Most reliable ways to donate for quake victims ?

3/13/2011 | Self

[crosshairs]

Samaritan’s Purse - Franklin Graham’s organization

[Jude in WV]

The execs where my Mom worked went to help in the Buffalo Creek flood years ago in WV. They came back with the same story. Salvation Army was giving out free food. Red Cross was charging.
Also, years ago, I read a column where Ann Landers researched and came up with the Salvation Army as the best charity in terms of getting the most done with your donation.

[snowsislander]

In my opinion, the Salvation Army is probably the most reliable.

They already have Japanese staff in Japan; I visited their Jimbocho location when I contributed money to their recovery work for the World Trade Center attack.

[Ronin]

I’m accepting scotch donations!

Seriously? Salvation Army is probably the best but the Japan Red Cross has an excellent reputation for accountability and professionalism.

If you’re willing to go outside the box and put religious sensitivities to one side, Sokka Gakkai International will undoubtedly have major charity drives ongoing at all their overseas kaikan (community centers).

I don’t much care for them myself, but they have a very good reputation in Japan for public service and charitable works.

[brytlea]

Ditto Samaritan’s Purse, always our charity of choice. And a little extra at times like this. Best there is out there.

[TheConservativeParty]

I’ve given in the past to “Operation Blessing”, which is part of The 700 Club. I am sure Operation Blessing has people and resourses on the way to Japan.

Website for Operation Blessing International is:

http://community.ob.org/site/PageServer

I just looked at that webpage and the news crawl at the top of the page says they are helping in Japan.

I first gave to Operation Blessing after Katrina hit.

Then I noticed they have “Operation Smile” which helps children with cleft palates get the operations they need to lead a normal life. That has been the part of Operation Blessing I have supported the most.

[fatnotlazy]

I don’t know if it’s still available, but in Pennsylvania, the Attorney General had a section of his website where you could search charities and determine how reputable they are. He even had it broken down according to how much of every dollar you give goes to the actual cause. I think if it’s 80% or better, that is considered acceptable (95% and up I think would be even better), but you would be surprised how many charities apply as little as 10% to the cause and the rest goes for “overhead” — e.g., huge salaries for the directors. As I recall, the Red Cross did not come close to that 80% mark.

We also had problems with the United Way which is supposed to funnel donations to various causes. I used to work at firms which would conduct these drives for United Way and they were not pleased that I wouldn’t give. One of my employers actually put in money in my name just to be recognized as having 100% participation from all employees. I wouldn’t give to United Way if someone paid me. If I want to support a charity, I’ll give directly to it. I don’t need United Way to distribute my donations.

[bamagirl1944]

I agree. I always give through them because I know it goes where it is supposed to go. You can check it out here: https://www.baptistglobalresponse.com

[fkabuckeyesrule]

After the Haiti EQ in January my minister recommeded giving to Samaritans Purse which is run by Billy Graham’s son Franklin. Samaritans Purse and other organizations already had people on the ground in Haiti. I’ve heard that much of the Red Cross money donated for Haitian relief really hasn’t gotten there. Then when Sarah Palin went down to Haiti and got trashed by the leftist media I decided the best message to send was to send ** bucks to Samaritans Purse. I checked Samaritans Purse’s website this weekend and I did not see any updated pertaining to the Japan relief effort. This is going to be a difficult recovery. Its wise to ponder a strategy before deciding how we can have the best effect.

[BluH2o]

Not sure to what extent Doctors Without Borders will be involved where the earthquake in Japan is concerned ... but know for a fact that they give more bang for the buck than almost all other relief agencies. They do magnificent work.

[Freedom4US]

The website/firm you are thinking of is http://www.charitynavigator.org

Many “charities” aren’t. Even well known ones. Agreed on the United Way part. They really pissed off a lot of people. After my own research it looks to me as local church groups and the Salvation Army are about the only ones worth bothering with.

[FrogMom]

The difference was that Salvation Army gave those things out for free. Red Cross charged.

I've heard similar stories about the Korean War.

[FrogMom]

I was told that you could specify what organization you want your donation to go to with the United Way. A UW friend said, “No, if you specify, they’ll THINK about giving to that group.” Boy Scouts always seem to get left out, so UW can kiss my grits.