Give to the Bainbridge Foundation

How’s this for “fall color”?

The appearance last week of the Big Red Envelope – a hue matched in brilliance by only the leaves on local trees – heralds the return of October, and the advent of the Bainbridge Foundation’s annual One Call For All drive.

We’re always glad to give an endorsement to the venerable One Call drive, through which islanders can support a panoply of nonprofit groups (this year, more than 70) serving all segments of our island community. This newspaper was privileged to once again produce the foundation’s informational supplement, a handsome and highly informative piece distributed in a recent edition of the Review that includes a profile of each of the participating organizations. (More copies of the supplement are available at our office; if you missed yours, do come by.)

As we said, we’re always glad to endorse the drive and call attention for those unfamiliar with it. Our entreaties in this sphere have, over the years, inevitably boiled down to one of two themes: “Please give more,” or “More of you, please give.” But...then what? There is sometimes a sense, when donating to charitable and other nonprofit organizations, that you’ll never see the money again. It will help someone deserving, but that someone isn’t going to be you.

We were reminded this week that with the One Call For All Drive, every dollar contributes to a living, breathing community – for everyone. To see how, you needn’t look any farther than today’s Review Calendar page.

Take this weekend as a fine example. Today at noon, nature lovers, hikers and those weary of the cursed treadmill can head up to Gazzam Lake for the dedication of the new hiking trail across the Close property to the water’s edge. The sponsoring agency, the Bainbridge Island Land Trust, is a perennially popular foundation beneficiary.

Hiking not your thing? Another One Call beneficiary, the Progressive Animal Welfare Society hosts a dog walk and get together from 10:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Town & Country. And across the bridge, the Marine Science Society of the Pacific Northwest offers a dessert cruise of Liberty Bay. They’re another recipient of donor-directed funds.

The story’s the same on Sunday. The Island Music Guild hosts an all-ages open mic from 7-9:30 p.m. at Pegasus. The Aging Support Network – an offshoot of the Health, Housing and Human Services Council – holds a forum on issues facing our graying population. The Parent and Child Center offers free inspections of children’s car seats, while Voyager Montessori School hosts an evening seminar on building sound relationships within families. All are Bainbridge Foundation member organizations.

Keep running through our Calendar, and you’ll keep finding community events offered by One Call beneficiaries – Bainbridge Performing Arts, the Bainbridge library, the Battle Point Astronomical Association, the Trust for Working Landscapes, the Bainbridge Island Historical Society, Bainbridge Arts and Crafts, and on and on. Far from disappearing into some philanthropic void, your donation to

the One Call For All drive provides an array of activities throughout the year for a startling breadth of interests. There’s something in it for everyone, and that includes you.

So open that autumnal red envelope, or go online to see www.bainbridgefoundation.org. And then give; you’ll get your contribution back, many times over.

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