Helping others is a family tradition
How I did it: I set aside 11% of my pay for relatives left behind in Cuba. Just like Mom used to.
November 4, 2005: 3:57 PM EST
As told to David Hochman, MONEY Magazine
NEW YORK (MONEY Magazine) - "My mother taught me you don't need to be rich to share your wealth."
"She came to the U.S. from Havana in 1961 and worked odd jobs -- as a seamstress, a tarot card reader -- but she always managed to send at least $50 and sometimes $300 a month to the family back in Cuba.
"I sometimes wondered why my sister and I weren't always getting new toys and clothes like other kids. I realized later it was because my mother was helping so many people.
"I took over the tradition in 1998, two years before my mom died. I make a good living -- $104,000 as a director of human resources for a retail company -- and I max out my 401(k). But I happily drive a 2000 Volkswagen with 100,000 miles on it.
"It doesn't make sense to buy a $200 shirt when that same $200 can feed a family of four for 12 weeks. So I get the $40 shirt and mail a case of Pepto-Bismol instead.
"I've made four trips to Cuba, and every time I've arrived loaded with shoes and candies and bags from the 99c store and returned with nothing but the shirt on my back and a few cigars.
"My 84-year-old aunt loves American apples, and when I bring them she hides them like a little girl until everyone's asleep, then savors each bite all alone. If that's not reason enough to skip my morning cup of Starbucks, I don't know what is."
http://money.cnn.com/2005/07/21/pf/how_giving_0508/index.htm
How I did it: I set aside 11% of my pay for relatives left behind in Cuba. Just like Mom used to.
November 4, 2005: 3:57 PM EST
As told to David Hochman, MONEY Magazine
NEW YORK (MONEY Magazine) - "My mother taught me you don't need to be rich to share your wealth."
"She came to the U.S. from Havana in 1961 and worked odd jobs -- as a seamstress, a tarot card reader -- but she always managed to send at least $50 and sometimes $300 a month to the family back in Cuba.
"I sometimes wondered why my sister and I weren't always getting new toys and clothes like other kids. I realized later it was because my mother was helping so many people.
"I took over the tradition in 1998, two years before my mom died. I make a good living -- $104,000 as a director of human resources for a retail company -- and I max out my 401(k). But I happily drive a 2000 Volkswagen with 100,000 miles on it.
"It doesn't make sense to buy a $200 shirt when that same $200 can feed a family of four for 12 weeks. So I get the $40 shirt and mail a case of Pepto-Bismol instead.
"I've made four trips to Cuba, and every time I've arrived loaded with shoes and candies and bags from the 99c store and returned with nothing but the shirt on my back and a few cigars.
"My 84-year-old aunt loves American apples, and when I bring them she hides them like a little girl until everyone's asleep, then savors each bite all alone. If that's not reason enough to skip my morning cup of Starbucks, I don't know what is."
http://money.cnn.com/2005/07/21/pf/how_giving_0508/index.htm
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