Donations

Big Givers Donate To Haiti

The response to the earthquake tragedy in Haiti was almost immediate, and just days afterward, millions of dollars have been raised, a lot of it through small donations of $5 or $10 transmitted through the humble text message. But there's another kind of giving that has emerged too: Single donations in much larger amounts, from the likes of Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie, Olivia Wilde, Tiger Woods, Madonna. Hopefully the list will grow and grow.

Why is it so gratifying though to hear about celebrities making donations? Perhaps because by doing so, they're doing something we've already done, something that thousands of ordinary people are doing. A crisis reminds us that we're all vulnerable, we're all responsible for helping. And that's what it is going to take to bury the dead, take care of the living, and rebuild Haiti.

So when George Clooney asks for your donation tonight, during the Hope for Haiti telethon he is hosting on MTV, you won't just be saying "yes" to an incredibly magnetic movie star, you'll be joining a community of people wanting to help. It's as simple as that. Celebrities undeniably bring some glamour and sparkle to the task of fundraising, and that's okay. It is after all a difficult and serious business. We're lucky to have them.

Check out the gallery below for a look at the amounts donated so far.

Gallery: Haiti's Big Givers

Tags: angelina jolie, AngelinaJolie, ben stiller, BenStiller, brad pitt, BradPitt, brangelina, celebrity donations, CelebrityDonations, donations, earthquake, haiti, yankees

Philanthropist Defends Reduced Donation

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Big Givers

A private philanthropist has come out of the shadows to defend reducing his donations. David Gelbaum has made more than $380 million in donations to groups including the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), the Sierra Club and others over the past four years. But after a NY Times article came out describing how the loss of his annual donation of $20 million would affect the ACLU, Gelbaum decided to make a statement. In an article in the NY Times he said that he was willing to come out in order to make the point that his drop in donation had nothing to do with any issues with the ACLU but instead was all about his own financial situation. He said that his investments in alternative, clean energy companies have placed him in "a highly illiquid position" because of the global economic crisis. The circumstances may be different but Gelbaum is just one of many donors, big and small, who have found themselves with less to give as a result of the economy. Many nonprofits have had to shrink their budgets in response to decreased donations.

The Iraq-Afghanistan Deployment Impact Fund of the California Community Foundation had received the bulk of Gelbaum's largess. He gave $246.6 million to the fund which supports nonprofit groups offering assistance to the families of troops deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan and was the sole contributor to the fund. The ACLU received $93.5 million and the Sierra Club $47.7 million over the same four year period. We hope David Gelbaum's financial picture brightens over the next year, we could all use more big givers.

Tags: aclu, david gelbaum, DavidGelbaum, donations, philanthropy, sierra club, SierraClub

Loyola University Receives Museum As A Gift

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Big Givers

Loyola University is getting a big early Christmas gift. The Cuneo Museum and Gardens in Vernon Hills, Illinois is being donated to Loyola University by the The Cuneo Foundation. The gift which includes the 100 surrounding acres and art collections is valued at $50 million. The Chicago Sun-Times says that the gift is the largest in the university's 140-year history.

The stately 31,000-square-foot museum is a real treasure. The mansion was built in 1918 and is home to a collection of antiques and art, including Thomas Gainsborough's self-portrait. James Cuneo, Jr. wanted to share his childhood home with the public. His father, printing magnate John Cuneo Sr., bought the home in 1937 and created the foundation. The terms of the gift require Loyola to keep the building open to the public for at least 20 years.

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Tags: cuneo museum, CuneoMuseum, donations, illinois, loyola university, LoyolaUniversity

Koryo Tours Helps the Blind Read in North Korea

by Tom Johansmeyer (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Travel & Hotels, Charity, Charity of the Day

Charitable giving is an obvious casualty of any economic downturn. Even when people want to give - or maintain their previous rates of donation - the realities of a shrinking portfolio force themselves into the decision-making process. Of course, a rather unique charity is struggling with this issue now. Koryo Tours, which takes westerners on rare excursions into North Korea, is looking to raise a mere $6,700 for two projects to benefit the people of North Korea. One involves buying braille dictionaries (which haven't been available in that part of the world), and the other is to buy playground equipment for an orphanage in Wonsan, North Korea.

If Koryo Tours is able to raise the funds necessary for the dictionaries, which is the first priority, it will be the first time that North Korean blind children will have this type of resource available -- the books currently do not exist.

