Kristen's Favorite Charities
Updated on July 28, 2007
Donations to charity are wonderful gifts for both the recipients and the givers. As a gift for a loved one, you can donate to a charity on behalf of that loved one, and send them a nice card letting them know that you donated to XYZ charity $x.xx on their behalf.
If you are considering donating to or volunteering for a charity, here are some I highly recommend.
Donations do not always involve cash. You may also donate other items and even services to many organizations.
Organizations with Multiple Focuses
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Mercy Corps
Helping communities all over the world help themselves.
Children
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March of Dimes
Helping children before they've been born by working toward reducing birth defects and premature births. Helping infant live longer, healthier lives by working toward better screenings for and treatments of genetic disorders.
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Parents Action for Children
Working toward better healthcare, education, and parenting skills to help our children grow into healthy, intelligent, responsible adults.
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Zero to Three
Helping to educate parents about the importance of the first three years of a child's life, a time when essential behavior and emotional concepts and skills are developed, to help reduce problems later on.
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ChildHelp USA
Helping to prevent and treat child abuse and neglect and helping children to help themselves out of such situations.
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National Center for Missing and Exploited Children
Helping to locate missing children and prevent abduction.
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UNICEF
Helping children all over the world receive better education, healthcare, protection from violence and abuse, and rights.
- See Health and Emergency Response below for health related charities.
Human Rights
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American Civil Liberties Union
Helping to defend civil rights through politics and helping people to help themselves by ending discrimination and abuse.
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Amnesty International
Fighting for human rights world-wide.
Poverty
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Goodwill Industries
Helping disadvantaged people to gain job skills and work opportunities.
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Habitat for Humanity
Helping families living in poverty earn respectable housing.
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Care
Helping women living in poverty and oppression learn to empower themselves and be their own heroes.
Health and Emergency Response
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American Red Cross
I know there are many organizations that want to help out during an emergency, but let's face it, the ARC is always going to be on the front lines. Don't have cash? Then donate some blood.
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Hospice Foundation
Helping individuals and families cope with death.
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Doctors without Borders
Providing medical care all over the world.
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Planned Parenthood
Helping expectant couples gain medical support and working to promote sexual health.
Environment
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Union of Concerned Scientists
The Union of Concerned Scientists is my absolute favorite environmental protection organization. As a person who has a degree in science, I'm disgusted by pseudo-scientists in the media trying to convince the world that problems, like global warming, don't exist. The UCS is using real science to recognize environmental problems and solutions.
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Earthjustice
Earthjustice is a wonderful organization that focuses on the legal aspects of environmental protection. They actually take governments to court if they don't enforce environmental protection laws, and they take legal action against organizations and businesses that fail to follow environmental laws.
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Forestry Stewardship Council
These are the guys who protect our forests from irresponsible logging companies and farmers. Always buy products that are FSC certified.
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Rainforest Action Network
The Rainforest Action Network is an excellent organization with the goal of saving our rainforests, our major oxygen-producing, carbon dioxide-consuming asset.
...by Feed