I may have overreacted in offering to coordinate an emergency fund.  I was
feeling so frustrated by my inability to do anything substantial to help the
hurt babies we hear about that I volunteered without thinking.  (And this
from a career Army officer's daughter.  The Colonel would be mortified!) So
I apologize to any of you who were planning to respond to that part of my
message or who wanted to volunteer to help.  As I said, I am not willing to
do the non-profit paperwork, but that is not the problem.  I have realized
that I could not be confident that I was distributing the FML's donations to
the right people for the right reasons.  We are just too big and too spread
abroad, and I would have no way to test the validity of any needs.  The task
is just beyond me.
 
I am not retracting my offer to be a middle-person for Dayna, however, and I
encourage all the generous souls out there to support their local shelters
as well as those of the people we know from the FML.  The size and location
of Dayna's work make it difficult for her to raise support.  Other shelter
emergencies can be overwhelming (like the 61 babies with ECE or Rocky or
White Fang) and I hope we can always help then too.
 
With blushing apologies
Judith White
[Posted in FML issue 1577]