Making a donation doesn’t just feel good. It is good. And a gift donation, made in someone’s name, is one of the few things you can still get in time for the holidays, without standing in line. We asked DP’ers to send along their favorite charities for this year –and got back a list of organizations that provide needed aid to fight disease, hunger, climate change and poverty, in New York City and all over the world.
If you want to give a gift that matters this holiday season, please think about supporting them.
Digital Pulp’s Favorite Charities of 2009
INTERNATIONAL
Charity Water
http://mycharitywater.org/
Right now, almost a billion people on the planet don’t have access to safe, clean drinking water. charity: water is bringing clean, safe drinking water to people in developing nations. We give 100% of the money raised to direct project costs, funding sustainable clean water solutions in areas of greatest need. Just $20 can give one person in a developing nation clean water for 20 years.
Heifer International
http://www.heifer.org/
Heifer’s mission is to work with communities to end hunger and poverty and care for the earth. With gifts of livestock and training, we help families improve their nutrition and generate income in sustainable ways. We refer to the animals as “living loans” because in exchange for their livestock and training, families agree to give one of its animal’s offspring to another family in need. It’s called Passing on the Gift – a cornerstone of our mission that creates an ever-expanding network of hope and peace.
Tap Project
http://www.tapproject.org/
In 2007, the UNICEF Tap Project was born in New York City based on a simple concept: restaurants would ask their patrons to donate $1 or more for the tap water they usually enjoy for free, and all funds raised would support UNICEF’s efforts to bring clean and accessible water to millions of children around the world. Growing from just 300 New York City restaurants in 2007 to thousands across the country today, the UNICEF Tap Project has quickly become a powerful national movement.
Unwrapped by Oxfam America
http://www.oxfamamericaunwrapped.com/
An international relief and development organization that creates lasting solutions to poverty, hunger, and injustice. We are part of Oxfam International, a confederation of 14 Oxfams working in more than 100 countries. Together with individuals and local groups in these countries, we save lives, help people overcome poverty, and fight for social justice.
NEW YORK CITY
The Doe Fund
http://www.doe.org/
The Doe Fund believes that every human being has the potential to be a contributing member of society. Ready, Willing & Able is The Doe Fund’s holistic, residential, work and job skills training program which helps homeless individuals in their efforts to become self-sufficient, contributing members of society. The program targets the segment of the homeless population considered the hardest to serve: single, able-bodied adults, the majority of whom have histories of incarceration and substance abuse. Criteria for acceptance into the program is that the applicant be ready, willing and able, both physically and mentally, to work and maintain a drug-free lifestyle.
The Door
http://www.door.org/
The Door offers young people ages 12-21 comprehensive educational, health, nutritional and counseling programs, as well as legal services for young people in need of civil legal representation. All Door programs are designed specifically to meet the multiple needs of New York City’s adolescents and offers a range of programs to serve the diverse young people with the support and guidance they need to make a successful transition to adulthood.
Dress for Success
http://www.dressforsuccess.org/
The mission of Dress for Success is to promote the economic independence of disadvantaged women by providing professional attire, a network of support and the career development tools to help women thrive in work and in life. Each Dress for Success client receives one suit when she has a job interview and can return for a second suit or separates when she finds work. Since 1997, Dress for Success has served more than 500,000 women around the world.
Housing Works
http://www.housingworks.org/
Housing Works is committed to ending the twin crises of AIDS and homelessness. We believe that all people have the right to a rich and empowering life. Since 1990, we have provided the highest quality services for homeless men, women, and children living with HIV and AIDS in New York City and beyond.
Robin Hood
http://www.robinhood.org
Robin Hood targets poverty in New York City by finding and funding the best and most effective programs and partnering with them to maximize results. Every cent of every donation goes directly to programs helping poor New Yorkers.
FOOD
City Harvest
http://www.cityharvest.org/
City Harvest was founded on the visionary concept that excess food should feed someone who is hungry rather than go to waste. We distribute food that would otherwise go to waste to community programs that provide groceries and meals to hungry New Yorkers, tapping all segments of the food industry including restaurants, grocers, corporate cafeterias, manufacturers, and farms. Our food rescue efforts help meet the need for emergency food in low-income communities and support complimentary services that promote long term solutions to hunger. Meet some of our generous food donors.
Feeding America
http://feedingamerica.org/
Feeding America is the nation’s leading domestic hunger-relief charity. Our mission is to feed America’s hungry through a nationwide network of member food banks and engage our country in the fight to end hunger. Each year, the Feeding America network provides food to more than 25 million low-income people facing hunger in the United States, including more than 9 million children and nearly 3 million seniors.
CHILDREN
*Child Fund International
http://www.childfund.org/
ChildFund International is inspired and driven by the potential that is inherent in all children; the potential not only to survive but to thrive, to become leaders who bring positive change for those around them. We work in 31 countries, assisting approximately 15.2 million children and their family members. Our distinctive approach focuses on working with children throughout their journey from birth to young adulthood, as well as with families, local organizations and communities globally to create the environments children need to thrive.
*Make-A-Wish Foundation
http://www.wish.org/
Since 1980, the Make-A-Wish Foundation has given hope, strength and joy to children with life-threatening medical conditions. From our humble beginnings with one boy’s wish to be a police officer, we’ve evolved into an organization that grants a child’s wish in the U.S. every 40 minutes. As the nation’s largest wish-granting organization, the Foundation’s mission believes in the life-changing impact that a Make-A-Wish experience has on children, families, referral sources, donors, sponsors, and entire communities.
