I use the Charity Navigator http://www.charitynavigator.org/ to check out the good and bad charities out there. I use it to help my dad sort through the dozens of organizations that he gives to (or that want his charity dollars). I’ve found some charities that have been near and dear to my heart that actually aren’t very good at handling their money. It’s really a great resource.
Even with a helpful tool, sometimes it’s hard to decide just where you want your money to go. I’m interested in the who and why of your charitable donations. Have you been giving to them for a long time? Do you support in ways other than monetary? How much money do you typically give and how many are on your list?
I support public radio through membership, and my local volunteer fire department via donation. I support two local animal shelters via donation of personal services, and a few cancer support groups. Tonight I will be supporting Gilda’s House of Western PA by attending a craft beer tasting; how’s that for painless?
Amounts tend to be a little here and there; unless I look at a tax return, I have no idea the total yearly amount.
I work primarily for non-profits right now in the green industry. But my wife and I havebeen actively giving to several charities for many years.
The Make A Wish Foundation - don’t really need to explain their mission is near and dear to us.
The Nature Conservancy - again, mission driven, and they handle their money and their constituents very well.
The American Cancer Society - many people in my family have been affected by cancer.
Those are the biggies and the ones we donate to yearly. There a re a smattering of small local charities that no one here would recognize. Charities helping the owls and other wildlife in our area etc…etc…
I give money to Careflight because unfortunately I have had cause to use their services and, for God knows what reason, they are not government funded.
I managed to talk everyone at work into buying gifts for a giving tree at Christmas instead of buying each other worthless crap gifts. And I convinced all my family members to buy me nothing and buy a gift for some kid instead and stick it under a charity tree. No idea who will get them.
I give about $1,000 a year. I clear about $60,000 after taxes, superannuation etc, so $1,000 seems about right.
I used to just give to all the people who phoned up then I changed to regular monthly contributions. At one time it was the Red Cross, then Amnesty, then The Salvation Army and now The Wesley Mission. Years ago I supported a kid in Central America all the way to adulthood through World Vision, but then kind of forgot to make an effort and did nothing for a while.
High on my list of favorite charities is the Heifer Project. I don’t donate to them frequently, although I recently gave them several handfuls of change out of the bottom of my purse.
But I like them because of what they do–give poor people a Heifer or other animal, some training in raising the animal, and require that the people give the first offspring of the Heifer or other animal to someone else in turn. So it’s a gift that keeps on giving, and a way of helping feed the poor.
I also like UNICEF, because a small donation can go along way, and it focuses on children.
A lot of good charities here. I’m looking to update my list. I can’t afford to do all the worthy ones, and I’ve decided to change it up every year and see how that works out.
When you give, do you give a little to a lot of charities or do you do a more meaningful donation to a few? My dad has shortened his list to about 80, but the paperwork involved in tracking it is a bit daunting.
I give “at the offce” via the Combined Federal Campaign. This year, I’m dividing $1200 amongst the following:
–two local abortion-alternative crisis pregnancy and counseling centers
–a right-to-life lobbying effort
–Baptist Children’s Home Ministries (helps abused, abandoned, and homeless kids)
–Teen Speak (Christian outreach to teens)
–National Gun Owners Foundation
–Armed Forces Family Survivors Fund
–a local wildlife rehabilitation center
–a national prison ministry
–a local Korean social services organization
–St. Jude’s
–a group committed to research/cures for childhood brain tumors
The Heartland Alliance for Human Needs and Human Rights - they do a lot of good work representing refugees and providing counseling for torture survivors, among other things in which I believe VERY strongly.
Locally, there’s Safe Harbor Inn, which provides transitional housing to the homeless. They have a 70% attrition rate, which is amazing. Also, a soup kitchen called Bean’s Cafe, started by the same woman. She’s a dynamo.
Outside of the state, there’s
Doctors Without Borders, The American Cancer Society, World Wildlife Federation, NPR, and a few others.
Have him start making all of his charitable donations through Network for Good, which is also a non-profit organization that acts as a clearing house (Charity Navigator uses them exclusively to direct people to for making donations through their site). By making all your charitable donations through them, they will keep track of everything in one easy-to-access place, and provide you all the documentation you need for tax purposes.
We buy goats and chickens through Mama Maria Kenya, which uses them to help provide for emergency medical care to widowed and orphaned villagers.
We’re members of the The Wild Animal Park in San Diego, and support their “Greening Program”, which creates a fire barrier around the park to protect the animals and habitat from wildfires (which came dangerously close to the park last year).
I sit on the board of directors for the newly established Madrona Marsh Foundation (we’re too new to even have our own website yet, but you can learn more about the marsh through the Friends of Madrona Marsh website).
