# what are good charities to donate to?



## Pluto (Sep 12, 2013)

I'm interested in getting a short list of charaties that are efficient and not scams. the one the folloing article is about is dreadful. How does one find good ones? 

http://www.cnbc.com/2017/06/23/the-...eeling-charitable-first-do-your-homework.html


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## Retired Peasant (Apr 22, 2013)

It would depend on what type of organization you are interested in helping.
Some resources, once you've decided that:

Moneysense does a rating each year
http://www.moneysense.ca/save/financial-planning/2017-charity-100-canadas-top-rated-charities/

A couple of other rating sites:
https://www.charityintelligence.ca/
http://www.givewell.org/
http://www.smartgiving.ca/

Look at the information filed with CRA
http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/chrts-gvng/lstngs/menu-eng.html


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## ian (Jun 18, 2016)

We review the Moneysense ratings. It really did change our donation patterns. We stopped donating to those organizations with high admin (especially exec compensation), overhead, and fund raising costs. We focused on those organizations that matched our giving preferences and were well managed. The bulk of our giving was moved to our local food bank organization. Partly because of the current economy where we live and partly because of how they manage their resources.


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## gibor365 (Apr 1, 2011)

> How does one find good ones?


 Are there good ones?!

imho, donate to real people, not to organizations!



> Moneysense does a rating each year


 and do you know what is price tag to get high ranking?!


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## s1231 (Jan 1, 2017)

Hummm.....helping others & good for us.
It's supporting of our food securities & quality, protection of workers’ rights and the environment etc....(win win!)

Here are some examples;

- Fish In Schools (FinS)
http://www.syilx.org/events/fish-in-schools-fins/

ONA’s Fish in Schools program is one of the key fish education programs for youth in the region, particularly the Sockeye salmon, so that students may become future advocates for both salmon and their habitat.

* The Okanagan River sockeye population is one of only two remaining populations of sockeye salmon in the international Columbia River Basin.
Historically, chinook, coho, chum and steelhead were also indigenous salmon species in the Columbia River system, including the Okanagan Basin, 
but today they are either extinct or found in very low numbers.


- Fair Trade Schools:
http://fairtrade.ca/en-CA/Get-Involved/Fair-Trade-Programs/Fair-Trade-Schools

At its core, the Fair Trade School Program is about educating Canada’s young leaders of tomorrow to understand the connection between our food supply and the people that grow our food on a daily basis. For teachers and students, fair trade provides a valuable framework to introduce these topics, and a chance to personally explore the impact to children and communities in the Global South.


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## m3s (Apr 3, 2010)

I've been lending on Kiva for nearly a decade. The funds get recycled over and over to help many people and I've had borrowers come back for several loans which tells me it's working. If you travel you can even visit the people you lent to (International Bank of Bob is a book about that)

Besides some defaults and currency enhance loss if you consider that USD has increased in value vs CAD I haven't actually lost a thing. Unfortunately donations to Kiva are not tax deductible in Canada but I feel like most charities boil down to tax evading donors and greedy managers


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## BoringInvestor (Sep 12, 2013)

gibor365 said:


> and do you know what is price tag to get high ranking?!


Are you suggesting MoneySense is bribed to provide high rankings?
If so, what evidence do you have to support the claim?


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## gibor365 (Apr 1, 2011)

BoringInvestor said:


> Are you suggesting MoneySense is bribed to provide high rankings?
> If so, what evidence do you have to support the claim?


I'm not suggesting, but assuming , just for some time don't believe those ranking in media


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## kcowan (Jul 1, 2010)

We use Canada Helps each year. Other recommended sites include the Mennonite Church of Canada. Or a chapter near you.


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## OhGreatGuru (May 24, 2009)

Referring to Canada Helps won't likely assist the OP in determining a "worthy" charity, other than to filter out scams. It is an on-line donation processing organization for other charities. Yes, they are not-for-profit, and have succeeded in being registered as a "charitable organization" so that the modest fee they charge is also tax deductible. And they have made it easy for many small charities to accomodate on-line donations. But to make donation to them you are still expected to select a donor recipient from their many clients.


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## Ag Driver (Dec 13, 2012)

Deleted


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## Eder (Feb 16, 2011)

I prefer supporting local Girl Guides, Boy Scouts, sport teams and most street bums that are not begging but obviously in need.


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## OnlyMyOpinion (Sep 1, 2013)

Heck, I don't know where to slot this bit of news but this thread seemed relevant since the recommendation from those involved with street folk is to support your local social services - not provide them with handouts.

