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Help Tsunami and Earthquake Victims

September 30, 2009

At the end of September and into the start of October 2009, earthquakes and tsunamis in the Pacific caused millions of dollars in damage, killed more than a thousand, and left thousands more homeless, injured and hungry. Charities are scrambling to help the victims in multiple countries including American Samoa, Western Samoa, Tonga and Indonesia - no simple, or inexpensive, task. As they begin to repair the destruction and aid the victims, charities need an infusion of donations to be able to effectively deal with this crisis.

Charity Navigator offers the following tips to help you give with confidence to trustworthy charities helping the victims of these devastating catastrophes.

  • Give To An Established Charity
    Don't let an unscrupulous charity take advantage of your goodwill. Find a charity with a proven track record of success with dealing with the type of disaster and in the region in which the disaster occurred. Avoid fly-by-night charities created specifically to deal with the new crisis. Even well-meaning new organizations will not have the infrastructure and knowledge of the region to efficiently maximize your gift. If you do feel compelled to give to a new charity, be sure to get proof that the group is in fact a registered public charity with 501 (c) (3) status. You can ask the organization directly for a copy of their letter certifying their nonprofit status or you can do your own research by searching Publication 78 on the IRS website, www.irs.gov.

  • Designate Your Investment
    Worried that your donation will go towards the charity's general operating fund or saved for a future crisis? This is a very understandable concern. Many charities do encourage donors not to designate their gifts so that the charity can decide how best to utilize the money, but depending on your confidence in the charity's ability to make that determination, you may want to tell the charity exactly how to use your investment. By designating your gift, you'll ensure that your donation will be used as you intended. Most charities with online giving portals offer a check box feature so that you can tell the organization how to spend your contribution. If you are mailing in a check, then write a note in the memo section of the check specifying that you want your gift spent entirely on the current crisis.

  • Avoid Telemarketers
    Be wary of fundraisers who pressure you to make a contribution over the phone. Never divulge your credit card information to someone soliciting you via the phone. Instead, ask the fundraiser to send you written information about the charity they represent and do some research on your own. Once you feel comfortable with the charity, send the organization a check directly in the mail, or give through their website, thus ensuring 100% of your gift goes to the charity and not the for-profit fundraiser. Read Charity Navigator's Guide to Handling Telephone Appeals

  • Research And Follow Up
    As always, take the time to find a charity you can trust. Use our free financial evaluations to search for financially healthy charities to support. Then, check the newsfeed tab for each charity to see if any problems or accomplishments are apparent. Finally, visit each charity's website to assess what they have accomplished in the past and to learn more about their specific plans to help in this disaster. And be sure to follow up with the charity in a few months to find out (a) how your donation was put to use and (b) if the organization needs additional support to complete the recovery effort.

  • Give Online
    The inherent speed of online giving provides instant gratification to donors and offers charities immediate access to much needed funds. At Charity Navigator with the simple click of a mouse you can make a secure online gift to the charities we rate.

Here are some of the charities responding to one or both of these disasters:

 
 

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