What charities do you support and how do you decide? How do you know the charity you support uses the money you donate wisely? Where do you find detailed information on charities?
I don't really have charities that I support at the moment. Right now, I'm focusing on just buying from smaller, family owned businesses, instead of Wal-Mart and crap like that. That kind of counts I guess, trying to support small business?
I think that counts. You are helping support smaller business which is good. Are there any charities that you would support in the future?
I donate clothes/furniture to the Salvation Army twice a year. This is just something my family has done since I was little. I support the ACS by helping organize and run Relay For Life every year. I have several friends that have been affected by cancer so it was a cause I had to support. And I support Operation Smile through Freelanthropy.com. One of my teachers was a really huge supporter of Operation Smile and I just think it's a good cause so I stuck with it. I know Freelanthropy is just a small amount every time you search, but I've been using it for a while now so it's really added up!
I dont support any charities....but I always give a few bucks to kids who stand at the mall entrances asking for money for cadets or hockey teams...scouts etc...and to the Poppy guys around rememberance day too...and I always buy chocolate bars from kids trying to fundraise for school trips
I don't give to charities. We wouldn't need charities if the system wasn't so fucked up. So my way of supporting charities is to not support the system. ie: buying local and independent, not wasting food/over-eating, using people-friendly products when imported (no sweatshop/child labor), buying fair trade
These are very good questions. Deciding on the causes to support, for me, is pretty simple ... I support the things I believe in. At the moment, there are primarily three: the Komen Foundation (for breast cancer research), the Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance, and public television. Knowing that the money I donate to them is being used wisely always involves a bit of trust. In the case of Komen, I work with them on a regular basis, and I see the results they've gotten over the long term, so I'm confident they're trustworthy. SUWA was an easy one, as well. I am passionate about wild places in general, and the canyon country of southern Utah and northern Arizona in particular. I have known many of the people involved with SUWA for a number of years, and trust them. Public television ... everyone knows about that.
Swallow Hill Music Association, Freight and Salvage, ALS couple scholarship programs (all financially, two with volunteering as well) Sporadic contributions to Peaceful Prairie Sanctuary, Nature Conservancy, some disaster relief, go along with a friend who hands out granola bars, water and new socks to the folks living in a park in Denver. Plus tzdekkah, which rotates. I like Charity Navigator to check out charities.
www.mercycorps.org - right now their site is focusing on the recovery in Haiti, but they do a lot more than just that As for how to decide? Just ask around. Talk to people. Talk to people who have been supporting causes a long time. They are usually people who are educated enough in picking good foundations and can give you advice. I usually make sure to look at what part of donations gets eaten by administration fees and how much of it goes to support the cause. Ideally only 10% or less should go to administration, the rest directly to the cause. Sometimes it's higher, sometimes it's hard to tell. I mean, when you're paying for something like cancer research 250,000 can go go go and you still might not get there, but every bit helps. Let both your heart and mind guide you as you start to look at where to give. Sometimes charity is giving an organization some change. Other times it's giving the man on the corner some change. Just depends on what you're wanting to do, what cause and effect you want to get involved in.