Do you ever give money to panhandlers? Do you volunteer or donate to homeless services?

Some panhandlers drawn to suburbs, where they can rake in hundreds in hours
_"Welder, father of 3. On med leave trying to make ends meet. Anything helps. God bless." Jonas says he has been suffering seizures for more than a year, and it has been impossible to ply his trade. Unlike many other panhandlers, he has a home and says panhandling helps his family make ends meet."I was out of work for quite a while … and I was just doing this on and off because I seen other people doing it and I did extremely good at it, actually — like really, really good at it."
So good, in fact, that Jonas says he does "extremely well" on his best days, and his worst days are "still really good."
How good? "On a good day, *I can make $400 doing this in three hours*."
The key to Jonas's success? Getting away from downtown and into the city's suburbs.

Const. Jessica Wood, who is the community resource officer for the Calgary Police Service in the downtown area, "We do have shelters. The Drop-In Centre does provide three meals a day to any Calgarian … so there are agencies who can support them. It's always better to look into maybe something that you're passionate about as a Calgarian that you want to support, find out what that agency is, and maybe donating that way." _


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## Plugging Along (Jan 3, 2011)

Eder said:


> I prefer supporting local Girl Guides, Boy Scouts, sport teams and most street bums that are not begging but obviously in need.


Thanks for supporting Girl Guides! I volunteer 2-4 nights a week with my girls, and the amount of stuff I see the girls, with so little funds is amazing. Just a little shout out.


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## Plugging Along (Jan 3, 2011)

I am not surprised by the article, especially Calgary. A lot of families were hit with the downturn, and can be empathetic towards that because if you were/are in O&G that could have happened to anyone. Especially if you are out in the suburbs and have a family, there is a lot of empathy.

I normally do not give to the panhandlers downtown because I have seen a lot of drugs, alcohol and abuse. However, I have given to panhandlers in the suburbs, especially if hear about kids involved of more recent. I know some of my friends were hit really hard and we are in a really affluent area. So most came out okay, but we know we are lucky. 

We also do donate to the shelters personally, and through my girl guides as a community service, the girls will collect donations for both of the shelters mentioned in the article. I have also volunteered at the shelter, but not as often as I used to. This year, as my kids are getting old enough to volunteer in the shelter, we will do it as a family thing.


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## james4beach (Nov 15, 2012)

This earlier thread also had some discussion of charities: https://www.canadianmoneyforum.com/showthread.php/104818-Donations-for-humanitarian-relief

I don't give to panhandlers or anyone on the street. Many of these people have serious addictions (alcohol, pills, hard drugs) and the money very often goes towards drugs. Even if they say it's going to food or something else (e.g. gas money) usually it's still drugs & alcohol.

Makes sense they'd go to the suburbs. Unlike city people who have heard all the stories and ruses, the suburban people might fall for it more easily. Some of the classic stories are: car broke down, need gas, I'm hungry, I'm a teen mom, my parents kicked me out, etc.

If you give panhandlers money in your suburban neighbourhood, word will get around and more of them will come. With this you'll also probably see an increase into vehicle break-ins, things like smash & grab, bicycle theft. Drug junkies will really steal anything they can convert even into a bit of cash to get their next fix. If you're really really tempted to give someone money, take a look at their neck, mouth, arms, legs, feet. If you see very bad teeth, or malnourishment/skeleton, or sunken facial features, it's likely a meth addiction. If you see a lot of cuts and wounds on the skin, it's likely injuries sustained while high on drugs. You might also spot track marks from needle use. Also look for jittery and compulsive behaviour.

Aside from the junkies, also beware that the more 'professional' panhandlers are closer to con men. They won't look like junkies, will look like honest regular guys and will come up with elaborate stories about hardship. IMO there is no reason to give anyone on the street money like this. Donate generously to the Red Cross and other agencies which help out across Canada.


