With 2020 quickly ending, are you looking for a place to make a final donation? When making your choices be sure to use your head and not just your heart. Everyone needs money, after all it's 2020.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, organizations are thinking outside of the box with podcasts, blogs, Facebook Live videos, virtual walks, GoFundMe, online birthday donations and more. Have they listed their accomplishments? Do they follow their mission statement? Are they saying thank you to their donors? Giving money wisely means opening your eyes. Are you seeing meaningful results?
Whether you are an individual following your passions or a business following your philanthropic planning, consider your legacy and how you would like to be remembered. Engage listening and asking questions. Look for a strategic opportunity to make a real difference.
Keep in mind that giving does not always have to be to a 501c3. A community auction, or fundraiser can have positive local results. One person can make a huge difference by helping a loved one or neighbor in need. A nurse practitioner in my town of 7,900 raised $37,000 in a short period of time for struggling local businesses.
What if you cannot access financial or operational information? Or what if the organization does not have a record or system of measuring results? Or if the organization has not updated their website with contact information, these are all red flags. If they are a 501c3 do they have a mission statement, bylaws, (If so, are they being followed?) Do they have articles of incorporation? By asking these questions you are developing transparency.
According to The New York Times, if you are altruistic by nature your idealism may blind you to potential faults in groups you may support. When it comes to donating whom can you trust? You want to see the best in everyone, you need objectivity, or you can get carried away.
To verify whether a potential grant recipient is tax exempt you can go through GuideStar’s nonprofit tracker Charity Check. Talk to contacts in the field, as well as group leaders, existing donors, arrange to attend meetings and ask questions.
When a grant participant or nonprofit does not use funds as specified, remember when they cash your check they have agreed to your terms.
Many organizations are needed and are doing great things. It is easy to see true dedication, hard work and members with a cause. It is not so easy to see through those who have lost sight of where their donations have come from and where they are going. What may have started as a great cause can quickly turn into a sinking hole. Do not let your hard-earned money or inheritance be swallowed up. Our country needs donors like you. Remember to use your head and your heart with each donation.
• Chris Compton is a recently retired multimedia broadcast sales executive living in Princeton. She can be reached at tsloup@shawmedia.com.