contributed to
the remarkably low percentage of pledges
which have not yet been collected.
From this a considerable amount will yet
be realized. It is expected that the rec­
ord for 1922 will show equally good re­
sults. This speaks very well for the sin­
cerity with which the contributions were
made and the fidelity with which ’these
pledges were met.
To summarize, I think it fair to say
that in the face of every great financial
difficulty, lack of understanding of the
purpose and methods of the Chest, and
the slow progress which a new idea is
expetced to make, the success of the
Portland Community Chest since its in­
auguration April, 1921, has been such as
to meet the commendation and approval
of all concerned in it,—subscribers, bene­
ficiaries, and the community in general.
More and better work has been done by
the agencies, and greater results of their
work are manifest in the life of the com­
munity than ever before. At the same
time, the public has been free from many
of the unhappy features of the former
helter-skelter method of financing these
organizations.
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