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## humble_pie (Jun 7, 2009)

re organized charities, there are always the oldies & goldies. One's university alma mater. All manner of local hospitals desperately need funding. Every city has well-established homeless shelter networks.

what i've found to be extremely interesting, after several years supporting the oldies & goldies, are tiny local emerging charities. They're local, so one can get to know their inner workings like family. No surprises there.

they're emerging, which means their administrations function something like venture capital startups. Both charities & business startups often rely on short-term gummint grants to begin with. Both are expected to grow their own fundings, develop their own legs & stand on their own financial two feet in the end. It's not a stretch to call an emerging charity that's alone in meeting/serving a local need, an incubator business startup.

what i've found is that the charity incubators are spectacular in operating on a shoestring. The one i'm interested in has a legendary founder, a brilliant & tireless woman who in 35 years has driven that charity from a handful of volunteers meeting in each other's living rooms to an organization with a staff of more than 40 paid personnel, plus hundreds of professional quality volunteers.

recently, they were able to buy their own building. Donors rushed forward with gifts. The charity moved into permanent surroundings instead of being on the rent run every time a landlord would raise rents. They are overjoyed with their new home, it fits like a glove, albeit one with plenty of room for expansion.

when all the move-in dust settled, the charity found that they had excess funds left over from the building drive. Would we, the donors, be willing to sign a document agreeing to convert the excess funds into the start of a permanent endowment fund, the director asked us.

oh, we would, we certainly would. I have a feeling the director is preparing for her own retirement, she wants to ensure that the organism she has nurtured so devotedly for nearly half a century has the best possible foundation for continued success without her. It's been fun to have had, if not a ringside seat, at least a good view from a Section "A" back row position in the parterre.

.


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## humble_pie (Jun 7, 2009)

OhGreatGuru said:


> Referring to Canada Helps won't likely assist the OP in determining a "worthy" charity, other than to filter out scams. It is an on-line donation processing organization for other charities. Yes, they are not-for-profit, and have succeeded in being registered as a "charitable organization" so that the modest fee they charge is also tax deductible. And they have made it easy for many small charities to accomodate on-line donations. But to make donation to them you are still expected to select a donor recipient from their many clients.



many emerging local micro-charities use Canada Helps as their donor administrator. Can Helps is particularly useful if a donor wants to donate stock, since often a micro charity has no one on staff who knows the difference between a stock & a stick.

Can Helps, though, charges each charity roughly 2%. That's a significant fee for the charity to lose.

recently i discovered a big surprise though. An emerging incubator charity with its very own discount brokerage account! the operation was adorable in its homespun charm. What had happened is that the Small Business Development officer in their bank branch - it was the royal bank, in fact - had taken an interest in this charity & he had opened a discount brokerage account for them, so that donors of stock could send their shares directly to that discount broker account.

the result was a lively comedy of the uninitiated. The charity director vaguely knew that she was supposed to sell donated shares by sending a "sell order" to the broker, although she was not too sure when the sell signal should be given.

the business development banker, for his part, was not too knowledgeable about the technical niceties, ie how everything should be working out in the back office. He'd never heard of the broker CUID number, for example. Somewhat naiively, he thought donors should simply gush to their brokers to "send shares to RBC discount broker" & lo, in due course a charitable receipt would materialize in the donor's mailbox.

what the homespun comedy boiled down to is that donors had to stick-handle their own donations. It was worth the effort. In the end, what would have cost the charity $200 in fees from Canada Helps, ended up costing the charity a sweet $9.95 stock sale commission & not a penny more.


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## indexxx (Oct 31, 2011)

I support the Mockingbird Foundation, a charity to help give music education to children.


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## kcowan (Jul 1, 2010)

Bought a nice watch (oozoo brand) for my honey in Bruges 2 years ago. Contacted the company when one of the brackets holding the strap broke off. They agreed to send a new case for 20 euros if we donated that amount to a local charity. I decided to donate $100 using Canada Helps and they sent a whole new watch.


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## ian (Jun 18, 2016)

Money Sense magazine does, or used to, issue a report on Canadian charities. It breaks their financials down by percentage spent on fundraising, admin, salaries etc and estimates what percentage of funds really does get to where it is intended. It also list top salaries for their senior management of those charities.

A few years ago we completely changed and increased our giving. We no longer give to certain causes, reduced giving to faith based organizations, and significantly increased our giving to our local food bank based on need and operational efficiency.


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## humble_pie (Jun 7, 2009)

Canada Helps has a particular advantage for folks who donate stocks instead of cash. There is only one such donation & it is made directly to Canada Helps. It will be Canada Helps that sends the one single charitable receipt.

but here's the advantage. Canada Helps will immediately sell the donated stock for cash. Then it is prepared to parcel out that cash in small dribs & drabs to a whole bunch of charities, according to the donor's instructions.

brokers transfer stocks from donor clients' accounts to a charity without charge. Since normally brokers charge $150 for stock transfers, this i view as a very generous contribution from the broker. 

suppose a broker client wants to donate a total of $10,000, to be divided equally among 10 different charities. Obviously he wouldn't pester his broker 10 times for 10 different tiny freebie stock transfers worth roughly $1000 each. Not to speak of all the odd lots involved. Instead, this client can donate once & once only, via Canada Helps, & they will do the allocations.

i've never used Can Helps because i was a bit turned off by the fact that all the principals came originally from Lavalife. Soon, however, it dawned on me that keeping track of what each client wants done with his bulk donation - how he wants the $$ partnered up with different charities & he probably keeps changing his list of charities as time passes - this is quite similar to how a dating website keeps track of couples meeting, splitting, migrating to new partners.

