The Difference A Gift Can Make

I grew up in a poor family. I didn’t realize that we were poor at the time, but my single mother had 4 children and a 9th grade education.  Mom was an only child who had lost both of her parents, leaving her with no family to depend on, and an alcoholic dead-beat husband, who left when I was too young to remember. So she did what she could to provide for us by waitressing and taking in ironing.  Money was tight, often leaving us with minimal groceries. We often ate inexpensive foods like meatless spaghetti or creamed of potato soup for dinner. Bags of hand-me-downs were welcomed and I was taught early how to sew my own clothes. Mom drove a very old Mercury that was not very dependable, often leaving her stranded and catching a ride home from co-workers.

Then, when I was about seven years old, something amazing happened. My mother received an anonymous gift of $500. with a note saying, “I know you’ll put this to good use.” This was a large sum of money in 1961. Mom didn’t tell us about this gift, but one day she showed up with a used, but dependable, 1957 Pontiac Station Wagon!  

Now, with a dependable form of transportation, she could attend classes to complete her G.E.D. Mom worked nights and weekends, and attended classes and did school work when she could.  After obtaining a G.E.D., she went on to complete an Associate’s Degree in drafting. This led to a job working as a draftsman at General Dynamics Mondays through Fridays. Finally, she had a reasonable income, benefits, and we were no longer latch-key kids.

Seeing how my mother’s newly acquired education changed our lives, as a young girl I realized that education gives a woman choices. This motivated me to become the first one in my extended family to pursue a college education.  Driven by the passion of knowing how transformative education can be, I went on to obtain a teaching credential and made the education of others my career for 25 years. I wonder how many of my students’ lives were touched by my career choice which was sparked by a gift.

In this season of “Giving”, I really wish I could personally thank the person who changed so many lives with their amazing gift over 50 years ago. We never know the ripple effects of our giving.