Recently, I submitted a request to the Schweitzer Church Foundation for money to help make the new community garden lot ready for the gardeners. Getting ready would involve grading the lot to make rain and stormwater flow to the west side into the railroad ditch, as the city stormwater expert said it should, rather than pooling on the new garden lot.
Before answering, two of the Foundation board members decided they would look at the new property and get their own bid just to see what they thought the cost for the project might be. Phil Wieneke and Paul Cowherd took time from their normal work for an entire afternoon to transit the property, make notes, and produce ideas to fix the drainage. Then, they made the effort to get a bid from one of their trusted contractors for the work of making the property drain correctly.
The bid received was far below what I had requested. Since this was the case, and since the money available from the Foundation this year was limited, the request was declined.
I am thankful. Because of a gift of time from Foundation board members rather than a disbursement of funds, we found another way to give the property good drainage. Our local missions leader and church planter, Stiffany Taylor, communicated with another contractor and also with a neighbor whose property was impacted by the drainage problem. Together, they found a solution which allows both properties to drain well. The Foundation’s “no” helped us to be even more community focused.
Rest assured, the Schweitzer Church Foundation board is wise about its answers to disbursement requests. In this case, the disbursement was a gift of time.