Near the bottom of the pile, I found this year's appeal from The Authors League Fund. Oops. I'd meant to send my contribution in April. Well, better late than never.
To try to make amends for being slow, I'm reproducing the letter here, in hopes of encouraging my fellow writers to send a contribution that will aid authors who are in financial distress. Who knows? The writer the Fund helps may be you, one of these days.
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March 2011
Dear Colleagues:
We continue to see the impact of the recession upon writers and dramatists, as more and more applicants report having nowhere else to turn. A career novelist, now in her 80s and living alone, was declared blind after suffering from macular degeneration for several years. "I am penniless," she writes, and she has allowed an injury to go untreated for lack of funds. An award-winning children's book author was left with lasting injuries following a car accident and has been living off of credit cards, "getting by day-to-day" in the midst of overwhelming medical bills.
The Authors League Fund is here to help these and other writers, as we have been for 94 years. By providing interest-free loans, most of which are never repaid, the Fund helps professional writers continue their careers, even their lives, with dignity. Many of those we help suffer severe health problems but have inadequate or no insurance; others face eviction or are seniors whose income from writing has ceased because of the changing market. These applicants' words are eloquent testimony to the need and gratitude of the writers we serve:
- I cannot tell you how much l appreciate this. I was finally able to get a good night's sleep last night and today was the first day in a very long time I wasn't worried sick. My tears today are of relief.
- When I opened the envelope and saw the check and your note, not only was there a sense of relief over finances, but a restoration of some of the faith in what I'm trying to do as a reporter and writer.
- What a wonderful thing to greet me after a rocky summer! Now life is not only possible, it may even be sweet.
Sincerely,
Pat Cummings, President
Isabel Howe, Executive Director
The Authors League Fund
Established by the Authors League of America, Inc.
31 East 32nd Street, 7th Floor
New York, NY 10016
http://www.authorsleaguefund.org
Hi - I'm a 60 years young partially employed seasonally dad/granddad who has mainly been self-sufficient and working basically since age 17. I've worked a second job a number of times - out of need, not for the greed of money. In the last year and a half or so, I have lost a long time job at age 59 unexpectedly. For 6 months I used savings to stay afloat until finding the summer only seasonable position here in Ohio. Thru connections there, I had what I thought was a good fill in job for this winter, until I kept with it for over a month before realizing I wasn't going to get paid for my initial marketing of his business. Therefore I lost out on another possibility or two, which went to others. I've managed to get some help locally, and an odd job here and there, but prep for the summer work can't begin here until March or April. My savings are nearly exhausted, as well as any other options, a short term dilemma, but a dilemma never the less. Then, to top that bad luck off, my bank account got compromised in the past month, and despite some waiving of fees by my banker, the account is still currently in the negative. As I mentioned, I've always been self-sufficient and am not a freeloader. I want to work more on short stories and a book and spend enough adequate quality time with 6 grandkids. I just need some one time assistance to cover some expenses and get through February and part of March. Not looking at all for any huge amount, $3,000 or less please. Thank you - Jeffrey Frank. tygerramdad1@aol.com..
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