Some people may want more money to better their lifestyles or to at least erase their worries about paying bills.

I have a relative who has a different reason for wishing she had more money. She looks around at all the struggling people who can’t afford life’s basics and wishes she had the means to help.

She has an unusually big heart and a strong desire to help others. While some may hear a sad story and shrug it off or just say, “That’s too bad,” she is sometimes moved to tears when someone talks about their tragic circumstances.

“I hate not having the money to help them,” she says.

She may have a loving spirit and a generous heart, but I’ll tell you what she will never have - she’ll never have any significant money of her own. I suspect there are times when she doesn’t have the money to pay her own bills.

If she had it, she would give it away.

She laughed when I told her she will never be rich because she would give her money away to all the worthy causes she longs to help.

“Well, that’s how we’re supposed to be,” she says. “We’re supposed to help others.”

She’s right about that. While I find her generosity admirable, I worry when she gives so much of her salary away that she sometimes can’t buy food for herself.

Whether it’s buying diapers for a poor family or digging in her purse for money to buy a homeless man dinner, if she views a perceived need, she thinks she has to give all she can.

During one recent conversation she again said she wished she had more money so she could better help more struggling people.

At that point I reminded her there are multiple ways to help others that don’t require money.

My friend Bobbi Sue never had much money. It’s safe to say there were times when she didn’t even have enough money to buy food or pay her electric bill.

What she always had was the desire to help struggling people.

Bobbi Sue knew what it was like to sleep in a car with her three youngsters because they had no place to live.

That experience motivated her to open a local thrift store where the needy could come for free furniture and a helping hand.

When Bobbi Sue saw the many homeless people camped in the woods, she initiated what she called Tuesday night campers dinners. She and a small group of recruited volunteers bring volumes of homemade food that is very much appreciated by those who seldom are treated to a feast like that.

When I talked with one homeless man at the campers dinner he told me Bobbi Sue gave them much more than food. She gave them dignity.

“People seldom look us in the eye like she does. They hurry by and pretend they don’t see us. The way she listens and talks with us is rare,” said the homeless man.

We all can give away the gift of listening.

One doesn’t need money.

One lonely man who lives alone said he seldom hears the sound of his own voice. He would welcome talking with someone.

One of the very easiest things to give away is a smile. It costs nothing and might not solve someone’s big problems. But being on the other end of a smile can make someone feel good.

One doesn’t really need to have money to help others. Give as generously as you can. But if you don’t have money, you can still help others.

When you cook a meal you can take a platter to an elderly neighbor.

One fellow in my housing development has to live on a lean budget and he doesn’t drive. Yet he found a way to help the charity that provides transportation for him. He volunteers to man the telephones. That frees a worker to do other tasks and it also makes him feel good at the same time.

There are plenty of older folks who can no longer drive. They are grateful for volunteers willing to provide rides to medical appointments, the grocery store or shopping center.

If you don’t want to drive but you still want to be helpful you can volunteer to chat with long-term residents at a local nursing home or veterans home.

One fellow I know brings so much joy to these residents by playing “oldies music” one day a month.

“They might not remember what they had for breakfast but they remember the words to all the songs from their past,” he said.

Aside from a few dollars for gas he doesn’t have to spend money to help spread joy around.

A retired nurse’s aide on my block helps others by visiting older residents living alone. “If they’re having a problem I can often help or find someone to help. We walk away feeling good about ourselves knowing we are helping,” said the nurse’s aide.

Or, you can help spread the kindness epidemic with small stuff - like letting cars waiting for a break in traffic into your lane. Or, letting someone in a grocery checkout line with only a few items go ahead of you.

We can all be thoughtful givers. You don’t have to spend money or a lot of time. You just have to care.

Contact Pattie Mihalik at newsgirl@comcast.net.