Your Favorite charity organization...? please

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joe8d
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Re: Your Favorite charity organization...? please

Post by joe8d »

Catholic Charities.
All the Best, | Joe
Sconie
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Re: Your Favorite charity organization...? please

Post by Sconie »

I tend to prefer local, somewhat smaller, charities and organizations "doing good," as compared to the "gigantic" national organizations---with high overhead and large executive salaries-----such as United Way, the Red Cross, American Cancer Soc, Nature Conservancy and the like.

My "giving" criteria amounts to asking myself two questions: 1) Do I believe in it; and, 2) Do I feel responsible for it? Then too, when I do donate, I prefer being able to make a one-time donation that will help make a difference with a special project or activity for a group, versus the situation of donating to the same organization year after year----in effect, becoming part of their annual budget.
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KlangFool
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Re: Your Favorite charity organization...? please

Post by KlangFool »

http://www.capitalareafoodbank.org/

Capital Area Food Bank

I do not think American should go hungry.

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Ivygirl
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Re: Your Favorite charity organization...? please

Post by Ivygirl »

Food for the Poor. 96.4% of donations go to their programs,.7% administrative expenses, 2.9% fundraising. Food, housing, sanitation, water projects, farm animals, fruit trees, schoolbooks and uniforms, orphanages, in Central America and the Caribbean.
littlebird
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Re: Your Favorite charity organization...? please

Post by littlebird »

My local community fund; my state-wide public interest law firm; my out-of-state (public) alma mater; International Rescue Committee.
Louis Winthorpe III
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Re: Your Favorite charity organization...? please

Post by Louis Winthorpe III »

Humane Society.
LiketoHike
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Re: Your Favorite charity organization...? please

Post by LiketoHike »

St Jude Children's Research Hospital.
Finding cures, saving children.
No child is denied treatment based on race, religion or families inability to pay.
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William4u
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Re: Your Favorite charity organization...? please

Post by William4u »

Oxfam: The Oxford Committee for Famine Relief... http://www.oxfam.org/

The biggest bang for the buck, since $10 for them is the difference between a family being or not being malnourished for a month. Ten bucks donated in the USA just doesn't go nearly as far.
7 million people need urgent help in South Sudan
Nearly 4 million – a third of the country’s population - are at risk of severe hunger and the aid effort has only so far reached half of those in need.
http://www.oxfam.org/en/emergencies/southsudan
Saluki31
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Re: Your Favorite charity organization...? please

Post by Saluki31 »

International Rett Syndrome Foundation (http://www.rettsyndrome.org)

Rett Syndrome is a devastating disorder. The organization does wonderful things - from providing much needed family support to funding promising research that WILL one day lead to treatment or a cure.
Globalviewer58
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Re: Your Favorite charity organization...? please

Post by Globalviewer58 »

Junior Achievement - teaching financial literacy to school children. I teach a local 5th grade class. All volunteer instructors.
BigJohn
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Re: Your Favorite charity organization...? please

Post by BigJohn »

Like Nisi and others my first choice is our local food bank. I've been on the board of directors for many years and I know the money is well spent helping people with a basic need. It's unbelievable how many people go to bed hungry each night in this country.

Don't think I've seen it mentioned yet but I feel the same about the local Habitat for Humanity organization based on talking to people who have been on their board of directors.
"The greatest enemy of a good plan is the dream of a perfect plan" - Carl Von Clausewitz
maroon
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Re: Your Favorite charity organization...? please

Post by maroon »

I don't think anyone's mentioned DonorsChoose - support public school classroom projects in your local area. Great charity, IMO.

(Also, a shout out to Beagle Freedom Project; rescuing beagles from research laboratories and finding them homes...)
sscritic
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Re: Your Favorite charity organization...? please

Post by sscritic »

maroon wrote:I don't think anyone's mentioned DonorsChoose - support public school classroom projects in your local area. Great charity, IMO.
It doesn't have to be local. It can be anywhere. I know, I just tested it by lying (one of my favorite things to do) and putting in 12345 as my zip code (who knew that 12345 was a real zip code?).

