Just Imagine the Possibilities

It is the million-dollar question. And to charities, large or small, it is an invitation to dream. It is also license to describe, sometimes in excruciating detail, the enormous needs of children who are sick or dying, of adolescents who are gifted but without hope, of women who are homeless and abused, even of pets mistreated and abandoned,

What, we asked six thrifty nonprofit groups, would you do with $1 million?

Children of the Night: “We rescue children from pimps, that’s what we do,” says Lois Lee, who founded the Van Nuys-based charity 20 years ago. “We’ve pulled more than 10,000 kids off the streets since our beginning, and the reason we’re so successful is we are privately funded. But that [also] means it’s up to me to raise the $2 million we need every year just to keep going. We have no savings account, no loans. That makes me scared. I shiver at the onus being on me. So, if I had $1 million today, I’d use it to start an endowment campaign because I am convinced that no one else is going to operate a program for child prostitutes--and I don’t want this one to come to an end when I do.”

Cystic Fibrosis Foundation: There is no cure for cystic fibrosis, a fatal genetic disease that attacks the respiratory and digestive systems. But an extra million dollars could help researchers in California find one, says Robert Beall, president. Scientists have a better way to rapidly screen new drugs to fight CF, but the tests, which use fluorescent “green glow” to tag the defect in damaged cells, cost $4 each. With $1 million, Beall says, researchers could screen 250,000 compounds that hold the most promise. Or the windfall could boost research at Stanford University, where scientists are refining a novel method of gene therapy to treat--and one day, perhaps cure--CF patients.

Mr. Holland’s Opus Foundation: Every year, hundreds of musically gifted young people ask this Sherman Oaks foundation for the only thing they need to become great musicians--instruments. And every year, the charity provides what it can, which this year meant buying just 12 instruments for needy students throughout the nation. With an annual budget of $500,000, a million-dollar gift would mean more and bigger gifts of music. “A good bassoon costs $16,000; a flute, $5,000. A million dollars can buy a lot of musical equipment for schools and give a lot of kids with talent professional instruments,” says Gillian Baylow, director of programs and operations.

Pasadena Humane Society: “If we had a million dollars? Well, we’d put ourselves right out of business,” says Steve McNall, executive director of the popular and overburdened animal shelter. “That’s our mission statement--to eliminate the pet overpopulation problem and stop the euthanasia of unwanted animals.” The first step would be to build a hospital where pets could be sterilized for free. That, says McNall, along with a strong public education program, could help eliminate the current crisis. “Just by having one male and one female cat get together, within six years, you’ve got 450,000 cats!” Last year, the shelter was forced to euthanize about 800 adoptable animals out of the 8,000 dogs and cats turned in.

Voices in Harmony: What happens when you put a young actor together with a teenager and ask them to write a one-act play? You get the play, and, if you’re lucky, something more, says Melissa Fitzgerald, co-founder of the unique mentoring and performing group for urban L.A. young people. “It’s funny to be asked what we’d do with a million dollars right now because, once again, we’re in serious financial straits,” Fitzgerald says. The all-volunteer program can afford to work one-on-one with only about 25 students a year. With a million dollars, it could work with 100. “If we had money,” Fitzgerald adds, “I’d also buy a copying machine, maybe a fax, rent an office and hire a director.”

WomenShelter of Long Beach: “We badly need transitional housing for the women who come here, a safe place for them to live with their children while they’re putting their lives back together,” says Brenda Weathers, executive director. “We’re a 30-day shelter, and that’s not long enough for most women. I’d also like to have a little cushion in the bank so we’re not afraid of not making the next payroll. Last year, we sheltered 116 women and 148 children, and we took about 2,000 calls on our crisis hotline. We’re providing round-the-clock care on a shoestring. It’s better than nothing but--wow, a million dollars?--sure, we’d love it.”