Wednesday WTF: Charities
Welcome back to “Wednesday WTF,” my weekly rant on things that waste your money. Today’s victim is a bit of a controversial one. Charities to me are very bi-polar in nature. Some have my heart strings strumming, while others have me saying “what the f***.” I myself give to several charities but I am always weary of the idea of charitable giving. I have seen too many times the heads of charitable organizations go down for some sort of fraud. In this post, I am going to explain why you should reconsider your charitable giving, especially if you are on a budget.
1) In some cases, your time is worth more than your money
You give 5 bucks to the local food drive campaign at the grocery store when you check out. How about instead you volunteer 2 hours a week at the local mission serving food. Your cooking or serving of guests allows for 100 people to eat instead of the 5 bucks feeding one person. These agencies are always looking for volunteers and one thing is for sure, you will see immediate results from your work. That 5 bucks probably touches 10 hands before it gets to the needy person. Who knows how much is left by the time it gets there.
2) Charities are terribly inefficient
In 2011 over $298 Billion was donated in the United States alone. That’s Billion with a “B.” Think of all the people that could feed. There are millions of people around the world that live on less than a dollar a day. Every single one of them can have their year’s supply of food paid for easily. When you think of all that money and how we still have the problems that exist it is kind of troubling. You start to ask questions like, “Where is all the money going?” The easy answer is overhead. While it is reasonable to assume a large organization needs people to get the work done, it is not reasonable some of the salaries these CEO’s make. It is not uncommon that a director of a non-profit makes in the high six-figure range. Warms your heart a little bit, doesn’t it?
3) You already give to the biggest charity there is…..
Just in case you didn’t know you donate every month to the biggest charity in our country. This charity is known as Canada Revenue Agency. Taxes are part of life and much like actual charities, there is waste all over the place. I reckon that if our tax money as spent efficiently we wouldn’t need local charities at all. Another thing to think about is this. You give anywhere from 25-50% of your income away as taxes. Then you need 25-35% for housing. Add another 10-15% for transportation. Add to that all the bills you pay, the food you eat, and money you try to save if there is anything left. If you have nothing left over then maybe charitable giving is not for you. See point number one and think about donating your time instead.
Like many of posts, I am not saying don’t give to charity. All I’m saying is think about who you donate to. Think about if it is really doing its intended purpose. Think if you could not be doing something else more useful with those funds. Charity begins at home. I think if we all took care of ourselves and the people around us everything would be fine. But hey, what do I know right?
Thanks for reading my post on charities. Below are the links to 2 sites where you check the efficiency of the charities you give to. Have a great day friends!
Charity Navigator: www.charitynavigator.org
GiveWell: www.givewell.org
“I think sometimes all the charities are doing is mopping up the blood. It’s a shame.” – Thom Yorke
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Joseph James Francis is a Financial Advisor. You can find him on various social media platforms and at www.budgetboss.ca.