I just finished The Four Winds by Kristin Hannah. If you aren’t familiar with the book, the story is similar to The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck, but with a female protagonist at the center. The story focuses on the Dust Bowl and the great migration to California during the Great Depression. As usual, Kristin Hannah delivers a powerful story surrounded by historical events. If you aren’t familiar with the history around this, millions of families were impacted by the loss of farmland during the 1930s dust storms in Oklahoma, Texas, and Kansas. These families were enticed to come west to California with the promise of jobs and a better life. Sadly, the promise was an empty one, with families finding the same poverty they left in the Great Plains. At same time, America was in the grips of the Great Depression with a 25% unemployment rate. Families were displaced, starving, and exploited by those who had the means of production, like big farmers and factory owners.
That said, this month’s blog isn’t a book review, but rather a focus on the origins of nonprofits and their profound role in the American landscape. As I read the book, I kept coming back to the idea that safety nets, which The Open Link and other organizations operate, were nonexistent at that time. Families literally starved and went without clothing, shoes, housing and education because the infrastructure of the nonprofit landscape didn’t exist. Children as young as six were in the field picking vegetables and cotton so that families could survive.
This stark comparison of the 1930s to today makes me incredibly grateful (and a bit in awe!) of the work that nonprofits do in this country. When I think first of the foresight and legislation it took to create the idea of an organization focused on service rather than profit, I am grateful for the advocates, government officials, and others who carved out the space for these organizations. I am also grateful for the innovation that created some of the strongest nonprofit organizations, like Feeding America and Habitat for Humanity. These powerhouses of good were created because someone saw a need and an opportunity. In the case of Feeding America, which The Open Link is part of through Philabundance, the opportunity arose because a group of people observed food going to waste that was perfectly edible. They matched that issue with the significant need for those experiencing food insecurity, and an entire industry was created – one that not only supports those in need of food, but also one that keeps this food out of the waste stream. Because of them, 50 million people had access to the food bank system last year.
Today, nonprofits fill a vital role that cannot be met otherwise. They support everything from those who are food insecure to the who are struggling with mental health to the arts-- and a little of everything in between. When you think of the things that improve quality of life for all Americans, chances are there are nonprofits addressing needs that would otherwise go unmet. In fact, according to in Pennsylvania Association of Nonprofit Organizations (PANO), nonprofits drove $139.8 billion of our economy in 2022 (PANO). They also employed 817,300 workers, or 15.7%, of the workforce in the state as well. While many think of nonprofits as just your local food pantry, they are major health systems, schools, theaters, research universities, faith communities, and so much more. We are closer than ever to a cure for Alzheimer’s because of the work of nonprofits. We averted disaster with the last recession and the pandemic because of nonprofits.
In times of uncertainty, nonprofits are needed, now more than ever. Government funding comes and goes, but the reality is that communities prioritize what is important and how they want the quality of life to be for their members. This is certainly true here in the Valley. You, the community, have decided that The Open Link, the Library, The YMCA, and other nonprofits are important for the Valley to continue to be a great place to live.
If you haven’t read The Grapes of Wrath or The Four Winds, I recommend both – as a history lesson and as a reminder that we are better off than we were almost a hundred years ago, largely because of the role that nonprofits play. The modern nonprofit community was created so that America would not have to endure such tragic hardship ever again and I, for one, am grateful for it.
Interested in learning more about The Open Link and how we’re supporting our neighbors in need? Contact 215-679-4112 or info@theopenlink.org.
