charitable thoughts...

[jay]

It's time for me to set up my payroll-deduction charitable contributions for 2006... while patgreene and I ultimately decide, I'd like to solicit inputs and suggestions. Last year's poll led me to de-select the Human Rights Campaign, for example.

One of last year's incumbents (Amnesty International) is not available in this year's list, nor is Greenpeace anymore. SFSI fell off two years ago. Instead of paper forms, we now submit our choices online... which removes the previous restriction of no more than 5 charities total. OTOH, the first 60 listings shown to employees in the new online database, two pages-worth, are all from charities with conservative or evangelical-Christian ties or advocacy. Not surprising, from this administration.

Anyway, with a planned $1K to invest, I'm now open to niche suggestions with smaller amounts. Deadline for filing is next Tuesday.

[Poll #600320]

Comments

[runeshower.livejournal.com]

Girl Scouts is notoriously underfunded. Boy Scouts is a whole different matter - they have money coming out the wazoo for some reason. But GS is pretty much operating on a shoestring budget.

Yeah

[vokzal.livejournal.com]

I think they sold the camp (should check) we always went to in Texas. (Triple two?) Nice place, and very sad if it is now condos. But I guess they needed the money.

Girl Scouts was one of the first places I remember someone being spontaneously nice to me. (Not one of the other "girls" my age, ha.)

[geekchick]

Your write-in text box has a very low character limit, so I'm answering it here.

I don't know what your other options are, but in addition to the ones I checked on your list, I tend to donate to Mercy Corps, Doctors Without Borders, First Book, NWF, WWF, and various animal welfare groups that are not PETA.

I don't know enough about the other groups on your list to suggest anything one way or another.

[cyan-blue.livejournal.com]

Seconded on Doctors Without Borders, and also on wordweaverlynn's suggestion of AFSC, below. My own ideas are AmFAR (American Foundation for AIDS Research), the Red Cross, and OxFAM.

[cyan-blue.livejournal.com]

Oh, and also http://www.accion.org/ - Accion International, which gives micro-loans to impoverished people to help them start their own businesses and thus have a livelihood.

[wordweaverlynn.livejournal.com]

Handson USA is doing amazing work in the Gulf.

American Friends Service Committee is also a great organization.

How about one of the literacy places?

[tenacious-snail.livejournal.com]

I'm not familiar with several of the groups...I completely support funding autism research, for instance, but have no opinion on that organization. I'm also of the opinion that local charitable giving is good, but am not local enough to you to know your local charities.

[cortneyofeden.livejournal.com]

Lots of good ones suggested, including many we donate to. Others I like are , The Nature Conservancy, ACLU, Sierra Club, and Make A Wish Foundation.

It really depends on what types of causes you want to support. We're big on nature groups, especially those that work to protect natural resources (NRDC, Sierra Club, etc) and help kids. The First Book one mentioned above has peaked my interest.

[geekchick]

First Book is also associated with The Literacy Site, which is one of the "click here once a day to generate donations from our sponsors" sites.

[rosefox]

Heifer Project International always gets my vote.

[patgreene.livejournal.com]

I love them, but I can't help thinking of the brochure I got from them which said that $20 would buy a set of cavy to breed to "add protein to someone's diet." Waaaahhhhh....

[rosefox]

It's a delicacy!

[mactavish.livejournal.com]

They're a traditional food source in Ecuador, have been for at least a couple of thousand years. :/

[patgreene.livejournal.com]

I know. I know horsemeat is eaten places too, and I am not really too happy about that -- I admit that I'm inconsistent, as I do eat beef, pork, and chicken (not to mention venison and rabbit).

[mactavish.livejournal.com]

I've quit the rabbit, am backing off on mammals in general, but I'm no more morally opposed to venison (even wild) than to cows. I figure at least the venison had a happy wild life first, and they're often overpopulated because we've eliminated predators in so many places.

(Also: Though I don't eat rabbit just because I've known so many nice rabbit pets, in Australia, it's a real pest, causing enormous environmental damage.)

[mactavish.livejournal.com]

I first donated to HPI in 1978.

[patgreene.livejournal.com]

Holy Moly, I just looked at the list. Amnesty International is not on there, but PETA *is*? Not to mention the Paulist National Catholic Evangelization Association, or Promise Keepers.

Two of interest might be The Southern Poverty Law Center, or, even better, the National Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty. I really wanted to donate to one of the capital defense funds or innocence projects around the country, but I could not see one listed.

[geekchick]

Amnesty International is not on there

All things considered, I can't say I'm terribly surprised by that.

[patgreene.livejournal.com]

Well, no, but it it's more the juxtaposition of AI not being on there and PETA being there that got me.

[sebab.livejournal.com]

juvemile diabetes research foundation?

something kidney-related?

organ donation?

(all near and dear to my heart)

Having worked for Social Advocates for Youth

[p3aches.livejournal.com]

Having worked for Social Advocates for Youth, my vote would go there. This organiseation works with youth and familes in need in so many ways. Part of the way the money is used is for a 24 hour crisis line parents can call adolescents can call. Theres a counselor avalable 24/7.I used to be that person. I believe this is a local and very worthy cause. Also this agency provides housing for runaways and lots of counseling.

[vokzal.livejournal.com]

Well, given the administration:
faithfulamerica.org
Liberal Christians unite! :>

acorn.org (I'd specify Katrina.)
Their Katrina stuff looks pretty good. I'm not really familiar with the rest. But isn't it nice to know that sub-prime mortgages aren't getting the same disaster breaks prime ones are? Actually, I'd be heavily slanted towards disaster relief/prevention this year...
They probably took off the ACLU, huh?

[sisterfish125.livejournal.com]

My favorite causes are the local no-kill animal shelters and the local rape/domestic violence crisis centers.

The first one comes from years of being an animal lover, and the second from my interactions at work...

[mactavish.livejournal.com]

Impact, Audubon, and are there any science scholarship or education programs for at-risk or otherwise short-on-help kids?