Charity Donations

There are a lot of really good causes to support - American Red Cross, Big Brothers Big Sisters, The Global Fund, CARE, Feeding America, Salvation Army, World Wildlife Fund, various Cancer organizations & Children's organizations - just to name a few. There are also a lot of events to help out different organizations as well - golf outings, walk/run events, bowling, etc. There is no way to find a way to support every organization - so I find myself wondering what should I be donating to and what should I pass on.

I'm a person that has a hard time saying no to pretty much everything. I feel bad not donating when I get an email asking for money to help somebody out with an event they're participating in, or not giving to certain charity events, etc. I have found that a person like myself simply cannot donate or help every single charity that is out there. So how do I choose what to help out? I know people in the military, people who have/had breast cancer, an uncle that died of cancer, friends and co-workers with certain diseases. I don't know anybody personally who has HIV/AIDS, or is living in poverty, or is struggling to feed their family or buy necessities for their children, or even have lost everything in a natural disaster. I feel for pets that can't find homes and animals that are becoming extinct.

I have donated to a lot of things over the past few years, but still struggle to find one cause that I'm passionate about. The past year or two, I have found myself really into supporting (Product)Red - which helps the Global Fund fight AIDS in Africa. There a few companies that feature (Product)Red - Gap, Hallmark, Converse, Starbucks, Dell, Apple. Portions of each (Product)Red purchase are donated to the cause. Whenever I can buy something that is ProductRed, I will do it. At Hallmark, I always look for a (Product)Red card first. I bought a (Product)Red t-shirt from the GAP. Recently, I purchased a (Product)Red gift card at Starbucks, instead of a regular one. Every little bit helps. I encourage to look for these opportunities, if at all possible. Dell offers laptops, Apple offers iPods and iTunes cards, Converse has a ton of shoes that you can even design yourself, Starbucks has coffee and of course Hallmark cards. For more information, go to http://www.joinred.com/

I still want to find something that I'm passionate about. Until I feel that way, I will continue to pick and choose what I feel is right and how I can make the biggest difference for our world.