What altruistic act do you want to do, but don't have the ability to do it now?

If I can ever finally work just one job and have some regular free time, I’d like to volunteer at a children’s hospital.

We have a local Facebook page called Free Thing’s and Services that I’m obsessed with. People post about needing rides to doctor appointments, cancer treatment or to the grocery store, or needing food for babies or even personal hygiene items. Many are homeless or living in pay by week motels and it honestly just kills my heart on a daily basis.
I’d love to be able to take people where they need to go to get help, but alas a FT job takes too much time. Maybe when I retire if my health holds up.

@JLeslie I think you have a worthy goal. We helped many immigrants when I was younger adjust, mostly Vietnamese, and it was very interesting, funny and heartbreaking all at once.

I’d like to start a charity that helps poor people fix their cars. We’d supply a space, tools, basic fluids, and knowledge.
An unreliable car affects a poor person’s life in more ways than we (those who can afford repairs) can imagine. In an area with no public transportation it is an integral part of life.
The person will try to get to work but the car won’t start reliably and they are late or miss work. Do that a few times and you are out of a job. And can’t afford rent, or mortgage, or whatever. You can’t get to social services for help. The kids miss. whatever school tasks were needed. and their lives go down the toilet because the didn’t know to put water in the battery or check the oil level or even how to add oil.
Something as simple as a gallon of oil can make the difference between a running car and a junker.
The Fluther garage would do that maintenance for you, once, while you are standing there watching. After that, you do it yourself. As payment you need to bring one can of food that has been sitting unused on your shelf – even if it is expired.
Big repairs would be subbed out to garages willing to have the customer watch and learn.

I would like to help start a shelter for homeless people with pets. The shelter could provide free spay and neuter, vaccinations and preventive care for their companions. Of course, food and access to preventive medical care would also be provided for the pets’ human companions. Finding a suitable place and funding would be the biggest obstacles.

@lastexit I love that! We once had a lady eating cat food, because she spent her last cash on food to feed the cat so that’s all she had.

On that same note, we have so many pets living with pain because vets only take Care Credit for poor people without credit cards. The rescue’s can only do so much and many of these folks have to watch their pets suffer with broken legs or other serious issues, or they just put them down. It’s so sad.

@KNOWITALL what you say is true and it breaks my heart. There is also a trust issue that needs to be overcome. That’s why I feel that if shelter was provided for both people and pets equally, the trust issue dynamic could be changed in order to provide the help they need.