Helping Hands: How to Support a Charity
Everyone should support a charity. Some of us may not have as much disposable income as others, so might feel that we can’t offer much or that our donations might not make much difference to anyone. But when it comes to supporting worthy causes, every little will help. There’s a way for almost anyone to do a little good in the world. Here’s how you can best support charities, regardless of your income or interests.
Choosing a Charity
There are hundreds of thousands of registered charities out there. Some are much more prominent than others, with a worldwide reach and sufficient donations to invest in advertising and campaigns. Others are smaller but do just as much important work. The key to choosing a charity to support is finding a matter that you are passionate about. This can be a health issue (cancer research charities, mental health charities, heart foundations, etc.), a charity for animals (dogs’ homes, WWF, etc.), children’s charities or environmental charities (Greenpeace). Whatever affects you, whether personal or general, there will be a charity around that helps with the cause.
Raising Awareness
Rather than simply giving some cash to a charity, you can raise some money yourself. This is a brilliant opportunity to raise awareness for your chosen charity at the same time as receiving donations from others. Take a look at No Birds Bash: this a tale of two men’s journey raising money for children’s charity Variety, which helps disadvantaged children or those with special needs to live full lives. Their site promotes giving but also makes others aware of all of the positive things that their charity of choice does. Raising awareness can inspire other people to support charity themselves.
Using Charity Stores
When you’re doing your shopping, try out a charity store as opposed to other high street stores. Charity stores are stocked entirely by donations. People hand their unwanted items in for free. When you purchase something from them, the profits are given to whichever charity the store is in aid of. It’s easy to ignore these little stores. You might think that they’re filled with junk. But this couldn’t be further from the truth. Charity stores only accept quality goods as donations, so no torn, damaged or dirty items. You can find some real gems hidden away in them. Some people even donate designer goods! So dive in and get searching the racks and shelves for hidden treasures at a low price.
Writing a Will
This might sound a little morbid, but if you’ve drawn together a will, remember to include a charity donation within it. This money will then be given to your chosen cause. You will continue doing good for others once you’ve passed. If you are planning on donating a lump sum of your savings or assets to a charity, many local solicitors will also discount the rate that they charge when it comes to drawing up your will. So ask around and find the best offer for you and for the charities you are supporting.
