O - is for Outcomes

O in our HOPE Building Model stands for Outcomes

“You should have seen the look on their faces!”

What an incredible gift it is to give to others. What a joy to make a difference and lighten someone’s load.

Giving is also an incredible responsibility. Just because giving feels good, it doesn’t mean it is good. Well-intentioned giving can even cause long-term damage.

And that is why the O in our HOPE Building Model stands for Outcomes.

Imagine secondhand clothing and food parcels being distributed in a disadvantaged community. Yes, it may be appreciated and help in the short-term, but what are the true outcomes? Will they be given to the people who truly need them? How does this impact local sellers of secondhand clothing struggling to provide for their families? And the small spaza shops? What about the dependency that can result if this is given month after month? And how does receiving handouts make these individuals feel- especially if they are photographed? These are uncomfortable questions we must ask.

Handouts are relatively easy. Journeying with people is messy and tough and often heart-wrenching. But the reality is that handouts seldom bring changed lives. They might make people more comfortable in the poverty trap, but they usually don’t help them escape from it. To measure the impact of our giving, we shouldn’t focus on how many people we have fed or clothed or even enabled to attend training. We need to measure long-term outcomes. How many lives have been transformed?

Today, why don’t you experience the joy of giving. But we invite you to give not just with your heart but with your head as well. Invest in long-term outcomes. Invest in changed lives.