Charities that I Respect

Introduction

Like many, I’ve usually kept my charitable giving private — and I’ve respected that choice in others. But recently, a few people have asked where they might consider donating. Since I don’t see a need to keep it to myself, I’ll share my recommendations for anyone interested.

I’ve organized this around a few themes. For each one I will link to the organization’s website and the Charity Navigator rating. For all of the organizations mentioned below, I respect them and I have personally donated to them at least once, but often over several years. I’m leaving out organizations that I don’t want to donate to for various reasons and local charities, but I may revisit those topics someday. I’m also not including much commentary on each one since I’m hoping you will find your own reasons to like them and contribute.

Human Rights

• Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC)
  • http://www.splcenter.org
  • https://www.charitynavigator.org/ein/630598743 scores 99
  • They’ve had a few controversies in recent years, but they continue to contribute by identifying hate groups and engaging in the courts.
• Amnesty International
  • https://www.amnestyusa.org/
  • https://www.charitynavigator.org/ein/520851555 scores 96

Ukraine

• United24
  • https://u24.gov.ua/
  • The official donation arm for the Ukrainian government, but they are not registered as an IRS charity so Charity Navigator is not interested in including them in their ratings. It also means that you can’t take it off of your taxes.
• Nova Ukraine
  • https://novaukraine.org/
  • https://www.charitynavigator.org/ein/465335435 scores 100 - their best score for a Ukraine charity

Technology

• Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF)
  • https://www.eff.org
  • https://www.charitynavigator.org/ein/043091431 scores 100
• The Linux Foundation
  • https://www.linuxfoundation.org/
  • https://www.charitynavigator.org/ein/460503801 does not get a rating since it is a 501c6 instead of a 501c3 organization.

Trains

There are an amazing number of train-related NGOs. I’m going to list a few that I’ve encountered and loved, but I’m sure you can find some in your neighborhood as well.

• Niles Canyon Railway and The Pacific Locomotive Association, Inc.
  • https://www.ncry.org/
  • https://www.charitynavigator.org/ein/946130878 scores 96%
• Pacific Railroad Society
  • https://www.pacificrailroadsociety.org/
  • https://www.charitynavigator.org/ein/956077591 - not rated
• Golden State Model Railroad Museum
  • https://www.gsmrm.org/
  • https://www.charitynavigator.org/ein/680066066 - not rated

Games

• Board Games Arena
  • https://en.boardgamearena.com/

Charity Desert

I have used my searching talent in Google and Charity Navigator to try to find a charity that is focused on single-payer health insurance. When we have health insurance CEOs getting murdered on city streets, why isn’t there a charity advocating for a different system? Has the insurance industry managed to suppress all opposition or am I missing something? If you have an answer, please reach out.

Conclusion

I hope this will give you some ideas of good places to donate on a regular basis to encourage the world to be as good as it can be.