I use DonorsChoose whenever some outfit sends me free money that I can't use anywhere else. It's sort of fun to see teachers beg for material things.
maroon
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Re: Your Favorite charity organization...? please

Post by maroon »

Hi sscritic - you're right, it doesn't have to be local. When I find a classroom project I particularly like, I'll help fund it no matter which state it's in. Also I like to get the hand-written (hand-drawn?!) thank you notes from the kids.
sscritic
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Re: Your Favorite charity organization...? please

Post by sscritic »

maroon wrote:Hi sscritic - you're right, it doesn't have to be local. When I find a classroom project I particularly like, I'll help fund it no matter which state it's in. Also I like to get the hand-written (hand-drawn?!) thank you notes from the kids.
I was just giving you a hard time. I have always checked the box that says don't bother to send me thank you notes (or whatever the actual box says), although I do get the general electronic thank you to all donors from the teacher.
BigJohn
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Re: Your Favorite charity organization...? please

Post by BigJohn »

Sconie wrote:Then too, when I do donate, I prefer being able to make a one-time donation that will help make a difference with a special project or activity for a group, versus the situation of donating to the same organization year after year----in effect, be coming part of their annual budget.
Sconie, please do not take this as criticism, it's fantastic that you give. I used to have very similar perspective until being the Treasurer for our local food bank board. I'll use our example to illustrate the kinds of issues these restricted gifts can cause.

Our most popular program is backpacks for kids and people give very generously. This is great but that is not the only group that needs food and it doesn't pay the electric bills for our warehouse operation. It's also hard to spend that money in the summer. This lead to many times when we have to dip into reserves to balance the budget while having a surplus in that program we cannot effectively spend.

Over time I've changed my paradigm to the following. I do my homework on how the organization spend it's money. Not just overall percentages but also how much is spent on salaries, wages and benefits. If I believe in the mission of the organization and I think they are spending the money prudently, I am proud to become part of their annual budget in order to allow them to decide where the need is greatest.

Again, please do not take this as criticism, just trying to provide an alternative perspective on giving as all these organizations have overheads that need to be paid to accomplish their overall mission.
"The greatest enemy of a good plan is the dream of a perfect plan" - Carl Von Clausewitz
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gatorman
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Re: Your Favorite charity organization...? please

Post by gatorman »

Heifer International:
http://www.heifer.org/about-heifer/index.html
Trans World Radio:
http://www.twr.org/about/
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yukonjack
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Re: Your Favorite charity organization...? please

Post by yukonjack »

rendiggy wrote:http://www.givewell.org/ is a highly respected reviewer of charities. Their main focus in on finding demonstrable and cost effective ways to raise the standard of living world wide so 'most' of their recommendations are international .

They also make available their ratings for every charity they consider http://www.givewell.org/charities#AllUn ... considered

At the same time, they are pretty upfront about the fact that they can't evaluate everyone:
If you have access to other giving opportunities that you understand well, have a great deal of context on and have high confidence in — whether these consist of supporting an established organization or helping a newer one get off the ground — it may make more sense to take advantage of your unusual position and "fund what others won't," since GiveWell's research is available to (and influences) large numbers of people.
+1. Givewell does an amazing job of getting the most value out of each dollar. Even if you don't end up donating to them you would find their way of doing business, as it were, quite interesting. Basically what they do is literally try to save the most lives with each dollar donated. Therefore most all of the donations go to causes in sub Saharan Africa. I discovered them through reading a very informative piece in the NY Times and now look at charitable donations much differently.
Median Joe
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Re: Your Favorite charity organization...? please

Post by Median Joe »

James Randi Educational Foundation
AviN
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Re: Your Favorite charity organization...? please

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texasdiver
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Re: Your Favorite charity organization...? please

Post by texasdiver »

I give some to United Way just to get the aggressive departmental fundraisers off my back at work who are all competing with each other. But it isn't my "favorite" charity.

Lately I've been giving to my local school district's Education Foundation which puts 100% of the funds into the classroom through a competitive grant program in which teachers in the district apply for grants for innovative classroom projects. They've done all kinds of interesting things that would otherwise not be in the budget like community gardens, new technologies, field trips, software, etc. I think many schools around the country have similar foundations that do the same thing.

My wife and I have also given to the Padre Hurtado Foundation in Chile. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alberto_Hurtado
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William4u
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Re: Your Favorite charity organization...? please

Post by William4u »

Here is the "Top Ten" list from "The Life You Can Save," which tries to maximize the number of lives you can save per donation.

http://www.thelifeyoucansave.org/wheretodonate.aspx
crg11
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Re: Your Favorite charity organization...? please

Post by crg11 »

I'm a big fan of the Jimmy Fund, which helps fund research and treatment for cancer patients: http://www.jimmyfund.org
Atilla
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Re: Your Favorite charity organization...? please

Post by Atilla »

You can't go too wrong with the Salvation Army. I've given small amounts to them regularly since I started giving as a deliberate practice.

Trust is important and you have to believe in the goals and practices of the organization.

