Monday, November 27, 2017

'Tis the Season

Every year about this time I post a blog on the topic of giving, and since my personal blog is already booked up (no pun intended) for the next couple weeks, I thought I’d share the giving post here.

My giving post generally focuses on specific charities, but this year I’m including a word of caution, too. We’ve all gotten those phone calls asking for money for various deserving charities (and if you haven’t gotten those phone calls, please PM me and spill your secret), but it’s important to note that the companies that are hired to make those calls get paid with a significant percentage of the money they bring in.

If you want your chosen charity to get the most bang for your buck, give directly to the charity by calling or visiting its website. A much higher percentage of your donation will, in most cases, go directly toward helping people, animals, etc.

With that out of the way, I’d like to introduce you to Charity Navigator. If you’re not familiar with this website, it’s a place where people can go to get some important particulars about the charities they’re considering, such as transparency, accountability, and financial health. Charity Navigator rates charities based on these criteria and shares its results with donors in ways that are easy to understand.

Charity Navigator has a number of ways to help donors choose charities. A donor can search for a particular charity by name, of course, but he or she can also search for charities with perfect scores, trending charities, big and small charities, charities to watch, and the list goes on and on. The site also includes tips for donors as well as a blog with some helpful and informative information about giving.

Click here to visit Charity Navigator and check it out for yourself.

Interested in what charities I’m considering this year? Here they are:

United Methodist Committee on Relief

Cure Alzheimer’s Fund

Rainforest Trust

Make-A-Wish Foundation of New Jersey

Make-A-Wish Foundation of Hawaii

Books for Africa


These are just a few of the literally thousands of charities to choose from, and sorting through them to find the right ones for you is a time-consuming job. Charity Navigator does most of the work for donors. I urge you to check out the website and give during this holiday season.

7 comments:

Unknown said...

Wonderful Information! Enjoy your week, Amy!

Amy M. Reade said...

Thanks, Sharon! Same to you!

authorlindathorne said...

Thank you. Having a job again puts me in the position to give to charities, but I'm always wary of scams. There are some local ones where I live that we think are solid, but your information provides more security. Thank you for that. It feels good to help a cause, especially this time of year.

Charles Gramlich said...

Most of the time when I give it is direct giving, to individuals or local groups

Anonymous said...

I have a number I give to each year and feel confident about them. Charity Navigator is a good source. Thanks for this, Amy.

Amy M. Reade said...

Linda, I've been getting a lot of phone calls lately that mimic local numbers on the caller ID, like the pharmacy or the library. It's sick.

Charles, that's wise. I used to give over the phone, but then I was surprised to learn how little of those donations go to the actual charity.

Maggie, it's nice to have a regular slate of charities. There are certain charities we give to every year, but we usually choose a couple different ones to mix it up.

Liane Spicer said...

Great info, Amy. Thank you!