Volunteering and Charity Organizations : How to Help
Writing by bts on Thursday, 15 of May , 2008 at 7:10 pm
Last Wednesday I lost a cousin. His name was Gabriel Richardson. He was 22 years old and probably one of the best people you could know. Everyone that knew him was proud to know him and he dedicated a lot of himself to helping other people.
The point of this post is not to mourn, however, but to encourage more good deeds from more people.
It seems as though a lot of us have always wanted to do some kind of charity work… we’ve tossed around the notion, even researched a couple of causes.. but for one reason or another we may not have gotten around to it.
Gabriel just did it. He built houses with habitat for humanity, he counseled troubled youth, he also taught inner-city children to box, even taught a deaf kid to dance apparently.
His passing seemed to instill this sense of humanity and community into everyone that knew him, all of a sudden everyone is inspired to do good.. to drop the inhibitions that have been plaguing us and further our efforts to make a difference and make life happier for someone less fortunate than ourselves.
I hope that anyone reading this can also be inspired to do so.
Here are a list of organizations that can help you find what charity is best for you.
1) Volunteer match is exactly what it sounds like. You can go to the website and type in your location and/or your area of interest and it will provide you with a list of charity events happening in your area.
2) Americorps: from their website:
“Each year, AmeriCorps offers 75,000 opportunities for adults of all ages and backgrounds to serve through a network of partnerships with local and national nonprofit groups.
“With Americorps you can:
- Tutor and mentor disadvantaged youth
- Fight illiteracy
- Improve health services
- Build affordable housing
- Teach computer skills
- Clean parks and streams
- Manage or operate after-school programs
- Help communities respond to disasters
- Build organizational capacity
“As an AmeriCorps member, you’ll gain new skills and experiences—and you’ll also find the tremendous satisfaction that comes from helping others. In addition, full-time members who complete their service earn a Segal AmeriCorps Education Award of $4,725 to pay for college, graduate school, or to pay back qualified student loans; members who serve part-time receive a partial Award. Some AmeriCorps members may also receive a modest living allowance during their term of service.”
3) Redcross is one of the most widely known organizations that accepts volunteers and donations, most often seen aiding after a disaster. They also offer CPR and first aid training.
4) Charity.com has a list of charities by catagory, search for charity, add your own charity.
5) Charity Navigator, a charity evaluator, gives you the scoop on how charities spend their money and resources, helps you decide which charity you should/should not donate to.
6) Charity Guide: from their website: “The Charity Guide volunteer directory makes it possible for busy people like you to make a difference at anytime, from anywhere. Even if you have an unpredictable schedule, you can volunteer for your favorite cause.”
7) Big Brother Big Sister, with whom many are already familiar, offers you the chance to help children reach their potential through professionally supported, one-to-one relationships with mentors(you) that have a measurable impact on youth.
8) Causes.com: Helping a cause can even be as easy as installing a small facebook application and donating even the smallest amount.
I hope that I’ve helped to equip at least one other person (but hopefully more) with the information they needed to set out on a long career of giving and helping. There is nothing more rewarding than knowing that you were able to make a positive impact on somebody’s life somehow.
Remember that if nobody cares today, there will be no one to care for you when you need it tomorrow.
Category: charity, environment, goals, happiness, volunteering
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