Rexburg––During the Rexburg Area Chamber of Commerce forum on Wednesday, the local charities featured in the Light the World Giving Machine in Rexburg were introduced to the community.
The charities include Eastern Idaho Community Action Partnership, Family Crisis Center, Idaho Falls Area Humanitarian Center, Idaho Falls Rescue Mission and Ronald McDonald House Charities of Idaho. Global charities include Right to Play and Care.
The Giving Machine will be in the lobby of Hemming Village in Rexburg Dec. 1 – Dec. 14. It’s currently in Chubbuck. Following its stint in Rexburg, it will move to the Grand Teton Mall in Idaho Falls from Dec. 15 – Jan. 1.
"Part of our company's mission is to give back to the community and be good community partners and we felt like this fit very well into what we're trying to do,” said Kurt Webb, president of Hemming Properties.
Giving Machine Items
Each local non-profit has multiple items you can “purchase” from the machine. Unlike a typical vending machine, patrons will not walk away with the items. They will be given to people in need.
Items range in price from $10 – $250 and include things like hygiene kits, toys for patients, a month’s worth of utility bills, meals for the elderly for a week, a month of diapers, transportation and much more.
Local Charities
Ronald McDonald House Charities of Idaho provides four rooms for families with children who are patients at Eastern Idaho Regional Medical Center in Idaho Falls. Deborah Chessey, the development and community manager for the charity, says they make three meals a day for 10-14 people every day of the year. You can provide groceries, a tank of gas, and hygiene items, among other things.
Being part of the Giving Machine will help the charity in multiple ways.
"It's huge for us,” Chessey said. “Not only because of all the items we can gather, but to get the word out so people know we're there inside of EIRMC and if they need us they can come down and we can help them through that time that they're trying to take care of their child in the hospital."
Read Light the World Giving Machines Debut in Eastern Idaho
Chessey says they’ve helped many people from the Rexburg and BYU-Idaho community, including an expectant couple who were about to move out of the state, but delivered their baby early. They ended up staying with the charity for more than 100 days.
Eastern Idaho Community Action Partnership is another local charity with several items available for purchase. The organization helps local families in many ways, from rental and utility bill assistance to a food bank and Meals on Wheels.
“The people in the United States and in eastern Idaho that are living under the poverty line are working full time, they have kids, they’re exhausted often and so when we can help them just marginally, it helps, they get a little bit of relief, a little bit of joy that day, or a little bit of opportunity to not worry for a few more days until they have something else that’s a crisis,” said John Radford, CEO of EICAP.
Radford says their goal is to help people get through the rough times so they can thrive and eventually help others. He points out that Madison County has one of the highest poverty rates in the state.
“There’s a lot of need in Madison County,” he said.
Any donation is welcome
People are encouraged to donate whatever they can and to invite family and friends to donate as well. Webb says he and his family have donated to Giving Machines in the past and he’s excited to help the Rexburg area have the same opportunity.
“We hope they come out and support these local charities, and we hope that they feel the joy that comes when we put other people first,” Webb said.
There are so many items to choose from in the Giving Machine, it may be hard to choose. There is an option to purchase one of everything. You just type in “777.” Brett Crandall, who is on the committee for the Giving Machine in Rexburg, says “777 represents completeness or wholeness.” It’s often “associated with spiritual awakening and a deeper connection with the divine.” To purchase one of everything, it will cost $1,644.
The Giving Machine is sponsored by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints as part of its annual Light the World campaign. This year, Giving Machines will be in 126 cities, in 21 countries. More than 4,000 items are available from 500 charities. Radford says it’s a “wonderful partnership” because the Church gives 100% of the donation to the local charity.
“We’re just so grateful that people can come to one place and give and know that it’s going to organizations that have been vetted and that are going to get these services to the people that need them,” Radford said.