Smile Train
http://www.smiletrain.org/
The Smile Train is focused on solving a single problem: cleft lip and palate. This holiday 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.
UNICEF
http://www.unicef.org/
Every year, nearly 10 million children die totally preventable deaths. Six million of these lives could be saved by basic, cost-effective measures. We believe that children have rights, the world has set goals for children, children demand a voice, poverty reduction starts with children, the people of the world say ‘Yes’ for children and children should not be dying from preventable causes. We advocate for measures to give children the best start in life, because proper care at the youngest age forms the strongest foundation for a person’s future.
HEALTH & WELLNESS
American Red Cross
http://www.redcross.org/
The American Red Cross has been the nation’s premier emergency response organization where people mobilize to help their neighbors—across the street, across the country, and across the world—in emergencies. Each year, in communities large and small, victims of some 70,000 disasters turn to neighbors familiar and new—the more than half a million volunteers and 35,000 employees of the Red Cross. Through locally supported chapters, more than 15 million people gain the skills they need to prepare for and respond to emergencies in their homes, communities and world.St. Jude Children’s
Be the Match Foundation
http://www.marrow.org/
Thousands of patients with leukemia and other life-threatening diseases depend on Be The Match Foundation to raise funds to help make bone marrow and umbilical cord blood transplants possible. Be The Match Foundation provides financial assistance for patients who need help with treatment costs, funds medical research to keep advancing transplant science, and dds more donors to Be The Match Registry, increasing the chances that more patients will find their match.
Research Hospital
http://www.stjude.org/
St. Jude is unlike any other pediatric treatment and research facility. Discoveries made here have completely changed how the world treats children with cancer and other catastrophic diseases. With research and patient care under one roof, St. Jude is where some of today’s most gifted researchers are able to do science more quickly.
*Gay Men’s Health Crisis
http://gmhc.org/
GMHC is the world’s first and leading provider of HIV/AIDS prevention, care and advocacy. Building on decades of dedication and expertise, we understand the reality of HIV/AIDS and empower a healthy life for all. AIDS is not over. In fact, awareness is down as new infections are up — including among women, people of color and men who have sex with men. At GMHC, we believe we can end the epidemic by addressing the underlying causes, shifting cultural beliefs and promoting smart behaviors that empower a healthy life for all of us.
DISABILITIES
Best Buddies
http://www.bestbuddies.org/
Best Buddies is a nonprofit organization dedicated to establishing a global volunteer movement that creates opportunities for one-to-one friendships, integrated employment and leadership development for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Founded in 1989 by Anthony Kennedy Shriver, Best Buddies is a vibrant, international organization that has grown from one original chapter to more than 1,400 college, high school and middle school campuses across the country and internationally.
ENVIRONMENT
*NRDC – National Resources Defense Council
http://www.nrdc.org/
The Natural Resources Defense Council’s purpose is to safeguard the Earth: its people, its plants and animals and the natural systems on which all life depends. We work to restore the integrity of the elements that sustain life — air, land and water — and to defend endangered natural places. As the nation’s most effective environmental action group, NRDC combines the grassroots power of 1.3 million members and online activists with the courtroom clout and expertise of more than 350 lawyers, scientists and other professionals.
WWF – World Wildlife Fund
http://www.wwf.org/
From the Amazon to the Arctic, the World Wildlife Fund is building a future where human needs are met in harmony with nature. By 2020 we will conserve 19 of the world’s most important natural places and significantly change global forces to protect the future of nature. Our experts are active at every level – from field work to government – conserving the largest tropical rain forests, the most diverse coral reefs, and the world’s most endangered species.
ANIMALS
Angel’s Gate
http://www.angelsgate.org/
Angel’s Gate is a home for special needs animals to live out their days in peace, dignity and love. Our focus is on wellness and quality of life. We provide for the physical, emotional and spiritual needs of each animal. We take a holistic approach in animal care, giving all needed supportive services including hospice care.
ASPCA
http://www.aspca.org/
The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals works to rescue animals from abuse, pass humane laws and share resources with shelters nationwide. As the first humane organization to be granted legal authority to investigate and make arrests for crimes against animals, we are wholly dedicated to fulfilling the ASPCA mission through nonviolent approaches. Our organization provides local and national leadership in three key areas: caring for pet parents and pets, providing positive outcomes for at-risk animals and serving victims of animal cruelty.
Baghdad Pups Program
http://www.spcai.org/baghdad-pups.html
U.S. troops in Iraq and Afghanistan befriend local animals as a way to help cope with the emotional hardships they endure every day while deployed in a war zone. The Operation Baghdad Pups program provides veterinary care and coordinates complicated logistics and transportation requirements in order to reunite these beloved pets with their service men and women back in the U.S.
Rolling Dog Ranch
http://rollingdogranch.org/
The Rolling Dog Ranch Animal Sanctuary in Montana rescues and shelters disabled animals. Every animal who arrives at the sanctuary gets another chance to have a safe and loving home. Our residents include blind dogs, blind horses, deaf dogs, blind cats, and animals with other neurological and orthopedic disabilities.
* Digital Pulp is the proud partner of many non-profit organizations, including several on this list.
