The Conical Glass: Unclaimed

Tuesday, February 23, 2010

Unclaimed

Are you familiar with unclaimed property web sites? There might be a big fat check out there with your name on it. All you have to do is search your state's unclaimed property database -- try entering "unclaimed property" and your state's name into Google -- and voila, you might be rolling in dough. California alone has over $5.7 billion in unclaimed assets.

Unfortunately, I don't have an unexpected windfall coming my way, but I recently found out that somebody I know has a lot of money due, thanks to a few too many changes of address. And when I say a lot, I mean six figures. High six figures.

Of course, this led me to imagine what it would be like to discover that all of a sudden, I was a few hundred thousand dollars richer. Now, bear in mind that I am very fortunate -- unlike a lot of Americans, I never have to worry about where my next meal is coming from. I can do indulgent stuff like eat at Coi and shop at the Berkeley Bowl. But the thought of all that money made me... OK, it made me envious.

This morning, I got an email from Donors Choose, one of my favorite charities. I try not to browse the Donors Choose web site web site too frequently, because I want to fund everything, and sometimes it makes me cry. Last winter, I stumbled upon a project posted by a teacher in Oakland whose portable classroom did not have any source of heat. The kids had to wear coats in class and were often too cold to concentrate on their studies. The teacher wanted to buy some space heaters. I decided to fully fund the project immediately, and a few weeks later, I got a packet in the mail with thank you letters from the students and a bunch of photos of the kids happily posing with the heaters. How you can look at that and not be moved?

Anyway, I made the "mistake" of spending a few minutes on Donors Choose and found this proposal: "Fourth Graders need a North Carolina Shore Adventure." I've never been to the North Carolina shore, but apparently there is a cool light house, the Wright Brothers museum, and sand dunes. Mrs. W. wants to take the kids in her high poverty classroom to see the Bodie Island lighthouse and museum this spring, and she needs $3,273.24 in order to make it happen. Here's the good news -- a bunch of people, including me, have already donated $1,857.74. But as of this writing, they still need $2,134.02.

Maybe you can check out those unclaimed property web sites (I love the fact that Illinois' is named "Cash Dash"!), and if you discover a few bucks, you can make a tax deductible donation to help fund the proposal. If you loved field trips when you were a student -- heaven knows I did -- this would be a great way to give back.

posted by 125records @ 4:44 PM

2 Comments:

At 4:16 AM, Janet ID said…

I've been to the Bodie Island Lighthouse only twice, but it has become one of my favorite places anywhere. It is less famous, less visited and a little more off-the-beaten-path than the other Outer Banks lighthouses, esp. Hatteras, even though it's actually closest to the center of population & development on the islands. The ecology of the Outer Banks is so fragile and wonderful. Thanks for noticing and sharing this opportunity, Sue. I will contribute.
At 1:24 PM, vallerose said…

I've looked at the unclaimed site for CA several times. It seems there is a small amount of money that is still due to my father, who died 10 years ago. To claim this money means jumping through so many hoops, I have almost decided it's not worth it.