How To Trust Your Charity

• It has come to my attention that one of the most popular Canadian charities has been mismanaging their donations.
  
  How can you be sure that your donations are being used wisely, and that your income tax receipts are legitimate?
  
  Here are some helpful hints for holiday giving.
  
  1. Do your research.
  
  Type the name of your favourite charity here to find out how much they spend on programs and services, and whether they have current charitable status.
  
  You can see our charitable returns since our founding 10 years ago.
  
  2. Because the CRA is often a year or two behind (depending on when the charities fiscal year is), ask for a current financial statement. I cannot stress this enough: Never support a charity that won't reveal their financials.
  
  3. Don't support a charity that spends next to nothing on administration. It takes good, solid administration to make sure you have your current provincial incorporation documents, federal return documents, and annual audit filed. It takes administration to do reference checks. For instance, a charity working with children has to spend time and money doing criminal record checks of staff and volunteers.
  
  4. Don't be turned off by advertisements, particularly those that are not primarily government funded. A charity needs to remind people that their doors are open 365 days a year. In the same way that you wouldn't rebuke a grocery store for sending out a flyer, understand how much it costs for a charity to pay the power and heating bills month after month.
  
  5. See about a monthly giving program. Charities that are savvy to consumers going green, are setting up options for a donation to be made each month, automatically through your bank or credit card. This means income the organization can rely on month after month, and saves costs in postage! It also means you can keep that great feeling at Christmas, going all year round!
  
  6. Consider a gift of your time. If you want to get to know a charity, spend some time with the workers and volunteers there. Go sort produce at a local food bank, serve a meal at the soup kitchen, or sort through donations at the local thrift store. Recruit friends, family and colleagues to help out all year long, not just November and December.
  
  7. Your contribution during the Christmas season, no matter how small, is a significant gift and ought to be acknowledged quickly and respectfully. Thanks to all of you who know that giving is at the heart of Christmas.