Tags: braille, dictionary, donation, donations, dprk, north korea, NorthKorea, philanthropists, philanthropy

American Philanthropist Makes Big Donation In Australia

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Big Givers

Billionaire Chuck Feeney is in the news again with another big donation. He has pledged more than $100 million Australian to the Queensland Institute of Medical Research in Queensland, Australia. The money will be used to help fund three major new research institutes and hopefully attract more top scientists to Brisbane. Feeney's Atlantic Philanthropies has donated more than $270 million to Queensland scientific and medical research over the past decade.

Why would and Irish-American philanthropist be giving away big money in Australia? Feeney is quoted in Australia's Courier Mail as saying that when he visited Queensland he found a "lot of people worthy of support and not getting it and I was pleased to help." He is hoping that the work he funds in Queensland can improve health around the globe. Projects said to be on tap include researching breast cancer susceptibility genes and the genetic risk of schizophrenia, as well as funding clinical trials of a new malaria vaccine. Ian Frazer, the inventor of the cervical cancer vaccine, is behind the Translational Research Institute at Princess Alexandra Hospital, one of the institutes that Feeney is funding and the amount of scientists in the area has been on the rise. Frazer is currently at work on a skin cancer vaccine.

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Tags: australia, billionaire, chuck feeney, ChuckFeeney, donations, ian frazer, IanFrazer, queensland

Brooklyn Philharmonic Calls It Quits until 2011

by Tom Johansmeyer (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Events, Art

If the Brooklyn Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra was on your calendar ... well, it isn't any more. There will be no more concerts this season. The entire 2009/10 season has been canceled. But, there is hope for 2011.

April 17, 2009, it seems, is the day the music died. Cause of death: budgetary shortfall from a drop in donations.

J. Barclay Collins II, chairman of the Brooklyn Philharmonic's board, won't reveal exactly how far donations have fallen, but the results are clearly shy of the organization's $3 million annual budget. He did say, however, that he expects the music to return in 2011. Fortunately, it's only the concerts that have been canceled. The Brooklyn Philharmonic will still operate its educational programs – at a cost of approximately $750,000 a year.

The decision to suspend the concerts comes following two years of financial difficulty. For its fiscal year ending June 30, 2007 (the last for which financial information is available), the group had a deficit of $121,925. A full-time staff of 23 people has been slashed by 70 percent.

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Tags: brooklyn, charity, donate, donation, donations, financial crisis, FinancialCrisis, new york, NewYork, orchestra, symphony

Thankful Troops Smoke 7,000 Cigars

by Tom Johansmeyer (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Cigars

While we are constantly reminded of wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, we often lose site of the people serving. Sure, we support the troops and lament the fact that some are separated from their families for a year or longer ... with unfortunate regularity. But, these concepts remain abstract from those who don't don the uniform every day. Many have a friend or family member serving, but the vast majority is another step removed from the sacrifice. Chuck Ley, founder of the organization Cigars for Soldiers, is bridging the gap. His effort has added a personal and genuine touch to a "support the troops" message that the mainstream media has forced into cliché too soon.

Ley, like me, was a soldier. While my service entailed comfy pencil-pushing positions in Uijongbu, South Korea and Fort Gordon, Georga, he was an infantryman – the real deal – wounded in action in Mogadishu, Somalia. It wasn't the event immortalized in Mark Bowden's Black Hawk Down, but few realize that we fought more than once over there. Though back in civilian life for more than a decade, Ley has not forgotten his time in uniform, and many of his friends continue to serve.

From time to time, Ley would get a phone call or e-mail from overseas, a friend in some far-flung place. The tone varied from casual inquiry to begging to near-demand: send cigars. How could a cigar-smoking former soldier refuse?

Gallery: Cigars for Soldiers

Soldiers smoke Pepin Garcia cigars in Iraq

Don Pepin Garcia addresses the crowd at De La Concha

The cigars donated to Cigars for Soldiers by Don Pepin Garcia

Tags: afghanistan, black hawk down, BlackHawkDown, charity, cigar, cigar accessories, cigar cutter, CigarAccessories, CigarCutter, cigars, donate, donation, donations, foundation, georgia, iraq, iraq war, IraqWar, lighter, lighters, marine, marines, mark bowden, MarkBowden, mogadishu, relax, soldier, soldiers, somali, somalia, south korea, SouthKorea, support the troops, SupportTheTroops

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Payne-Mason, Cleveland Golf to Support Wounded Warrior Project

by Tom Johansmeyer (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Cigars

Cigar company Payne-Mason, Cleveland Golf and the Wounded Warrior Project are working together to help service members who have been severely injured. Through a joint six-month program, proceeds from the sale of cigars at more than 1,000 golf courses across the country – in addition to prestigious tournaments and on some sports talk radio shows – will be used to support troops in need.

