Perla Ni
CEO
GreatNonprofits.org

I am in Australia and run a very small not for profit organisation called Knitting for Brisbane’s Needy. (Brisbane Qld). All of us get no pay for what we do but enjoy knitting/crocheting/sewing new clothing, toys, blankets etc for the homeless and needy.

Many of my members have commented that they are being helped by being part of the group, as previously a lot of the older ones say they were just sitting at home waiting for “my time to be up”. But since they have started crafting items for the needy, they now have a purpose to life.

So by giving, they (and I) are reaping the rewards in a different way! Just to hand a homeless person a beanie, or blanket or toiletry bags and to see the look of surprise and their genuine thanks, is more than enough for me! Makes me want to make even more items!

This is a great thread! Would like to see more Aussies on here as well, telling what they are doing to help the needy.

As others have said, don’t forget the needy once Christmas is over. They still have to live somehow after they use what they may have been lucky enough to receive from food banks etc for Christmas!

To all of you who are helping those less fortunate….may good karma come back to you fourfold!!

Yes, some charities have big budgets and use a lot of donations for overhead. But many other charities and non-profits don’t. It’s worth looking into local charities to see if you can maximize your dollars within your own community. As far as I know, any non-profit or charity will willingly give you a breakdown of their basic budget to demonstrate that donations are well-used.

And to Contrarian, perhaps there would not be so many government funded agencies to assist the poor if people were willing to open their wallets and assist others. While this might not be your point of view, I’ve found that many who are anti-taxes also are mostly or wholly-unwilling to help others in the guise of “I worked for my money, so why can’t they?” I just don’t see taxes as any sort of valid excuse to not support a charity or non-profit that has a mission in which you believe. Furthermore, if you’d like to allocate your tax dollars “more wisely,” you can always figure out (perhaps with the help of an accountant) the maximum amount you can give to a non-profit in order to reduce your tax liability. That way, you’ve given less money to the government AND you’re able to support those causes that are an ideological match for you.

Some others I like:

Buy a Goat, Duck, Chicken to help teach poor people in other countries how to live off these animals
http://donate.worldvision.org/OA_HTML/xxwvibeCCtpSctDspRte.jsp?minisite=10020&lpos=top_drp_WaysToGive_GiftCatalog&section=10024&go=gift&&section=10024

Pack a Shoebox for needy children overseas
http://www.samaritanspurse.org/index.php/OCC/Pack_A_Shoe_Box/

Give small business owners in impovershed countries the loans they need to startup
http://www.kiva.org/

And a list of a few others at http://www.fixmas.org/?request=join

They can be found collectively at http://philstrahm.blogspot.com/search/label/Christmas%20Giving

I want to give to my usual no-kill animal shelter but am feeling guilty about humans that are suffering. I’m all for weekly donations to a food bank BUT my local one does NOT accept food donations, only cash (from individuals. If you are in a wholesale grocery business, then they take food). I also tried to donate very nice woman’s suits but after ten attempts I still have yet to receive an email or phone response regarding how I get this item to them, since no info is on their website re: how to donate. (Grr)

As far as the shoestring budget of charities…it isn’t true of all of them but a great deal of them pay their leader $200k to $500k (yes, half a million) a year salary…sorry, they don’t need my $100 then.

At work we sponser kids for xmas. The charity and my employer expect us to purchase everything on that list. Guess what? Most of the kids 10 and up listed a $200 iphone. Sorry…I’m all for new clothes, toys, books, crafty items..but seriously? $200 phone? My own kids would not get something that expensive!

Anyway, here are some of my (negative) thoughts. At times, I wish there was more flexibility and meeting my charitable wants when giving rather than bending to demands around me.

I will probably just play it safe and do Catholic Charities and social justice at my mother’s church (while they help individual families who are trying but meeting too much bad luck).

The old way I did my taxes with no shelters meant I was being taxed up to 28%, with no control over where that money was going or how it was being spent. Now that I concienciously work throughout the year on where my contributions and investiments go (via donations, my mortgage, multiple business expenses, retirement, etc.), I now pay an effective rate of tax of less than 5% on my income (by using the tax rules to reduce my taxable income). And in this way I control where the majority of my money goes, and how it is used. A very empowering lesson for me.

