"You can’t save everyone, folks…just try not to live next door to them when they go off."   –Dennis Miller

There are many problems in the world today.  This should come as absolutely no surprise to any of you, Gentle Readers, and if it does, I’m sorry to be the bearer of bad tidings.  Even though the world abounds with problems, the world also abounds with charities to help alleviate these problems.  And they all want your money.  And you, being a compassionate person, would like to be able to help all of these charities.  Some religions even require that their members tithe a certain amount of their earnings.  So now you have to deal with the guilt trip God can give you.

But, then again, you live in the real world.  Although giving to charities is a great idea, do not give to the point where your own health and finances become too stressed.

Commonsense Charity Giving Tips

1. Don’t feel guilty about not being able to give to every charity that asks.  You just can’t afford it, whether you give in time, money or donating old belongings.  There are thousands of registered charities in America alone.  If you gave all you had away, you’ll wind up being a charity case, yourself.
2. Pick one charity organization or type of charities to give to and stick with it for at least a year.  For example, I currently only give to animal charities and the Salvation Army.  That’s all I can afford.  I’ll let the rich rock stars worry about the enviornment, diseases and human rights.  If I gave to every cause that moved me, my personal energy and personal savings would be spread too thin.  I’d wind up becoming a nutcase.  The information charities send you when they ask for money is also very distressing (it’s designed to be.)  You can only take so much stress in your life.  So just open the one charity’s (or charity type’s) envelopes and immediately toss the rest into the recycling bin.
3. Expect the charity you give to be be run as a business.  Only in a perfect world do effective charities run along entirely on volunteer efforts.  The burn-out in charity work is incredibly high, so almost all charity organizations have to have paid salaried members and merchandise to sell.  Not every penny you give will go directly to the charity works, but the other pennies tend to go indirectly.  You do have the right to find out how much of every donated dollar goes to where.  Reputable charities will be happy to provide you with that information.
4. Check out charity watchdog web sites such as Charity Ratings Watchdog Service and Charity Navigator to help you decide what charities deserve your time and/or money.  They will let you know how much of each dollar goes to the charity’s programs, the CEO’s annual salaries and whether the charity will even open their books to the public or not.  And, yes, they are charities themselves and will (subtly) ask for donations.
5. Get receipts whenever possible.  Show them to the Taxman, and you should be able to get a tax write-off (depending on what the tax laws are where you live and what phase of the moon it is).  There’s no reson why you shouldn’t be rewarded for your giving.

Hope this helps!

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