The promotion began this month and will run through Labor Day. Keep in mind, of course, that it's only the sale of Payne-Mason cigars that will contribute to the cause. Fortunately, additional donations will be made by participating golf facilities. So, if you need to deviate from your favorite brand to help a soldier, it's worth doing even if only once.

Tags: charity, cigar, cigars, donation, donations, soldiers

Schoolpop.com, Charity of the Day

by Star Sutherland (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Charity, Charity of the Day

Want to support your favorite school every time you shop online? Schoolpop.com offers internet shoppers an easy way to donate to the school of their choice, while conveniently buying their everyday shopping items. Since its inception, Schoolpop has contributed more than $200 million to over 30,000 schools nationwide! Choose from hundreds of your favorite retailers, Arden B., Best Buy, Barnes & Noble, L'Occitane, Pottery Barn....and hundreds more. Check out the Schoolpop website to see if the school you'd like to support is listed, chances are ....it is! If you're kids school needs a simple and effective fundraiser, get them listed on the site! Some purchases kick back as much as 20% of retail price to the school. I love this site, what an easy way to contribute to the education of future generations.

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Tags: charity, charity of the day, CharityOfTheDay, donate, donations, internet, internet shopping, InternetShopping, online, online shopping, OnlineShopping, school fundraiser, SchoolFundraiser, schoolpop.com, schools

Goods for Good, Charity of the Day!

by Star Sutherland (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Charity, Green, Charity of the Day, Big Givers

Goods for Good has a simple goal, to redistribute excess goods that sit unused in the US, to needy children in Africa. They provide much needed school supplies, clothing, and health and hygiene products to children in crisis, while at the same time reducing waste and overstock at home. Donations are received from a wide range of companies and the sorting and shipping is done by volunteers. If your company has outdated or unused inventory (office supplies, fabric, teaching or marketing tools...) that you wish to discard in an environmentally friendly way, contact this worthwhile organization today!

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Tags: Africa, Charity, Charity of the Day, CharityOfTheDay, Donations, environment, Goods for Good, GoodsForGood

The Elephant Sanctuary, Charity of the Day

by Rigel Celeste (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Charity of the Day

Established in 1995 and existing on 2,700 acres in Hohenwald, Tennessee, The Elephant Sanctuary is devoted to providing a safe refuge for endangered Asian and African elephants that are old, needy, and sick after being retired from zoos and circuses. It is also passionate about educating others on the crisis facing these large and gentle creatures, and working to stop the capture and training of elephants from their natural habitats to perform in circuses and safaris. They have 23 elephants total in the sanctuary, and you can meet them all by name and picture and either send a general donation or sponsor a specific "girl" after reading each of their bios and getting to know them in photo albums.

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Tags: animal rescue, AnimalRescue, charities, charity, conservation, donation, donations, elephant, elephants, giving, rescue, sanctuary, tennessee, wildlife

End-of-the-Year Donations: Hurricane Katrina Relief

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

This year there is a special donation advisory to be aware of, the Katrina Emergency Tax Relief Act of 2005 provides tax benefits for those affected by the storm and for those who have donated. There is a much larger allowable tax deduction for cash contributions made from August 28 and December 31, 2005. This article in the Magic City Morning Star has more details. And although has a lot has been done and the area devastated by the fall hurricanes is still in need of help. There are many places to donate to hurricane relief but theRed Cross and the Bush-Clinton Katrina Fund are two of the most popular.

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Tags: donations, end of the year donations, EndOfTheYearDonations, irs info, taxes

End-of-the-Year Donations: Tsunami Recovery Fund

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Services

Today marks the anniversary of the tsunami at have arisen since the disaster struck. The Tsunami Recovery Fund has received around $3 million in donations for long-term recovery. The Tsunami Recovery Fund provides resources to local NGOs, faith-based organizations and government agencies. The fund was created by The Asia Foundation and is part of Give2Asia which makes grants to local organizations in Asian countries. They have also created a Pakistan Earthquake Fund to allocate money to that troubled area. Donations are tax-deductible.

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Tags: donations, tax decuctions, tsunami anniversary, tsunami recovery, TsunamiRecovery