We choose “random” charities based on specific circumstances that have inspired us to donate, for instance, we just placed a butterfly-shaped paving stone at the entrance to the Butterfly House in memory of my cousin Mychel, who loved butterflies and was recently killed in a car accident; planted a tree in the Children’s Forest in Israel in memory of my six year old cousin Sydney, who was killed in a car accident last Summer; organized a blood drive with the American Red Cross in honor of my cousin Anita, who lost her son Jarrett and nearly died when she suffered an amniotic fluid embolism during his delivery; donated the proceeds of our winning pot from a poker game on Thanksgiving at a neighbor’s, to the charity of their choice, which was a veterans organization that I cannot recall off the top of my head, and so on.
We routinely give toys to the Marine Corps Toys for Tots program, and have asked our family to make charitable donations in lieu of sending gifts to us for Christmas and Hannukah.
I give money to homeless people that come up to me and ask for it. I have no idea how much annually, I don’t keep track. This morning outside starbucks I gave a girl and her dog $5. I’m a sucker for homeless dogs. So, I always give to the shelters that set up at pet food stores like Petsmart.
I have heard of this but haven’t looked into it too closely, due to the fact that my dad doesn’t have a computer. I’ll have to do all the work (which unfortunately I don’t have the time for right now).
I put a spreadsheet together for him that allows him to do his own tracking for 5 years. I also give him ratings over the phone. He is starting to get a little burned out on the paperwork. I suggested that he give a larger chunk to a few choice organizations and trim down the list some more. However, he has a hard time breaking away.
Most of my donations aren’t (directly) money. The obvious one is donating blood to the American Red Cross. I also donate household goods to AmVets.
Mother Bear Project: A tiny charity based out of a Minnesota woman’s home. She accepts hand-knit/crocheted teddy bears and asks for a few dollars’ donation along with each to deal with shipping/duties/etc. costs. They go to orphaned children in poor countries/regions, often victims of AIDS, natural disasters, war, etc. I wondered at first what a teddy bear could do but reading the stories on the website changed my mind and made me cry.
afghans for Afghans: Accepts hand-knit/crocheted clothing, made from warm animal-based fibers to protect against the harsh winters in Afghanistan. They work with other charities to send their goods to communities in need. (IIRC since items are handmade they are not subject to the higher duty costs that commercial items would? I could be mistaken.) Handmaking items also helps as a diplomatic gesture, showing the goodwill of the contributors towards the Afghani people. It’s also less likely to get sidetracked into the wrong hands if it’s not money or more ‘valuable’ material goods.
I’ve also handknit warm winter hats/gloves for The Night Ministry, which is a Chicago charity seeking to help the homeless regardless of race, orientation, religion/lack thereof, gender, etc. - typically I donate to them through work, same with donating old cell phones for women in domestic abuse shelters. (Disconnected cell phones still call 911, and my husband and I upgrade phones often so it’s worked out to several donated.)
For the knit items I buy the yarn then make the items, so it’s a work/time-and-money donation.
I’ve donated items and money to the Greater Chicago Ferret Association; they run a no-kill shelter which is greatly needed for an “exotic” pet like ferrets. Many shelters will not deal with ferrets, and the GCFA will ‘foster’ out ferrets with terminal (or nearly so) illnesses, paying the vet bills for the fosterers and thus allowing the ferrets to be taken home and cared for without burdening those people with expensive vet bills. Healthy ferrets can be fully adopted out. This reminds me that I haven’t given to them in a while and should do that.
I’ve donated cash to Planned Parenthood and various animal shelters. I’d love to donate to the Heifer Project or something similar - I’m thinking I should funnel my old “pay for lunch at work” budget (now that I’m packing a lunch regularly) to PP, the GCFA, and the Heifer Project.
Both already mentioned above, but my main charities are the Heifer Foundation and Doctors Without Borders. Within Washington state, I also give to WithinReach (I am also a board member). We facilitate access to services for families across Washington state. Our coolest project (in my opinion, anyway) is probably ParentHelp123, which provides a centralized way for families to identify different sources of help for which they may be eligible and to apply for all of them in a unified process.
Direct Relief International
Since the 2004 tsunami, they’ve been the best bang for the buck when it comes to medical aid. Very high ratings from CN. From their mission statement:
Since 1948, Direct Relief International has worked to improve the quality of life for people in need. Direct Relief provides medical assistance to improve the quality of life for people victimized by poverty, disaster, and civil unrest at home and throughout the world. Direct Relief is a non-political and non-sectarian organization that provides assistance without regard to race, ethnicity, political or religious affiliation, gender, or ability to pay. Since its inception, Direct Relief has provided appropriate and specifically requested medical resources to community-based institutions and organizations in over 140 countries including the United States.
Another highly rated charity where I have been sponsoring some children that match my son’s ages through Christian Foundation for Children and Aging. One child aged out and two others that match my 12 and 6 year olds are left. One in Santo Domingo and the other child in Guatamala.