I do like giving locally - it connects you to the givers and receivers. My wife and I are founding donors for this food pantry. We know the people who started the pantry personally and we have 100% trust the money is well spent - their hearts are in the right place and they have grown into very good administrators of a pretty large operation. http://www.riverfoodpantry.org/

And it's cool seeing something start from nothing to being the biggest (and by far the best) thing of its kind in the county.
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celia
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Re: Your Favorite charity organization...? please

Post by celia »

OP, If the point of your posting is to find the charity that uses all of donations received for its mission, there are several "rating" sites for charities as described here:
http://www.mymoneyblog.com/links-best-c ... sites.html

As noted, though, there are other things to consider beside what percent of the donation goes towards the cause being promoted. I think of it as if I were to compare two soup kitchens in different cities. One has all the food donated, while the second needs to buy at least some of the food sometimes. One has to pay to rent the dining hall while the second already has a hall it can use. The city for the first soup kitchen has others in the city while the city of the second soup kitchen has more homeless shelters which provide food. If you wanted to give to one of the soup kitchens, how would you choose? They have different circumstances and resources yet the same goal. Both could easily say that 100% of donations goes towards feeding the homeless, although in one more money is spent on rent while the other spends it on better food.

Besides, many non-profits have expenses that you may not think contribute toward its mission. They may have to pay utilities, an accountant, tax preparer, insurance, cell phones, etc. Will you hold it against a charity if they have expenses that don't go toward fulfilling their mission?
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sans souliers
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Re: Your Favorite charity organization...? please

Post by sans souliers »

The Food Pantry in my town has been recognized by the state oversight org. as an example to be followed by other assistance org's statewide.
Not only do they provide food, but also necessities not covered by food stamps (or their equivalent) such as toothpaste, diapers, sanitary supplies, etc., new clothing and shoe donations for back-to-school, breakfast and lunch programs during the summer months when school is out and parents are at work - for any kid who shows up.
The past few years have been devastating for families, and replacement jobs pay so much less than the jobs that used to be.
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FRANK2009
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Re: Your Favorite charity organization...? please

Post by FRANK2009 »

http://bestfriends.org


They provide homes, food, and medical care for homeless animals.
eschaef
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Re: Your Favorite charity organization...? please

Post by eschaef »

Blink Now, Maggie Doyne, and Kopila Valley Children's Home and School.
http://www.blinknow.org
http://www.blinknow.org/journal
http://instagram.com/blinknoworg
http://instagram.com/maggiedoyne

I highly recommend reading the journal entries which chronicle her journey from the beginning, even if you have no inclination to donate. You really get to know her and the family she has built.

From the website: "After Maggie’s senior year of high school, as her friends headed to college, the 18-year-old boarded a plane in New Jersey and set off to see the world with just her backpack and eyes wide open. Four countries and 20,000 miles later, she found herself trekking through the Himalayas and walking along the dirt roads of Nepal’s most poverty-stricken villages.

It is here that Maggie met a six-year-old girl named Hima, one of the hundreds of struggling children she met on her journey. Hima was breaking stones in a dry riverbed and selling them to earn a few dollars to feed her family. She was barely surviving, yet a glimmer of light shined deep within. Maggie was shocked by what she saw and decided to take action.

Over the next two years, the dream of building a safe, clean, stable home became a reality. Maggie purchased land in Surkhet, Nepal, with her life savings of $5,000. The home’s foundation was soon poured thanks to the astounding help of the local Nepalese community – led by BlinkNow Co-Founder Top Bahadur Malla – along with an emerging group of supporters from Maggie’s hometown of Mendham, New Jersey, and others around the world. Brick by brick, walls began to rise. The roof went up. And in 2008, the front door of Kopila Valley Children’s Home opened.

Kopila, which means “flower bud,” is now home to a family of 44 beautiful, happy, thriving children, and of course their mother and guardian, Maggie. Top heads up our dedicated team of caregivers, cooks, “aunties” and “uncles” who keep the house clean, the children fed and everyone’s spirits high.

In 2010, another dream came true: Kopila Valley School. The primary school, built out of locally harvested bamboo, is gorgeous and bustling with over 300 children from Surkhet and surrounding areas. Many are the first in their families to ever attend school, creating a new generation of literate, educated students who will become empowered adults. Our all-Nepali faculty and staff make sure each and every child is set up for success.

Beyond schooling, the students are provided health care and a daily nutritious meal, as well as a sense of community and confidence that grows with each passing year."
dewey
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Re: Your Favorite charity organization...? please

Post by dewey »

Unitarian Universalist Service Committee
My local church
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JamesPSullivan
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Re: Your Favorite charity organization...? please

Post by JamesPSullivan »

Our top 2 charities are:

St. Baldrick's > It's an organization that raises money for cancer research for childhood cancers. Less than 5% of federal funding goes to research for these cancers.