.


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## AltaRed (Jun 8, 2009)

ian said:


> Money Sense magazine does, or used to, issue a report on Canadian charities. It breaks their financials down by percentage spent on fundraising, admin, salaries etc and estimates what percentage of funds really does get to where it is intended. It also list top salaries for their senior management of those charities.
> 
> A few years ago we completely changed and increased our giving. We no longer give to certain causes, reduced giving to faith based organizations, and significantly increased our giving to our local food bank based on need and operational efficiency.


Likewise. The MoneySense list some years back woke me up and I eliminated all those that are inefficient and don't send the vast percentage of their funds to the front line, eliminated those with bloated executive salaries and management, etc, etc. Charitable giving is now limited to local causes that have none of that bullshit, and to certain one off Red Cross appeals that have matching gov't funds such as the Fort Mac fire, and BC Wildfires Appeal.

Added: I agree with HP that Canada Helps provides an excellent service.


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## james4beach (Nov 15, 2012)

Curious what charities people are thinking of giving to. Some of you might review this more often than I do.

After doing some research last year, I decided I like Red Cross (and reviewed their financial reports) because they help out a variety of both domestic and international efforts, which I like, including for things like health of the vulnerable (domestically). I also think that all Red Cross donations go into a general fund, even though they sometimes market it as targeting specific causes.

Currently I'm planning on donating only to the Red Cross. Perhaps double last year's donation.


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## sags (May 15, 2010)

We donate to the Red Cross and local hospitals primarily. I do give to panhandlers all the time.

It isn't for me to judge them, and I doubt they are the least interested in hearing a speech from me about what they are doing wrong in their life.

I don't concern myself with what they do with the money, as someone told me a long time ago that once you give money to someone it isn't yours anymore.

The way I figure it, if someone wants to trudge up and down a sidewalk on a cold, rainy day asking for money....that is a job I wouldn't want to have to do.

Besides, if I keep the money and spend it, or if give it to a panhandler and they spend it,...either way it is money spent.


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## sags (May 15, 2010)

The last while though, I remember an old saying that "charity begins at home".

I am thinking that with so many people providing financial aid to their kids to pay some of their living expenses, there may be less money available to give to others.

I consider that gifting as "hidden charity" that hides the reality of how badly the current economic model is broken.


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## AltaRed (Jun 8, 2009)

james4beach said:


> Curious what charities people are thinking of giving to. Some of you might review this more often than I do.
> 
> After doing some research last year, I decided I like Red Cross (and reviewed their financial reports) because they help out a variety of both domestic and international efforts, which I like, including for things like health of the vulnerable (domestically). I also think that all Red Cross donations go into a general fund, even though they sometimes market it as targeting specific causes.
> 
> Currently I'm planning on donating only to the Red Cross. Perhaps double last year's donation.


I also give to the Red Cross reluctantly* but only for specific local disasters. Recent examples included: Calgary floods 2013 I believe, Fort Mac fire, BC wildfires 2017 and 2018, all of which had government matches. I do NOT give blanket donations because I want my money working for domestic issues only. I've also given to specific cancer causes due to family members having survived certain cancers, though again efficiency ratios due to the cancer bureaucracy are not the greatest. 

More importantly, I donate regularly to LOCAL charities with very high efficiency ratios, i.e. I want virtually all my money to go to the front line in my local community or a regional cause like the local chapter of the BC SPCA.

* Neither the Red Cross nor the Cancer Societies make the top 100 on efficiency ratios (heavy advertising and bloated salaries) and I have deplored them many times to clean up their act https://www.moneysense.ca/save/financial-planning/canadas-top-rated-charities-2019-best-by-category/


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## ian (Jun 18, 2016)

We do not give money to pan handlers. Calgary Food Bank gets the bulk of our dollars. The rest to charities where we believe our dollars are reaching the need, not the administration or the fundraising.


