(hcima.org.uk)

Woe is me! I’ve got this big trust fund sitting in a bank that I just found out about, and I have no idea what to do with it. What to do, what to do?

Just kidding. There is no trust fund sitting in a bank somewhere with my name on it. But according to yesterday’s Daily Pennsylvanian, it’s possible that a significant number of Penn students could be facing such a dilemma. Chances are, one of your friends or acquaintances on campus is going to inherit a significant amount of wealth one day and will have no idea what to do with it.

Your first inclination might be to give your lost, confused trust fund-inheriting friend a good kick in the you-know-what. And if the dilemma they’re agonizing over is whether to buy a Mercedes or a BMW (and they expect sympathy from you), it’s possible that they deserve it. But even the uber-wealthy can have a sense of social consciousness. Maybe what they’re struggling with is how to put their newfound millions to good use. And that’s where Resource Generation comes in.

Resource Generation is geared toward helping wealthy young people learn how to effect positive social change through philanthropy. They hold annual retreats and other programming to help spread their message.

While the idea of such an organization might seem slightly strange (and even somewhat obnoxious) at first glance, it’s actually a pretty cool idea. It’s my personal belief that our nation’s wealthiest citizens should be devoting a decent portion of their riches to helping those who are less fortunate. If someone is interested in learning more about how to put their wealth to good use, I say we should give them all the help they need.

Now, there aren’t any $700 weekend retreats designed to tell anyone this, but I’ll let you all in on a little secret: even those of us without trust funds can take a cue from Resource Generation’s efforts. Everyone with resources to spare should be devoting a portion of their good luck to those who need it, and the giving spirit should start young. So find a charitable organization that means something to you, and help out when you can.

We might not be setting up charitable foundations or contributing wings to buildings, but it’s important for us to learn the value of doing what we can to make our world better. Even without a trust fund.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, November 7th, 2006 at 1:27 pm and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.