Children's Healthcare of Atlanta > Helps fund healthcare facilities for children in the Atlanta area.
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prudent
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Re: Your Favorite charity organization...? please

Post by prudent »

maroon wrote:I don't think anyone's mentioned DonorsChoose - support public school classroom projects in your local area. Great charity, IMO.

(Also, a shout out to Beagle Freedom Project; rescuing beagles from research laboratories and finding them homes...)
Just checked out DonorsChoose. Looks to be a great way to support smaller projects in schools and I think we'll put that on our list for the next time we have some funds to share. I don't have what it takes to be a teacher but the ones I know put in amazing effort.
BW1985
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Re: Your Favorite charity organization...? please

Post by BW1985 »

Second Chance Dog Rescue in NYC. Amazing work.
Chase the good life my whole life long, look back on my life and my life gone...where did I go wrong?
fareastwarriors
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Re: Your Favorite charity organization...? please

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Summer Search.
It changed my life.
killjoy2012
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Re: Your Favorite charity organization...? please

Post by killjoy2012 »

My primary charity for years used to be the American Cancer Society, but I've recently switched to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation (BCRF) since they're significantly more financially effective, as well as more targeted at what my primary interest are in helping.

I also contribute financially and personal time to our local Habitat for Humanity organization.

My only suggestion/request is that you find a charitable 'topic' that's personally moving to yourself, then do a little research to make sure your donations are actually going to be used to help that cause, not just line the pockets of their officers who make 6-7 figure salaries and their marketing machine. Too many people assume that all charities are run efficiently and shoe string budgets.
saladdin
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Re: Your Favorite charity organization...? please

Post by saladdin »

Local only. Once I started marking national's off the list for personal, political or religious reasons local palces that I could see were left.

I live in a rural area where the county seat may have 8k people. So when someone's house burns down or gets cancer there is normally a right up in the paper and odds are you know them. So people will create a savings account at a local bank and post the number in the paper. I have learned that donating this way makes me feel better about where my money is going.
MSORSA
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Re: Your Favorite charity organization...? please

Post by MSORSA »

I like this charity because there is no waste of money in overhead, 100% of your donations are used to provide food and education to this kids.

http://hopemadereal.org/
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HardKnocker
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Re: Your Favorite charity organization...? please

Post by HardKnocker »

Charity begins at home.
“Gold gets dug out of the ground, then we melt it down, dig another hole, bury it again and pay people to stand around guarding it. It has no utility.”--Warren Buffett
Jodi
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Re: Your Favorite charity organization...? please

Post by Jodi »

My favorite charity is Camp Wapiyapi, a week long camp in Colorado for children with cancer and their siblings. I volunteered at the camp during residency and will be sponsoring a camper next year. Seeing the joy that this camp brings to kids who are battling cancer is just beyond words.

http://wapiyapi.org/

Jodi
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ejvyas
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Re: Your Favorite charity organization...? please

Post by ejvyas »

Asha for Education where I volunteer my time
Salvation Army where I donate stuff that I dont use
Dave1
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Re: Your Favorite charity organization...? please

Post by Dave1 »

We donate to medical causes mostly, our favorites being the usual suspects like the American Heart Association, Susan G. Komen, St. Jude's etc. Two of our more recent favorites are the Kidney Fund http://www.kidneyfund.org/ and Sankerra Eye http://www.giftofvision.org/ where your money goes pretty far ... $30 gets you a cataract procedure for example!
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William4u
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Re: Your Favorite charity organization...? please

Post by William4u »

HardKnocker wrote:Charity begins at home.
The idea of that quote is that to be truly charitable, one must first learn charity at home and then extend it outward into the wider world. Charity BEGINS at home, but it cannot end there.

If charity begins and ends at home, it never really began at home in the first place. If one becomes truly charitable at home, one is charitable outside of home as well, simply because one has become a charitable person.

A stingy person outside the home hardly can be a charitable person wherever he or she may be.
Elemental
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Re: Your Favorite charity organization...? please

Post by Elemental »

I just stumbled across a charity that appears to be highly rated, claims 100% of donations go straight to the field, and is currently running a program where a donor is offering to match contributions ( $750,000 left in matching funds ).

http://www.charitywater.org/

I thought it would be relevant to this thread, and am still researching this myself. I'm interested in clean water, cleft palate surgery, and fighting human trafficking and fgm. If you have suggestions in those categories, I would appreciate it.
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