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## Just a Guy (Mar 27, 2012)

I suggest volunteering for a variety of charities to actually see what they do with the money, also I suggest donating things other than cash to ensure the money is being well spent. For example, donating socks to a homeless shelter ensures your money goes to clothing the homeless, as opposed to Cash which may be spend in a wide variety of ways not in your control. I’m not suggesting that all charities mismanage their funds, some certainly do, but donating goods ensures it goes where you want. 

That being said, a food bank can usually get more food from cash than you donate in the equivalent amount of goods because they have deals with food providers.

The other benefit to doing actual volunteer work is you actually become educated in the realities of the situations. Something you don’t get from no exposure.


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## james4beach (Nov 15, 2012)

AltaRed said:


> * Neither the Red Cross nor the Cancer Societies make the top 100 on efficiency ratios (heavy advertising and bloated salaries) and I have deplored them many times to clean up their act https://www.moneysense.ca/save/financial-planning/canadas-top-rated-charities-2019-best-by-category/


Thanks for sharing this link


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## Longtimeago (Aug 8, 2018)

An old thread revived and perhaps at a very apt time of year. Have you noticed how many more tv ads there are for charities in the 'giving season'.

I can recall many decades ago, when the United Appeal first started. At that time, my father decided that it was a good thing and he would support it with all his charitable giving. It was done through voluntary payroll deductions. I know many here are not old enough to remember that far back but the idea was that instead of giving to numerous charities individually, there would be ONE organization that would take care of administration and collecting and then would disburse the funds to various individual charities. Makes sense, reduce overhead lost to administering and collecting and get more of the dollar out to where it really needs to go.

Well, it didn't take long for people to start objecting. https://archive.macleans.ca/article/1958/9/27/is-the-united-appeal-too-bigor-big-enough Yes that is a 1958 article. Here is a 1956 article in which it is made clear that the Red Cross was an active participant in that United Way. https://www.redcross.ca/history/artifacts/united-appeal-fundraising-tag

Still around today, you now find them giving to 270 registered charities in Toronto ALONE! https://www.unitedwaygt.org/list-of-agencies

What all this leads me to question is just how many charities exist and does any of this make sense whether it is the United Way, Red Cross, the never ending Breast Cancer advertising, etc. etc. etc. that we are bombarded with. I mean how many here were alive when 'what's his name' was running across Canada for cancer funding. Oh yeah, it was Terry Fox in 1980 and they are STILL using him today to raise money.

It seems to me that all that happens is that the number of charities just continues to grow year by year. There are now something like 84,000 registered charities in Canada! It is an INDUSTRY like any other. Yes, they are all 'non-profit' but there are a heck of a lot of people making a living working for them all. How good a living other than for the top executives may be debatable but still a living and all those salaries they are earning are NOT going to the 'end user' the charities are supposedly collecting for.

Personally, I am sick and tired of ALL charities. I've always donated to some but I'm starting to rethink whether I want to give to any of them anymore. I just tried a Google search for 'Canadian charities that are 100% unpaid volunteers' I got nothing. Try it for yourself.

So I am thinking to avoid ALL registered charities and give only directly in whatever form. For example, your church or a church near you if you are not a church goer, will no doubt have some programs they run for those in need locally. Go ask the priest, minister, rabbi, mullah, or whoever what programs they run that you can donate to. I am pretty confident the money will go 100% to that need. There will be nothing spent on 'administration salaries' etc. 

The problem with giving more directly, is that it takes a bit more effort to do than just stuffing a $20 bill in the Salvation Army globe at Xmas as I have done pretty much every year since I got my first job. OK, it wasn't a $20 when I first started. It is easy to sooth our conscience by saying 'I give to charity' but we don't even give an hour to finding somewhere to give all of our $20 bill to someone actually in need.


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## Longtimeago (Aug 8, 2018)

Thank you james4beach for reviving this thread at such an apt time of year. It has made me re-think or perhaps I should say start thinking about my charitable donations instead of just continuing to do what I have always done. The bit of research it got me to do and that resulted in my long response above is enough to bring me to the decision that I am going to stop giving to registered charities of any kind and get off my *** and look for some more direct ways to contribute some money to those in need.

Thanks again.


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## james4beach (Nov 15, 2012)

Time is running out for donations that will give you a 2019 tax receipt.

I donated to the Red Cross using this campaign. Apparently, Walmart will match individual donations if you donate through this link, which I saw in their ads:
https://www.redcross.ca/matchgift


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