Tis the time of year for giving......

This is the time of the year to give, and I just heard a message from my local radio station suggesting that people support two organizations that are helping in very worthwhile areas.

I am posting the information on these groups here because I wanted to give you pointers to a couple of groups that I myself think are worthwhile....but I know there are plenty of local groups all around the country that do great worthwhile work.

The first group I wanted to mention is the Marine Toys for Tots Foundation.

From their website, the organization describes itself like this:

MISSION: The mission of the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve Toys for Tots Program is to collect new, unwrapped toys during October, November and December each year, and distribute those toys as Christmas gifts to needy children in the community in which the campaign is conducted.

GOAL: The primary goal of Toys for Tots is to deliver, through a shiny new toy at Christmas, a message of hope to needy youngsters that will motivate them to grow into responsible, productive, patriotic citizens and community leaders.

OBJECTIVES: The objectives of Toys for Tots are to help needy children throughout the United States experience the joy of Christmas; to play an active role in the development of one of our nation's most valuable natural resources - our children; to unite all members of local communities in a common cause for three months each year during the annual toy collection and distribution campaign; and to contribute to better communities in the future.

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Then there is Operation Care Package..

From their website:

Operation Care Package is a volunteer 501 (c)(3) public charity, dedicated to our mission that no Hero serving our Nation should be forgotten.

Our goal is to support our Soldiers, Marines, Sailors and Airmen through care packages and letters of encouragement.

The group was formed in March of 2003, by Debbie Smothers, Debbie Durawa, and Pat Curran. Debbie Smothers' brother, David Bishop, an Army Green Beret for 19 years, has served in Iraq, Afghanistan and many other countries. Debbie Durawa's son, Matthew Zwolinski, and Pat Curran's son, Joe Curran, both serve in the Army and were deployed in Iraq.

Some of the soldiers don't receive anything in the mail, and they exist on little supplies," said Smothers. I don't think any of them should go without something from mail call."

With the help of so many generous individuals and businesses throughout the Country, we have been able to reach thousands of our Heroes throughout the world.

We could not continue this vital work without your help. Thank you, and please continue to keep all of our Military and their Commanders in your thoughts and prayers.

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No matter what our station in life, I believe it is our responsibility to reach out and help our fellow humans in need, and I urge everyone to do what they can.

Charitable Giving is a Part of Personal Finance too

Tis the season to give!

I was reading a personal finance BLOG today that was talking about how it is "More Blessed to give than to receive". Being a Christian, this is certainly something I have been taught all my life as well...but trust me, I'm not here to preach.

Ok...there are plenty of aspects of charitable giving that can be discussed. The most obvious is the implications it has on one's taxes, and while this is certainly perhaps the most obvious one to discuss in a Personal Fianance BLOG...I think I will leave that to others.

Another couple of angles from which to discuss giving comes from our general giving back to society, and how we might try to teach our kids about that same thing. (here is an NPR broadcast that talks about teaching kids about giving) I could go on and on about this sort of thing, but this might be considered preachy....and while I think discussing charitable giving IS fair game for a personal finance BLOG, I'm going there in this post.

So without getting into religion or morals I will say that I think the most good we can have is when we roll-up our sleeves and get personally involved in a charity. Giving money is certainly easier, is tax deductable and in any cases may be the most helpful thing for a particular charity, but I feel our hands-on support is as good for us as it is for the people we try to help. (and it does go a lot longer way to teaching our kids the lesson of charity. Writing a check just does not give children the same "connection" to the help being given.)

Don't worry, I am not going to "push" a particular charity...I think you can find one that you would want to support right in your own town! There is no shortage of need even in a country as blessed with wealth as ours. (and there are certainly plenty more in the rest of the world too)

The above mentioned BLOG did turn me on to what looks like a very useful website that evaluates charities. It apparently looks through their form 990 tax returns from which it breakdown the charities income and how it is spent. If you have a list of charities you give to, you can look them up there....but perhaps even more interesting is the "search" mechanism you can use to fine one that caters to a particular mission.

So no matter how much money you make, I do urge you to give back. If you don't have time or money...I suggest simple random acts of kindness would be great. (actually, that would be great for everyone to consider too....starting today! After all, tomorrow is World Kindness Day)

Tis the season to give, and you will feel better having done so too!