Favorite charities?

[epiclesis]

I would love to hear some of your favorite charities to donate to. My husband tasks me with the donating job, and I would love to have a good list of honorable charities worthy of me donating to. I'm super picky, so give me what you have!

 

[Root of Jesse]

I would love to hear some of your favorite charities to donate to. My husband tasks me with the donating job, and I would love to have a good list of honorable charities worthy of me donating to. I'm super picky, so give me what you have!

First, I'd stick to Catholic ones. Then, I ask what form of Catholic Charities to focus on. For examples, pro-life, evangelization and catechesis, feeding/clothing the poor, and so on.
Personally, I think the world needs evangelization most, so I donate to EWTN, the Fathers of Mercy, and Dynamic Catholic. All of them spread God's message around the world on a shoe-string budget. Dynamic Catholic, I have received back in materials at least as much as I have donated, and they have just produced a Confirmation program, made it available to any parish, in fact, any entity, that wants to use it, at no charge. www.dynamiccatholic.com/confirmation.

I also support the National Shirne of the Immaculate Conception in DC.

I also give to the St. Vincent de Paul, locally, because that kind of charity is best done locally. I give material and money to them. And my parish, through which I funnel most other giving for distribution to the greater good.

Be prepared, though. When you give to one, you'll get flooded with requests from others.

 

[epiclesis]

First, I'd stick to Catholic ones. Then, I ask what form of Catholic Charities to focus on. For examples, pro-life, evangelization and catechesis, feeding/clothing the poor, and so on.
Personally, I think the world needs evangelization most, so I donate to EWTN, the Fathers of Mercy, and Dynamic Catholic. All of them spread God's message around the world on a shoe-string budget. Dynamic Catholic, I have received back in materials at least as much as I have donated, and they have just produced a Confirmation program, made it available to any parish, in fact, any entity, that wants to use it, at no charge. www.dynamiccatholic.com/confirmation.

I also support the National Shirne of the Immaculate Conception in DC.

I also give to the St. Vincent de Paul, locally, because that kind of charity is best done locally. I give material and money to them. And my parish, through which I funnel most other giving for distribution to the greater good.

Be prepared, though. When you give to one, you'll get flooded with requests from others.

I didn't mean to insinuate that I was just starting it - I've been doing it for five years. I just wanted some new ones to add to the list!

We always give to our parish, we give to a religious order that a girl my husband knows entered a couple of years ago, I give to certain appeals from our diocese. I give to the local food bank, I give to the Franciscan Friars of the Renewal because I loved them back when I was in NY and knew lots of them and love what they do and how they live. I give to Oregon Right to Life, the FSSP group, a local classical education Catholic high school, Catholic Answers, some local causes (old train organization, historical farm that teaches about living off your own land and organically, children's museum), a pro life crisis pregnancy center, etc.. I just wanted to add new ones to the list.

I never remember to donate to EWTN, but I definitely believe in that, so I'll add it in. I don't know anything about the other groups you mentioned, so I'll have to look into them. And I think our local St. Vincent de Paul closed - we had one, but they're no longer in the plaza they used to be in and I can't find anything online.

Thanks so much!

 

[epiclesis]

PS - I started adding post-it's in with my donation check requesting them not to add me to their mailing list. So far, it's been successful.

 

[MikeK]

I would love to hear some of your favorite charities to donate to. My husband tasks me with the donating job, and I would love to have a good list of honorable charities worthy of me donating to. I'm super picky, so give me what you have!

Catholic Relief Services
WorldVision
Habitat For Humanity
Red Cross

 

[epiclesis]

Catholic Relief Services
WorldVision
Habitat For Humanity
Red Cross

I thought CRS was linked to distributing birth control? I thought I was pretty sure I had read that officially at least in three different places.

My husband isn't a fan of HFH. I'll look into more info/rating/charity navigator for Red Cross - for some reason, I've never been a big fan, despite how reliable they are in a crisis.

 

[Root of Jesse]

I didn't mean to insinuate that I was just starting it - I've been doing it for five years. I just wanted some new ones to add to the list!

We always give to our parish, we give to a religious order that a girl my husband knows entered a couple of years ago, I give to certain appeals from our diocese. I give to the local food bank, I give to the Franciscan Friars of the Renewal because I loved them back when I was in NY and knew lots of them and love what they do and how they live. I give to Oregon Right to Life, the FSSP group, a local classical education Catholic high school, Catholic Answers, some local causes (old train organization, historical farm that teaches about living off your own land and organically, children's museum), a pro life crisis pregnancy center, etc.. I just wanted to add new ones to the list.

I never remember to donate to EWTN, but I definitely believe in that, so I'll add it in. I don't know anything about the other groups you mentioned, so I'll have to look into them. And I think our local St. Vincent de Paul closed - we had one, but they're no longer in the plaza they used to be in and I can't find anything online.

Thanks so much!

