12 Charities in 2011 - March

So far this month I've donated to two charities - my alma mater (undergrad) because they were running a matching program where every donation made would be matched by some richer alums. Also we were competing for the most donations against a rival school. Note for charities - make donating fun. So far I think we're winning but the contest ends tomorrow. I gave them $25.

I also gave $25 to the American Cancer Society because someone near and dear to me is running in a Relay For Life. I think they're a very worthy organization, and as my family has been touched by cancer, I support their efforts to research and possibly find a cure one day.

And giving back feels good. :-)

I hope everyone else participating in the challenge found a great charity to support this month.

12 Charities in 2011 - February

I almost forgot to post my February charitable donation. I donated $25 to my local public radio consortium.

In case you haven't heard, public radio stations are in danger of losing their federal funding - television's P.B.S. is at risk too. I can't imagine a world without P.B.S. but figured my donation would have a greater impact at the local level.

I rely on public radio to give me some of the more nuanced local news that the newspaper can't deliver on such a timely basis. They're also always hosting community events and bringing the arts to the people, so I felt it was time for me to give a little back for all that I receive.

You can give to National Public Radio or your local public radio too if you want to preserve this important public resource.

January Charity: The Smile Train

I just made a $50 donation to The Smile Train, which will be enough to cover the medication for one cleft palette surgery. In case you've never heard of The Smile Train, here's a statement from their web site:

Unlike many charities that do many different things, The Smile Train mission is
focused on solving a single problem: cleft lip and palate.
Clefts are a major problem in developing countries where there are millions of children who are suffering with unrepaired clefts. Most cannot eat or speak properly. Aren’t allowed to attend school or hold a job. And face very difficult lives filled
with shame and isolation, pain and heartache.
The good news is every single child with a cleft can be helped with surgery that costs as little as $250 and takes as little as 45 minutes.
This is our mission:
-To provide free cleft surgery for millions of poor children in developing countries.
-To provide free cleft-related training for doctors and medical professionals.
Until there are no more children who need help and we have completely eradicated the problem of clefts.

I admit that I first heard of this charity years ago and felt very moved by what they do. Trying to choose which devastating problem of the world to send your money to is intimidating. I like how they isolated one very fixable problem and really make a profound impact in these children's lives.

Here are pictures of a girl named Angelica from the Phillipines, before and after she received her surgery at two years old. Thanks to donations from people like me, she is able to eat normally and is starting to talk. And what a nice smile she has!

Although I was only able to give a small donation, I still feel like I am helping kids like Angelica out there get the care they need.

And just because you always have to be dilligent when picking a charity, I was pleased to discover that The Smile Train only spends 18% of their budget on fundraising, 1.3% on management and 80.7% on program services.

Click here to like them on Facebook and spread the word about The Smile Train!

Challenge: Twelve Charities in 2011

I don't give to charity nearly as much as I could, or as some would say, should. Although the "rule" of giving ten percent of my net income ($5k, yikes!) or 1% of my networth ($0, yay!) sort of gives me an out because I'm in debt, right? Nah, I'm pretty sure the rule is whichever is higher.

In 2010 I think I gave about $200 to charity - and $100 of that wasn't really "charity" so much as it was a donation to my alma mater. This year, I want to give more. Not neccesarily $5k (sorry!) but more, know what I mean? And I want to use the blog to raise awareness of charitable giving.

So I will be picking one charity each month this year and give what I can and encourage others to do so too if they are so inclined. I'll announce the first charity soon, but in the meantime here's a bunch of info on charitable giving from mint.com


budget planner – Mint.com

Budget 12/23 - 01/05

So I'm kind of stumped making up this budget. There's a few things I need to figure out in the next couple of days/weeks that could alter things but I have to give it my best shot for now.

Still have to get one (or maybe two) small presents before Christmas and want to make a charitable donation before the end of the year.

But here's my budget for the next two weeks and into the new years:

Starting Balance = $1280

Credit Card - 250
Charity - 50
Wedding Savings - 500

Groceries - 75
Christmas - 75
Law School Loan - 54
Perkins Loan - 93
Misc. - 183

Here's hoping the rest of the year goes smoothly!

Giving Back

When I was 16 I made a really good friend through one of my clubs in high school. She was a freshman and I was a sophomore and though it wasn't exactly cool to befriend younger kids in high school I liked her a lot. She was extremely motivated to become an active member of the club and we worked together a lot. She was literally the nicest girl I had ever met. Even though she had leukemia and had lost all of her hair to chemo she had a wonderful way of looking at life. A lot of guys liked her because she was so spunky.

We hung out occasionally as time went by. She wasn't in my group of friends but I saw her a lot at school and in our club. When she didn't come back to school immediately after Christmas break in my junior year (her sophomore year) I didn't think much of it. A couple of weeks later she died. She didn't even get to turn 16.

I've thought about this friend a lot over the years. What college would she have gone to? Would she have become a doctor like she dreamed? Would she end up with that cute junior who had a crush on her. I know it's cliche but she was such a wonderful person and it's a real shame her life had to end so soon.

A friend on facebook announced today that she was running a half marathon in my late friend's honor. I immediately decided to donate $10 to the cause of finding a cure for Childhood Leukemia. I wish I could give more to charity but I'm glad I am able to do a small part to honor this amazing person I was lucky to know.