
Keep the Change. Don’t Support Panhandling.
It’s a Milwaukee initiative to discourage panhandling and encourage people to instead donate to 18 charities which help homeless people. Here’s the initiative’s website:
https://city.milwaukee.gov/CommonCouncil/Initiatives/Keep-the-Change.htm#.XNmgUaR7k2w
But, in a Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service article, Guest House of Milwaukee Executive Director Cindy Krahenbuhl said the initiative’s message can sometimes be misconstrued.
“The message isn’t ‘don’t help people,’ but simply handing them money is not the means to do that.” Krahenbul recommends offering a sandwich or water rather than money.
https://milwaukeenns.org/2016/07/29/city-takes-stance-against-panhandling-with-keep-the-change-initiative/
So I feel OK that the packages still wait in my car, getting increasingly crumpled by the wear and tear of back seat rearrangements. But I’d feel better if they found their intended home.