What are your favorite charities? (since this is the time of giving)

For the past few years my family has given to a charity in lieu of spending money on gifts. Various members of us have also volunteered with Habit For Humanity. Not that I am tooting our own horn, but I mention this to ask, what is your favorite charity?

As of today, I really like www.heifer.org they work to give animals and training to communities and villages in order to provide milk, eggs, and other needs to people in need. You can go online and actually buy a cow (or pig, sheep, llama, goat, duck, chicken, trees, honeybees and other stuff) for a village in need. They have a pretty good reputation.

What are your favorite charities?

http://www.boggycreek.org/2006/home.asp

edit: http://www.holeinthewallcamps.org/

http://www.kiva.org/
microloans in third world countries. When they are paid off you can reloan the money endlessly. You never see any of it back but that is a ok with me.

for a family and that being one of their Christmas presents.

http://donate.wvus.org/OA_HTML/xxwvibeCCtpSctDspRte.jsp?lid=3000&lpos=fea_btn_GiftCatalog§ion=10024

The kid I gave it to had more than enough things. I also had some idea it might make him think of those who have very little in the world. I'm not sure if it did, but at least some family got some chickens in the deal.

therapists to work with autustis kids, like my son), Presbyterian Children's Homes here in TX, various others. Not much money for giving this year.

Such as.... our Commuity Food Bank and supporting our Assisted Services program. I also purchase extra toys for groups like our local firefighters who give them to families in need.

Make A Wish Foundation and the No Kill Animal Shelter here......

I send money on a regular basis to a single mother of two children.

I send money to a woman who can only work part-time because her husband is completely disabled.

I send money to prisoners on Death Row so that they can buy stamps and paper.

I do one time things, like buying a human hair, top of the line wig, for a girl who has obsessive compulsive disorder and cuts her hair to the nub.

Other things I do along the way, when I find someone needy. I enjoy making money and I make a very good income, but I spend most of it on others. Once my basic needs are taken care of, the rest is not useful to me.

I give all year long

What a nice reply to what seems to be a simple, sincere question. Holy smokes.

not just jump on the compassion bandwagon in December to make themselves feel better

They help spread my donations around in my community to where it's needed the most.

Giving money directly to your local food bank often translates into 2 to 4 times that amount of aid to other local charities due to the discounts that the food bank can get for buying in bulk, and then they pass that savings on to other, smaller charities.

And I doubt any explanation is needed for St Jude's and the amazing work they do.

We have given to the heifer project for years. I was fortunate enough to hear a girl speak whose family had been helped by the heifer project. She was headed to college.

I like Second Harvest and I always try to support my local charities. This year we have taken a collection of old blankets and given them to a dog rescue. I also have given money for wounded troops to call home. Sadly, there's more than enough charities that are in dire need of help all year around.

:thumbsup: :thumbsup:

If you can't send money, consider donating something they need:

http://www.friendsofpineridgereservation.org/projects/index.shtml

her in a heap of dead animals at a livestock auction -except she was still alive - barely.

http://www.farmsanctuary.org/

Very solid in my top three. Good folks, good cause, good work. Money well spent.

Mercy Corps is involved in relief work all over the world and the Mar Monte chapter of PP has a good low-cost, sliding scale medical clinic that is a true service to the community. It certainly came to my aid when I didn't have health insurance.

City Harvest in NYC! They're great!

I also like Heifer, too! I usually give animals to villages as gifts to my loved ones.

Also, in Monmouth County, NJ (Where I am originally from), there are some really fantastic local charities that I love.

Interfaith Neighbors provides housing subsidies for people who lose their jobs, Parker Family Health Clinic provides health care to the uninsured, and there are many others. (Most of the charities that I donate to deal with poverty in areas where I have lived. Though I think other causes are very worthy, I tend to donate to the specific purpose of eradicating the negative affects of poverty in my community.

My #1 charity (sorry, Wayne).

They get money from me every month. I've met these folks, I've toured the boats. These people are as for real as it gets. Someday, I hope I can crew with them. Sailing on the Robert Hunter would be an absolute dream for me.

Disclaimer: The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) would be my #1 charity, but they have so much support, I have to go with the underdog direct-action group, SSCS. HSUS is, without a doubt, the most effective pro-animal/anti-cruelty charity in the world, I love them for it, and I put any cred I have on the line saying that in their support.

On edit, SSCS:

http://www.seashepherd.org/

Check out the anti-whaling, anti-sealing, anti-sharkfinning and anti-dolphin slaughter info at the link.