"There is no such thing as a self-made man. You will reach your goals only with the help of others."-George Shinn
Benefactor (definition): : 1.) One that confers a benefit ; especially: one that makes a gift or bequest (Merriam-Webster Dictionary Online); 2.) A person who gives some form of help to benefit a person, group or organization (the beneficiary,) often gifting a monetary contribution in the form of an endowment to help a cause (Wikipedia).
PLOT: The other night I had a dream. In this dream, I put out an advertisement in Craig's list and in newspapers for a benefactor. In response, an anonymous (and presumably wealthy) donor paid off my student loan debt and even offered me some money to fund my writing. Alas, in the conscious world, daytime internet searches for benefactors only yield sugardaddy sites. However, I am not ready to let go of this dream in principle. Not quite yet, anyway.
As a student of literature, I am very familiar with the concept of a benefactor. How else could a heroine such as Jane Erye otherwise be lifted out of her former squalor? And yet, the concept of benefactoring is not as old and obsolete as its framing in classic literature would suggest. When Jane Goodall discovered that the great apes in fact used tools and formed social bonds like humans, thus rocking the scientific community, she was on an expedition to Africa funded by her benefactor. In fact, the backbone of trickle-down economic theory, and its close cousin, Reaganomics, was founded on the concept of the wealthy giving back to the less affluent through charity and sponsorship. This was in order to circulate wealth for the benefit of all. Of course, theory doesn't usually translate to the real world. For the most part, wealth has continued to concentrate at the top, and the rift between the rich and the not-so-rich is ever-widening. The bitter irony is that many of the wealthy have become so through the sweat of the less affluent. Since the government and corporate America are set on bailing each other out, but not those of us on Main Street, and the cards are stacked more so than ever against those who weren't born suckling silver spoons, I thought I would go at this grassroots. It's time we all bailed out each other, and set up a more communally-based society.
ABOUT ME: I was born and raised in an inner-city neighborhood in Brooklyn. I grew up in a tenement-type building, in a two bedroom apartment shared with my mother, brother, maternal grandparents (all of whom are still there and all in failing health) and at other points, my uncle and first cousin. We were always very poor. I did everything someone in my situation is told to do (but often is very hard), such as stayed away from drugs, gangs, studied hard and got good grades. I was the first and only person in my family to go to college (my father and grandparents did not make it past early high school). As an undergraduate I consistently worked at least two part-time jobs to pay my way when grants and scholarships fell short. Even so, complications in my own health and within my family's eventually forced me to take out student loans. Study after study has concluded that my generation (Generation Y) and the Millenials have less economic safeties and are enjoying less of the American Dream than any of our predecessors since the Great Depression:
Consider this: College costs rose by more than 50% between 1990 and 2005 (at more than twice the rate of inflation), whereas federal grant aid has stagnated and still only offers a measley $4,000-$5,000/yr. Most interest rates on college loans are now higher than they have ever been (between 7-8% in many cases). And yet, my generation and those that are following have more pressure to attain advanced degrees to remain competitive in the workforce.
I am now in graduate school for natural resources and environmental policy on a full assistantship, but still need to take out loans to supplement some of my basic living expenses that it does not cover. I start paying back my debt in August, and though I plan to work full-time and make monthly payments of several hundred dollars, this will still render me debt-riddled until retirement age without outside assistance. Despite my perpetually-strapped budget and schedule, I still volunteer spare time when I can to several local charities and am extremely active on a number of social and political issues. I still offer spare change to street performers, animal shelter donation cans, and the hands of homeless people. I am a relentless recycler and environmentalist, and hardly ever buy anything new or throw anything away. I believe in karma, collaborative living and a cooperative, conservation-based economy. As such, I am seeking benefactors of all colors, shapes, sizes, genders, faiths, and sexual orientations to assist me in promoting my writing and paying back some of my student debt (so that I can concentrate on my writing and advocacy endeavors).
I am a member of the National Writer's Union, the Society of Environmental Journalists, the National Association of Science Writers, as well as the Environmental Communication Network and the Fund for Women Artists. I have had articles published in E Magazine, Z Magazine, Vermont Woman, Washington Woman, Agriview and Country Folks; my poems have been featured in upstreet, Gin Bender, and 12th Planet. You can Google my name, "Laura Kiesel," or visit my other website, www.laurakiesel.com for more info on me and clips of my work, as well as visit my political blog at http://www.etalkinghead.com/author/56/.
As my main source of freelance work, print journalism has been hit especially hard and not only by the current economic crisis. Widespread availability of free news content on the Internet has undercut the market for periodicals. As a result, tens of thousands of journalists have lost their jobs and dozens of newspapers have been closed down in the past year. See these links for more information:
The fourth estate is a critical component of maintaining a healthy democracy. It cannot survive if its workers are being relinquished in droves or expected to work for free or pittance wages. Journalists often risk reputations, jobs, freedoms and even their lives, to keep governments, industry and individuals honest. We deserve living wages.
To clarify, I am not just pulling a "brother can you spare a dime?" line. I am not asking for blind charity. In the old days, artists and writers often made their names when a benefactor took an avid interest in, and so sponsored, their work. Should this site somehow catch the eye of a wealthy individual who cares about the environment, cherishes the fourth estate and adores poetry or other forms of creative writing, who would be willing to invest in my work, or me, I would welcome him or her with open arms. Otherwise, as I said, I am beginning to think the best thing to do would be to seek a collective of benefactors and fiscal sponsors, common folk like myself who might like or respect my work and help me nurture it through investments.
Once at this site, enter my e-mail address (indicated in the top left-hand corner of this page), Click on "Personal" option on the bottom right and check "Gift" for payment type. If you would like to contact me about purchasing my poetry zine, or are interested in becoming a long-term fiscal sponsor (donor), you may you may also contact me at the e-mail address above for more information. Thank you for listening!
