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What to do with your stimulus check if you don't really need it?

+1 Local schools and food banks
Lots of good posts already, the International Society of Bassists and has had a few fundraisers in 2020 for unemployed bassists and bass teachers, and will be continuing them :
International Society of Bassists - Welcome
Donation form :
International Society of Bassists - Make a Donation!

Also Kolstein's sponsors a weekly YouTube concert from the small stage in their shop , taking donations which go directly to a relief fund for musicians :
[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]
 
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Cool. Family component used to live in Cherokee / Bon Air off of Forest Hill.

Riis

We've been in the area about 25 years now. Bon Air is a really nice part of town. My wife has some kin that lived in that area for several years.

We are in the Rt 288-Rt 360 area. Lucked out and found a really nice house for retirement in a decent subdivision with a HOA including pool access at a very affordable price.

My son will be down your way at the Armed Forces Music School in Norfolk later this week. He will be there for the next 7 months. He's a Gunny in the Marine Corps band program.
 
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Pretty much all of mine is going towards paying back a loan my wife and I took out from her father over the summer, though I do want to give at least $50 to the local food bank, and help keep the few local venues open a while longer, too.
 
Not that a lot of these are "bad" ideas, but it seems like giving 1 person or family $600 worth of help makes a way bigger impact than giving 600 people or families $6 of help. Direct giving is going to be the biggest bang for your buck.

At most, I might say pick 5 or 6 targets of good people who are likely to be struggling (ie, ahem, sound guys *cough*) and who aren't likely to have other avenues for help. Those are the people who are really getting hammered this past year. Everyone and their mom is donating to "food banks" and the like, so those are covered anyway, but do you think the people you are trying to help would rather have $100 bucks worth of beans and wonder bread, or $100 in cash to spend on whatever it is they need most (and almost certainly still have access to the $100 of beans and wonder bread).

So yeah, target that favorite sound guy in town (who probably hasn't done any sound in 9 or 10 months, also, remember that at least musicians can give lessons, sell music, merch, etc... and have "followings", sound guys are basically invisible, unless a musician or group of musicians advocate for them essentially) or musician, or venue worker (who might not have an easy way to switch to doing something else right now), etc... Pick somewhere between 1 and a handful and maximize your impact in a concentrated group, rather than diluting your impact among as many people as possible.

Now, if you want to get together with a group of likeminded friends in a similar position, so you can help more people, that's great. But I think the people in the shadows who aren't really able to get the help that's already out there are the best place to put your money.
 
We've been in the area about 25 years now. Bon Air is a really nice part of town. My wife has some kin that lived in that area for several years.

We are in the Rt 288-Rt 360 area. Lucked out and found a really nice house for retirement in a decent subdivision with a HOA including pool access at a very affordable price.

My son will be down your way at the Armed Forces Music School in Norfolk later this week. He will be there for the next 7 months. He's a Gunny in the Marine Corps band program.

He'll be at Little Creek which is 15" from my house. IIRC, a handful of TBer's have been thru the program including @neurotictim .

We have an office on E. Parham which I occasionally cover. Wouldn't be so bad but they're always sending me off to BFE including Gum Springs, Mineral, Bumpass, etc.

Riis
 
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As long as it gets back into the economy is some form be it charities or home improvements / local merchants products etc that you pay local folks for- it' s all good in my view . If you sit on it or send it to your Swiss bank account - heh , not so good ! .... Kelly
 
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