Pick a number, any number, so goes the old pitch. But when it comes to deciding how much to donate to a given charity, does it matter what number you pick? It does to Ira Riklis. Sure, in general you want to give whatever you can reasonable afford to give. But no one, not even the most wealthy among us, can give enough to meet the needs of all the charities we might wish to support.
Ira Riklis donates money to help support nearly fifty charitable groups. The amounts vary widely, but the “magic” number that links them all is 18. Most donations he makes are in some multiple of that number. Why? It’s a way of appreciating the gift of Life that’s based on the ancient Hebrew practice of Gematrea, the calculation of the numerical equivalence of letters and words. In Hebrew, the word for life is Chai, which is composed of letters that add up to 18.