Celebrate giving season by donating
DEAR READERS >> In the spirit of this “giving” season, I present my annual roundup of charitable organizations readers should consider supporting.
In researching these charities, I am reminded of how fortunate we are to live in an era where generosity and helping those in need is a core value. This is a subjective list. Your own giving should reflect your interests and values. Most (but not all) of the organizations listed below have a top (four-star) rating on Charitynavigator.org, which is an excellent source for researching a charity.
• Water Mission (watermission.org): Founded by an environmental engineer and his wife in South Carolina in 2001, this Christian-based charity is on the ground in Puerto Rico, installing solar-powered water systems to provide fresh running water in hundreds of rural and isolated communities destroyed by Hurricane Maria.
• World Central Kitchen (worldcentralkitchen.org): This relatively tiny nonprofit, started by Chef Jose Andres, hit the ground running (and cooking) in Puerto Rico five days after Hurricane Maria, and started feeding people immediately. To date, they have served well over 2 million meals to Puerto Ricans. According to the New York Times, “No other single agency — not the Red Cross, the Salvation Army nor any government entity — has fed more people freshly cooked food since the hurricane, or done it in such a nurturing way.”
• Music City Cares Fund (cfmt.org): This fund was established very quickly after the devastating mass shooting in Las Vegas in October, where 58 people were killed and more than 500 wounded. All donations to this fund (100 percent) go to support Las Vegas nonprofits helping shooting victims.
• Feeding America (feedingamerica.org) Type a ZIP code into this national organization’s search engine, and you can find a local food bank within its vast network which will gratefully receive your donation dollars.
• Polaris (Polarisproject. org): I first became aware of the work of Polaris through a family member’s advocacy. Human trafficking is modern slavery, and victims are often vulnerable people who are coerced, dislocated and then forced into slavery — often in the sex trade. Victims of trafficking are sometimes in our midst, at bus stops, motels and truck stops. Law enforcement, clerks and long-haul truckers are now being trained in ways to spot and rescue these individuals. Victims can text BeFree (233733) and be connected with an advocate.
• Save the Children (Savethechildren.org): When disaster strikes around the world, Save the Children is there with food, medical care and education. They help communities to rebuild through longterm recovery programs. The website has a cool gift catalogue; purchases help fund the organization’s worthy mission.