Choosing a Charity

samammay

I don't really participate in other group discussions/forums so you are my peeps here.

How do you decide who/what organization to give money to at Christmas time? Its rolling around again and I have too much money.

Seriously though... we have had an exceptionally fortunate year and want to share with others who need it, but how do I choose? About all I know is we do not want to support the huge national/international charities. We want to keep it close to home, which has been hit pretty hard the last few years with some of the NASA cutbacks (I live near Cape Canaveral, FL)

Is it as simple as 'pick one at random that is aiming to do the things I want to support' or is there more to it?

randomtai

Donate all your extra money to me. Problem solved. :flowerforyou:

wjstoj

www.guidestar.org to review charities to make sure they are legit and to review how they spend their money.

Otherwise, yeah...go with your head and heart

sillygoosie

Try to find a Giving Tree in your area. Your money/gifts can go directly to a family that you choose. Also look into your local food banks or shelters.

...and good on you for thinking of others when you've had a good year. Some would only think of having more for themselves. :flowerforyou:

Cre8veLifeR

Every year we give gifts to a local group home for children who come from abusive homes. I have my children shop for children their age. I want them to know that they are fortunate and not every child lives like they do: loved, respected, treasured and safe.

There are TONS of local charities everywhere that help people right in your own backyard.

Give to one that touches your and is meaningful to you.

whierd

Why not give throughout the year instead of just at Christmas?

samammay

Every year we give gifts to a local group home for children who come from abusive homes. I have my children shop for children their age. I want them to know that they are fortunate and not every child lives like they do: loved, respected, treasured and safe.

There are TONS of local charities everywhere that help people right in your own backyard.

Give to one that touches your and is meaningful to you.

That's my dilemma... there are TONS of them. My church supports 3 - all of which are special. One is a food bank, one is a group home for abused children and one is an after school program for at risk youth. My MIL is involved in several others, all of which support kids.

I guess what im asking is 'is there a way to pick' and more importantly, is there a wrong answer?

samammay

Why not give throughout the year instead of just at Christmas?

We do. We were just looking to do something special on top of that for Christmas this year.

heylookitsval

We all know you really made this thread to show us all how poor we really are.

randomtai

We all know you really made this thread to show us all how poor we really are.

rml_16

I would support a charity I knew used more money for its purpose than to pay its administrators and that was something I believed strongly in. More than likely, I'd give to a local animal or women's shelter.

samammay

We all know you really made this thread to show us all how poor we really are.

Yeah - ya got me. Totally how I roll.

whierd

Why not give throughout the year instead of just at Christmas?

We do. We were just looking to do something special on top of that for Christmas this year.

Homeless people then.

Homeless people is always a worthy choice. My favorite charity is donating money to the White House Italian Steak house in Anaheim. They feed 300 motel kids per night and also collect monetary donations to help their families with down payments/security deposits for new homes. They take money and pasta ingredients.

exquisitelyimprobable

www.guidestar.org to review charities to make sure they are legit and to review how they spend their money.

Otherwise, yeah...go with your head and heart

This. Please check them out first. I just advised a girl about guidestar earlier today who was raising money for a charity where a majority of the revenue was going to the leader's salary.

whierd

I would support a charity I knew used more money for its purpose than to pay its administrators and that was something I believed strongly in. More than likely, I'd give to a local animal or women's shelter.

Yeah, I look for more local charities that do not suck up the donations as payroll.

sullus

I'd give to a charity that is local and small. Your money will make a bigger difference there than it will to a large national cause.

Ed98043

I'd give to a charity that is local and small. Your money will make a bigger difference there than it will to a large national cause.

That's usually what I do. I try to donate every month to something...usually animal rescue. I think the only nationally-known charity I give to is Sea Shepherd (that's not counting one-off donations like for the Boston bombing victims).

The beauty of smaller, local charities is that you're helping those in your own community, and they're not spending your money on things like salaries, mass-mailers, lobbyists, etc. There are some charities that devote literally less than 2% of their donations to the actual needy.

Timshel_

How do you decide who/what organization to give money to at Christmas time?

We give year round to our church, several Christian organizations, and a few other humanitarian efforts. We donate time and energy at the public schools and other places. Around Christmas we all go through our house and find things that might be able to be donated to Salvation Army or Goodwill, as well as doing a lot of the Toys for Tots drop offs.

Choice is really yours. Time is as good, if not better than money.