be a charitable person -- but in the right way

So...here's something that happened to me. First-hand account here, people:

I was on a UTA bus home from school, about 2 miles away from my final destination. Five minutes, tops. The bus makes a stop just past the intersection of State St and Center and a man gets on. I am sitting in the front row, and I see the man put two one-dollar bills in the money machine and look around for a seat. The driver stops him and informs him that the fare for this particular bus is $5 (it's an Express bus from SLC to Orem). The man reaches into his pocket and pulls out a fist-sized roll of fives, tens, and twenties, and without a second thought, puts a $5 bill into the machine. (For those of you keeping track at home, the man has now paid $7 for a 2-mile bus ride).

The man boards the bus and chooses a seat in the aisle directly across from me. As he sits down, I see him swing his backpack in front of him and place it on an adjacent seat. The backpack is unzipped, and poking out of the top is a rectangular piece of cardboard with some writing on it, the only letters which I can make out being "ork" and "less". My powers of deduction being what they are, I surmise that the sign says something about him being out of work and homeless.

The man has by now settled into a comfortable position. As the bus gets moving, he reaches into his pocket (not the one with the wad of bills in it) and whips out an iPhone. He proceeds to make a call to inform someone that he will be at the transit center in five minutes, will he/she be ready to pick him up, and should they do pizza or burgers for dinner?

By this point, I've connected the following dots: 1) The man was picked up at one of the busiest intersections in the city. 2) He had a large wad of cash on his person. 3) He had a cardboard panhandler's sign. 4) He was definitely NOT homeless.

Sadly, this man is not the exception. Most people who panhandle do it because they get a lot of money for doing NOTHING.

If you truly want to help the homeless, don't ever, ever, ever give a panhandler cash. The absolute best way to help those in need is by donating money or volunteering your time at your local shelter. These organizations provide essential services to those who have truly fallen on hard times, and provide them with resources to help them get back on their feet. Shelters work with local law enforcement to keep meticulous track of who utilizes their services, to help ensure that those who request assistance actually need it.

(Here is the link to the local Food and Care Coalition in Provo: http://www.foodandcare.org/)

And next time you see a man standing on a corner, holding a cardboard sign and gazing at you with intensely sad eyes...remember that giving him money will only pay for the iPhone in his pocket.