Post Classifieds
Fake philanthropists pose major problem
By Samantha Wulff
On April 17, 2013
Each of us has causes that we support, either ideologically or by getting directly involved.
I told myself that when I become more financially stable, I will donate to charities and
non-profit organizations that I think are deserving. I may have to revise the plan.
I've always been an animal lover and tend to get depressed after seeing any one of
the various commercials that show neglected and abandoned animals. As sad as the
commercials are, they make me want to take action sooner rather than later.
Ironically, the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) was one of the organizations
I was planning on supporting. I say "ironically" due to the recent report by the Humane
Watch, that stated only "1 percent of HSUS's profits actually go to shelters."
Humane Watch devotes themselves to keeping an eye on HSUS, and often exposes their
questionable practices. Along with the well-respected charity watchdog, the American
Institute of Philanthropy, gave HSUS a "D rating," based on "spending paltry amounts on
their programs and maintaining high fundraising costs." We would wish to think that the
majority of the money going to a charity goes straight to those in need, but this clearly
isn't always the case.
Charity Navigator has a list of 10 charities that spend more than fifty-percent of their
budgets paying fundraising professionals, including the Cancer Survivor's Fund and the
Children's Charity Fund. This means very little money is actually being spent on
programs and services.
We need to be even more skeptical when it comes to lesser-known charities. Not only
will their names probably not pop up on helpful sites like Humane Watch or Charity
Navigator, but they may not even truly exist. It is all too common and all too easy to set
up a fake charity. It's as simple as picking a design template for a webpage, writing
something about donating sweaters to hairless cats and inserting a Paypal tool. Do-
gooders will stumble across the page and be excited about the idea of donating to a
unique cause and in doing so, lose out completely.
As shocking as it may seem, not even "trustworthy" celebrities can be trusted in the end.
It seems like every big star has a charity nowadays, which is great if the money is
actually going where they say it is. Khloe and Lamar Odom, a celebrity power couple
consisting of a Kardashian and NBA player, have just been exposed for committing
charity fraud (who would have guessed?).
It was on ESPN's "Outside the Lines" program that found how the charity, "Cathy's
Kids", was in reality just a front for funding "elite" youth basketball teams.
So what's an aspiring philanthropist to do? Although there are some questionable, or
downright fake charities out there, there are also a lot of decent ones. The difficult part is
discerning the good from the bad, and the easiest way to make sure your donation
benefits those in need is to donate time instead of money.
When you volunteer, you can see the results, in fact you are the result. Plus, the
interactive experience is always more rewarding than writing a check. Almost every non-
profit organization in the area is looking for volunteers, including the Red Cross, Habitat
for Humanity, Buffalo City Mission, the Ten Lives Club and Friends of the City of
Buffalo Animal Shelter.
If volunteering isn't in your foreseeable future, or if you want to donate both time and
money, then donating local is the next best option. Not only does it help out those around
you, but in effect, cuts out the middle man. It's counterintuitive to send funds to the
ASPCA when you could drive to the Walden Galleria, hand them a check and interact
with the animals that you just helped out.
A healthy dose of skepticism needs to be applied to almost everything in life, especially
when it comes to charitable donations, so do your research. Or better yet, get out there
and get involved. Your community (and your wallet) will thank you!
Samantha Wulff can be reached by email at wulff.record@live.com.
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