I didn't mean to insinuate that you're just starting... Glad to know, though. I love the Franciscan Friars of the Renewal! Fr. Benedict's group. If you watch EWTN, and you know who Fr. Wade Menezes and Fr. Bill Casey are, they're Fathers of Mercy. They do parish missions at no cost to the parish. Do investigate dynamiccatholic.com.
If you're in Portland area, there's a deacon in your diocese, Deacon Harold Burke-Stivers who has a foundation.
Good idea about the post-it...

 

[MikeK]

The Red Cross is gigantic and spends a good deal on infrastructure, which kinda sucks from a value perspective, but it also allows them to bring the big guns anywhere on the globe and quick. I hadn't heard about CRS and contraception, I'll have to look into that.

 

[johnnyc]

I mainly stick to keeping it local. I donate my time and money to the Society of St. Vincent de Paul..... they do amazing work for the local community and I also donate to my parish. Those are on a consistent basis.

Every so often I will donate to Rachel's Vineyard and Society for the Propagation of the Faith.

I used to donate to Catholic Relief Services but there were some questions about them. I need to find out if things are straightened out there.

 

[Fantine]

I love this order because they work in poor, rural communities with low numbers of Catholics. I've known several of their priests and they were dynamic, tireless, and a lot of fun.

Glenmary Home Missioners - Serving Rural America since 1939

I, too, like Catholic Relief Services, especially in disaster relief situations.

I have sponsored a child through Christian Foundation for Children and Aging for many years, but the founder of the organization dies and they now have a new agency, "Unbound," and they just seem a little glitzier to me. I wouldn't abandon the boy I've sponsored, but I don't know if I'd go with the new organization again. CFCA was a Catholic organization--I'm not sure about the Unbound, although I guess if they are supporting the same projects in different countries they must be Catholic.

I'm on the family selection committee of Habitat due to a friend's being on the board. I've gotten to know the rules and regs pretty well, and while they do a lot of good (I've also helped work on someone's home) it's pretty hard for people to qualify for a home. I am the sole bleeding heart liberal on a committee of bankers (although one of them is a little bit of a softie). I find I'm often the advocate and often outvoted (although the softie banker was more pro on one family than I was when we visited).

But the people on the board are really good...they have bought heaters for people who didn't qualify because their apartments were substandard and they knew that even if they couldn't approve a home they could help their situation a little bit.

I support my parish and the diocesan campaign. I do 5K's sometimes, the last for homeless veterans.

I donate to other charities, but the ones I've mentioned are ones I support every month.

 

[Jimmy P]

St. Jude Hospital

 

[tadoflamb]

As a formerly active Vincentian I'm really grateful to see all the support we receive from the members of this board. Thank you so much.

Needless to say, my favorite charity is my parish's StVdeP conference since I know what they do and I know who they are. According to our ideal, every parish should have a StVdeP conference, so, even if your parish doesn't have an active conference, perhaps a neighboring parish might.

 

[AMDG]

EWTN
Catholic Relief for disasters
&
lately I have even contributed to Mercury One when it comes to disasters (since they usually have relief trucks there within the hour)

locally our parish has a "Food Bank" Sunday every second Sunday of the week and
of course, donations to Crisis Pregnancy

You know there are so many worthy organizations (Breast Cancer Awareness, Boys Ranch, ARC, St. Joseph's Indian School, Rachel's Vineyard, etc.) that I wish there was more I could do.)

 

[sylverpiano]

I mostly contribute at the local level. I support my Parish, of course, and i fund the English as a Second Language classes held in our Parish community center. I contribute to a local women's shelter, a food pantry and a homeless shelter.

Of course I am still the musical director for our Rocky Horror Show for various AIDS charities.

 

[gurneyhalleck1]

Farm Sanctuary

 

[ebia]

Aid to the Church in Need?

 

[TheOtherHockeyMom]

Food for the Poor
Women for women
Farm Sanctuary
Compassion over cruelty

 

[wondrousgnat]

My parish of course. Also EWTN and Franciscan University of Steubenville. And too a convent called Disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ in Channing, Texas.
I have given to Priests for Life but for some reason they cannot get my correct address. I have informed them several times but they have not changed and still have an incorrect one.
And a local food pantry.
I also volunteer, now that I am retired, at the Northern Illinois Food Bank and weekly pray the rosary at a nursing home.

 

[StevenMerten]

Hello Epiclesis,

Divine Mercy Home is an orphanage, school and now hospital for lepers in India. Fr. Xavier came to America and said Mass and spoke at our parish, to ask us for help for his children. We have donated to help the orphans and lepers of India for about 14 years now. Fr. Xavier has become a close friend.

Please visit his site. There are multiple pages of pictures there and his e-mail address.

Divine Mercy Orphanage and School

 

[St_Barnabus]

Missionaries of the Poor, founded by Fr. Richard Ho Lung. They serve the poorest of the poor in Jamaica and Haiti, and are always in need, if you know anything about these poverty areas. They are getting many vocations, which tells me how blessed the Missionaries are!