October 19, 2001 UNT Inhouse publication: Don't overlook SECC charities

homepage

Don't overlook SECC charities

Nationally and locally, individuals have been very generous in their contributions to assist in the short-term and long-term recovery after the horrific events of Sept. 11. Indeed, I've directed contributions of my Guest Writer Charldean Newell own toward three stalwart organizations with long experience in disaster management.

However, I also want to urge UNT faculty and staff members to be equally generous in contributions to the State Employee Charitable Campaign. We still have many human service needs to address locally as well as nationally and internationally. We need to lessen the number of children at risk of not succeeding in school, reduce the risk of family violence, mitigate the need of seniors who require help with food or medical services, conquer debilitating diseases, feed hungry children, provide life-saving inoculations, and offer teen-agers alternatives to destructive lifestyles. We also need to ensure the long-term health of the environment.

In short, I ask the UNT community to be as generous with the SECC as it has been in response to the victims of the terrorist acts committed in New York, Pennsylvania and Washington, D.C. The many worthwhile agencies and organizations listed in the SECC brochure will not be receiving big federal dollars, and they won't be the beneficiaries of star-studded telethons, but they are worthy of our attention and need our support. Please help. It's for the good of the larger community.

Charldean Newell (cnewell@scs.cmm.unt.edu) is a Regents Professor of public administration.