A lesson learned in Myrtle Beach: Being a good person is not good enough | Opinion
A Myrtle Beach reader of this column once offered me $10,000. The philosophy I used to handle that situation heavily influenced last week’s column in which I discussed the unethical hiring practices of a couple of local non-profits, that it’s not enough to rely upon people being good.
Before I explain why that matters, I wanted to share some genuinely good news. First Presbyterian Church in Myrtle Beach and the Chapin Foundation are making a huge investment in the Boys & Girls Club of the Grand Strand. Their combined contributions will total nearly $2 million – $400,000 of which will be a matching grant – which will essentially guarantee that the club will be able to serve hundreds of young people and their families for the foreseeable future. (Full disclosure: My wife is the club’s chief executive officer.)
It’s something to celebrate. First Presbyterian, the Chapin Foundation, and former NBA player Ramon Sessions, among others, have done a lot to make it possible for the club, based in the Booker T. Washington community, to do good. Just a few years ago, it would not have been clear if such an investment in the club would have been possible, or even wise. The club went through a rough patch because of decisions by previous leadership. It’s taken awhile to dig from under that cloud, but the board and employees have done just that. They didn’t take the quick road. It’s a commendable turnaround.
It also highlights a non-profit’s primary currency: credibility. Donors and the public must have faith in the organization. And that faith isn’t – can’t – be built simply upon a reliance on assurances that everyone involved is a good person. As the late President Ronald Reagan intimated in a different context, you can trust, but you must verify. And in the non-profit world, verification relies upon a series of ethical standards that can be annoying, and often are, standards that are complex and tedious. It’s not like private business where big deals and hires can be done over a beer or on the 18th hole. It slows things down even when you want to go fast. But it gives the public an extra sense of confidence when they know that those in charge of such organizations are willing to navigate that tedium to ensure they can provide services to the most needy and vulnerable among us.
On that front, there can be no shortcuts. That brings me back to the reader who wanted to give me $10,000. She wanted me to find a worthy, hardworking person who would use it for good. I immediately knew the best person for the money: my wife.
She was in the process of building up a literacy non-profit, Freedom Readers, which she had founded not too long before I got that call. She was doing invaluable work with kids in economically-distressed communities. We initially financed Freedom Readers out of our meager checking account. A $10,000 infusion would have allowed her to reach even more young people. It was a no brainer.
She was a good person doing good. The money would be used for good. But giving the money to Freedom Readers wasn’t even an option. The conflict of interest was too obvious. Because being a good person isn’t enough when it concerns public trust, the foundation of non-profit work.
I didn’t even want to touch the check. Because being a good person isn’t good enough. Instead, I called up the Myrtle Beach Area Chamber of Commerce and SCORE. They came up with a Shark Tank-type competition that solicited ideas from local entrepreneurs – and helped those entrepreneurs design business plans – and awarded a winner with the $10,000.
How we handle ethically sticky situations matter. Doing things the right way when you are a steward of the public’s trust is that important. It means being willing to submit to serious scrutiny even when it doesn’t feel good, speaking up when it would be easier to remain silent. Because being a good person is not enough, and never will be.
Issac Bailey is a McClatchy Opinion writer based in Myrtle Beach.
