Every Christmas Rev. Maurice Chase (aka Father Dollar Bill) shows up on skid row with around $15,000 to give to people in need. People will line up at 7am and wait hours for him to slowly pass out however much cash he sees fit. Sometimes $1, perhaps $20, but $100 to the first 10 people in wheelchairs to arrive. Many of the people are grateful, others do the following…

The first $100 bill he pulled from his black leather wallet went to an older man with a scraggly gray beard, worn watch cap and sweat shirt.

“Thank you, father. Merry Christmas,” the man said, smiling for a dozen television cameras.

But after Joe Roberson had wheeled out of range, he climbed out of the chair, gripped the back handles and pushed it across 5th Street.

Roberson, 63, says he’s a Vietnam veteran from Shreveport, La., and that he’s usually in the wheelchair because of his bad back. He’s lived at downtown’s Madison Hotel for nine years and said he planned to spend his $100 on canned goods and gifts for his friends at the hotel.

Oh, and blackjack. Roberson likes to play at the Commerce Casino [LATimes.com].

Yet this is no surprise to Father Dollar Bill.

People in line often tell him how they’ll spend it — on hamburgers, ice cream and other treats they can’t get at the shelters. He knows they’re as likely to spend it on booze and drugs. But he says he doesn’t care. That’s not the point. The point is to show them that they are not forgotten [LAtimes.com].

Wow. Most people give to feel better about themselves. I know that unintentionally I probably do. Out of all the “giving” that goes on around Christmas, this is probably the saddest and most honest I’ve heard of. Most people give thinking that they will change the world, this man knows he won’t, and most of it will not be used for anything productive. But he has done it for 24 years, because it may help some people, not because he makes their financial worries go away, but because they know that they have someone who cares about them. This is the best example of what “giving” is supposed to represent on Christmas and what many people seem to forget while spending their entire bank accounts on Christmas gifts.

For the full story click here.

(No Ratings Yet)

 Loading ...

Related Post

• Skid Row Santa Ripped Off but Doesn’t Care
• What Giving Can Do: Toberman Neighborhood Center