Since the  Army of Good was founded in 2016, a peaceful year in comparison to this one, we’ve always been honest with one another.

There are incredibly challenging and scary times for the donors and supporters of our successful and uplifting program of supporting elderly residents of assisted care facilities and refugees desperate to join in the American dream.

There is so much anger, violence, and hatred in our world and our country that our idea of doing good rather than fighting about it makes more sense than ever. The war in Ukraine is harming people all over the world, as well as Ukraine itself.

But there is also a lot of pressure on people to protect themselves and their families and to worry about their finances.

We have done a lot for the Mansion and Bishop Maginn High School and the refugee families who became a focal point for the school. I don’t have space to list all of our small acts of great kindness.

We are not a religious movement, and I am  not a Christian, but our work has been shared from the beginning by the powerful teachings of Jesus Christ, whose message has been defiled and ignored by many of the people who claim to worship him.

“Those who bless others will be abundantly bless themselves. Those who help others are helped themselves,” he preached. Whatever your beliefs, the message is pure and good and timely.

Both of these institutions are in need, as much and more as ever. The Mansion is in crisis again, fighting off Covid infections, Bishop Maginn is closing down in June.

But the refugees needs are going up, along with the rest of us.

The Mansion is plagued with sickness right now, and the refugee program at Bishop Maginn is moving to another school in the Fall. New and needy refugees from Afghanistan and Ukraine are arriving all the time, I am hoping we can continue to help.

In recent months, and for perfectly understandable reasons, the donations and support people have been able to give in support of these programs has plunged dramatically.  I’ve had to cut back our support as well.

At the moment, the Mansion/Refugee Fund is down to $382.89 and I’m saying no to many of the things I have been able to do for some years now. The fund has dropped as low as $45 at times, and I have scrambled to keep replenishing it.

We are not insulated from the world, we feel the bumps and turmoil too.

This is not a complaint but an honest update. Inflation is soaring, there are fears of recession, the war is disrupting supply chains and sending the price of oil and energy and food rocketing up. Our political system  is in crisis, due to the ever bitter divides in the country.

It seems that Mr. Trump, who unknowingly inspired the Army of Good, is back in our lives, plotting, planning and lying as usual. Like Count Dracula, nothing seems to bring him down. But the idea of doing good is shinier than ever.

The Army of Good is about doing good, and the last thing I want is for anyone to suffer or endanger their own lives or finances. I intend to keep doing this work as long as there is a dollar in the fund, and as long as I have any dollars of my own to spare.

Unfortunately, there is not much in that fund, either.

I just wanted to be honest with the good people who have trusted me and supported the extraordinary work we have done. You deserve to know where we stand.

I will never give up on it.

I understand the difficulties people face, I face them as well.

The only idea I have is that small contributions, by Internet or mail, can keep the program going and allow us to continue our program of small acts of great kindness. Those $5 bills and checks sometimes have me in tears. Thank you.

More and more, I’m having to say no to requests for help, and that is a new and sobrering experience for me. But it just strengthens my resolve to continue.

I believe in radical acceptance, we have to live with the lives and challenges we are given, rather than lament or complain.

We can’t hide from the problems of the world, but I wanted all of you to know where we are. My Post Office Box is pretty quiet these days.

If you are able, please consider small contributions (if you wish to and can give large ones, feel free). You can contribute via Paypal, [email protected], or Venmo, Jon-Katz@Jon-Katz 13. You can send checks in any amount – there are hundreds of thousands of people reading my blog on a regular basis, small contributions quickly add up – to Jon Katz, Mansion/Refugee fund, P.O. Box 502, Cambridge, N.Y., 12816.

If you can’t contribute, please don’t feel guilty or blame yourselves, we are all in this together. Grace is as much about how we deal with hardship as it is about happiness and ease.

The Army of Good, a collection of people with good hearts and much compassion, is one of the most remarkable things to ever come into my life. We have done so much good in so many different ways, from feeding the hungry to giving them blankets and shoes in the cold to toothpaste to snowblowers, vans, curtains, flowers, TV’s and soap,games and puzzles, shoes and pants,  food coupons,  pandemic supplies, textbooks and laptops for knowledge-hungry refugees.

The list goes on and on, and I will keep at it through this hard times and the better days that will follow. My motto is to do the best I can do for as long as I can do it.

Please help if you can, and bless you if you can’t.

This wonderful ride is far from over.