One nice thing about volunteering time is that you can use your time to its full effect without ever running through the tax system. This is why I volunteer to teach, even though I disagree with a public school system funded by property tax.

I would never consider it an *obligation* to give. Giving is a choice, and having the freedom to choose what you donate to is what makes a donation meaningful.

When the government takes my money, I can’t choose where it goes; I don’t get to withdraw it if an agency is misusing it (e.g. too-high bureaucratic overhead, enabling drug abusers, insufficient means-testing for recipients of aid, or supporting causes which which I disagree, e.g. abortion/euthenasia).

If government wasn’t robbing me, in a purely private system I would have that choice, and I could choose to give my money to private charities that efficiently helped people and aligned with my moral values, and I would. Until then, my giving is done primarily though tax withholding under threat of governmental armed force.

It’s true…I know that I’m doing okay, and that there are lots of people that are worse off.

How do I frame it in my mind? Well, with gas prices down so much, I figure that I would have spent that $25 I just sent off on gas this week anyway, so 3 months ago I wouldn’t have had it, but now I do, so I’m doing what I can to help.

Not only that, but I *have* mentioned it on my blogs and on Twitter & Facebook.

I would like to note in response to Carrottop, I applaud your efforts in the office. So many little junk-type gifts get given for events like these. Do we really need another set of candles or body lotions.

My mom talked her office into switching from the ‘Secret Santa’ to the office sponsoring a local family for Christmas. The local family submits a wish list and then the office loves buying all these nice things for the family. It seems to be so much more satisfying to know that they are buying gifts that will be much appreciated for people truly in need.

We are doing the same thing for our family gifts, though we don’t have any small kids which is what makes this realistic for us. No requirement to get gifts for each other (though I am bringing some special gifts that caught my eye for a few), but we are all having fun buying toys for kids locally who otherwise would not be getting gifts. We even are buying gifts ‘in honor of’ other family members that remind us of them. Last year I got a Dora the Explorer set and a couple of stuffed dogs in honor of my aunt who looks like Dora and works at a kennel.

Brooklyn Chick, that’s a great way of thinking of it(the “$10 is two magazines” sortof thing). It’s pretty easy to find SOMETHING we can give up.

Without trying to take this political (which I try to avoid), taxes on the rich are going to go up, and the Rich give substantially to the charities that do tons of good. To quote a very rich relative “Well I figure my take home will be about the same, the only difference is that instead of me giving tons of money away, it’s going to be taken from me.”

Being a mentor to a younger person, volunteering at a soup kitchen/hospital/skill center helping other gain valuable traits all should be done…A few hours a week can change a person and the community for the better.

Sometimes we take for granted the education/income we have and forget about the struggles it took to get here. Helping others keeps you grounded with reality and provides hope for others. Money is not always viable for many to donate in hard times, but we can all spare some time.

I value both of these entities immensely.

I will eventually start giving my time, but for now I’m all about building my blog with my free time.

Scordo, I think when times are tough what can dominate our hearts is *fear.* Goodness knows the media and some of our friends and family can stoke this. All I do is *try* to trust in “instant karma;” that giving now will in some way help my well-being later on in this life. I also, as Debbie said, remember that no matter how high my cc bills are, I have a roof over my head, a job and food in the fridge.

Like others, I donate clothes, books, and other things in addition to money.

As far as $ gifts go, for the most part I sign up for automatic monthly giving. This makes it easier when I am worried abut money because when I see a $10 or $20 monthly debit to Heifer, Doctors without Borders and so on, I tell myself – $10 is two magazines I buy when I’m depressed, or two fancy coffees if I treat a co-worker. But over a year, these gifts add up. And increasing the monthly amount a little ($5 or $10) doesn’t hurt, but again really adds up over time.

Lastly, I have cut back on some other “nice to haves” to make more room – Netflix, etc.

Scodo, here’s an appeal to logic: “Spending” is good for the economy in a recession as I understand it – keeping money moving. And charitable giving is the best kind of spending. No clutter, and it employs folks, buys food and clothes, etc. So spending in this way may help us out of this mess!