The spirit of giving, and the spirit of greed.

I came across this on FB today. I have no idea how "true" it all is, but it is consistent with other articles I have read about how much of your donations go towards their mission.

 

those numbers are scary!! but some day they will have to answer for it.

 

If the group is worth giving money to, they will have that information available. I learned this lesson, the hard way, many years ago and always research who I donate to anymore. Thanks for sharing this and, at least, bringing up the issue. If you have the means, please consider giving more than you receive this year.

 

savemoney thanks for posting this... it's amazing how many non profits.. give such a small % to where it's supposed to go!

 

Good info Larry.

Back in the 80's we were "encouraged" every year by a manager to contribute to one of the lower tier "charities". We knew back then the low percentage, but we still did it. After a few years, we flat out said no.

 

one of the reasons I always try to put something in those red buckets. I know that it is always put to good use. The other remarkable cause in Ronald McDonald House.
Another is to donate to the local animal shelters. I don't give to the ASPCA because it take about 25000 $20 monthly donations just to pay their CEO. Another over paid one is wounded warriors.

 

OK ... I just verified this through some contacts.. I AM not recruiting just clarifying... so facts are out in open... I personally am the president of our local Lions Club..

100% of donations to a Lions club or lions club international foundation (LCIF) from a non member go to the those in need! LCIF does have a 7.4% administrative expense where the 84% come from.. BUT that 7% comes from Lion members, individual clubs etc. Why Lions where previously ranked #1 non government agency with which to partner... and why members pay dues to volunteer for free!


I said all that to say this... in case someone knows anyone who has a need especially for eyeglasses and hearing aids please contact your local club or PM me and I will get you a 1 800 number to obtain those items for usually free...

 

I knew about most of them, did not know about Goodwill, no more donations from me...........

 

Just pointed a friend to the Lions Club for some glasses the other day. Glad to hear that they are still one of the good ones. Thanks for the information!

 

I don't give directly to the various charities. But I do give to those in need. Sometimes cash, sometimes food, fuel, firewood, sometimes just volunteering or lending a hand someplace. However, I do it year round and not just the holiday season. That is how I raised myself.

It always amazes me the sheer amount of charities out there this time of year, all begging for donations. Many of which I have never heard of. And beware, if you give to one, a hundred others will follow shortly with their hand out. So if you do give to a charity, give anonymously. Personally, I would say look in your neighborhood or city and I'm sure you will find someone (many) who could use whatever help you have to offer.

Like HighCountry said, if you have the means, give more than you receive. Me, I could give one penny and it would be 100% more than I have received over the past couple of decades. But I continue to give a whole lot more all year round!

 

Good for you!

Lots of people/organizations so used to asking that it becomes the norm for them.

 

I worked for a hospital that used to strongly encourage participation in the United Way. Either through direct donation, or preferably through on going payroll deductions. There was pressure to make sure you were not the one that kept your section from being 100% in donations. We knew it would not look good to be the one who didn't give. The good part about United Way was you could select a local charity so your money didn't go to one of the mega donations like the Red Cross. At first, the United Way was intended to replace being taunted for multiple other causes. That didn't last. It wasn't long before the hospital started its donation drive for every expansion they had planned. "buy a brick, or bench etc. Then different levels of donations. Those that donated at the higher end, got invited to grand openings etc.
For my own peace of mind, I'll just continue to drop money in the Kettle, or into the cans the kids have for the scouts, class trips etc. Our local school sends home lists of things they need to carry on at school, that the school doesn't provide for. We always send to the school. It is mind blowing that they need things like sanitation wipes, snacks for kids, and general school supplies. I don't mind help there at all. For a long time, I used to volunteer at Bingo for a local Catholic school. That money helped keep the tuition down. That was even fun.

 

I found this website that reports about Charities. Has anyone seen this before?

Charity Navigator - Your Guide To Intelligent Giving | Home

 

Not defending any of them. But, agencies like Red Cross provide a huge service, that does not come cheap, but is free to those receiving the aid. Although they have a massive number of volunteers, they also have huge staff, which get paid, they have major equipment for blood drives, disaster relief (70000 per year in the US alone per their website), overseas disaster relief, overseas medical relief, etc. They have specialized buses, airplanes, generators, 100s of vehicles, etc., that enable them to do what they do. Their biggest expense is people and equipment. The food, water, and medical supplies costs next to nothing when you consider what it costs to get the food, water, and medical supplies to places all over the world. Imagine what it costs to staff all the nurses/phlebotomists at all the blood drives in the US on any given day, with all the transportation and equipment that a blood drive needs. They are not providing simple eye glasses or trips to Disney World.

 

I went on a few sites to specifically look up the red cross. The first post, it said 8 cents of the dollar given went to the needy. If you look at their total picture, this is what pops up: "For example, Red Cross total spending in FY15 was $2,896.8M. Of that, Red Cross spent $302.9M on fundraising and management and general. When you compare the two figures, you see that fundraising and management and general were about 10% of our total spending, which means about 90% was invested in our humanitarian services and programs. If you average that over the past five years, the percentage works out to about 91 cents." also: CEO Marsha Evans made just under $652,000. Wording plays into this. Compensation is not just salary. There are bonuses etc. Goggle the subject and arrive at your own conclusions. Lots to think about.

 

Surprised at what amount of peer pressure employers use on departments for participation.

 

Being semi retired, my charity is, when I see someone that needs something fixed I fix it. I do a lot of pro bono work lately, in fact tomorrow I am replacing a door for a lady my wife works with. Actually I am re installing a exterior that some "professional" hacked up, worst door install I have ever seen.