The Greensheet (Houston, Tex.), Vol. 42, No. 106, Ed. 1 Friday, April 1, 2011 Page: 39 of 44
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April 1-7, 2011
Page 39
Start With Trust
Houston BBB Advises Donors
on Tsunami Relief Efforts
Do your research before giving to
charities.
In the wake of one of the most powerful
earthquakes to ever hit Japan, many
Americans want to help those impacted by
the earthquake and the tsunami that
followed. The Houston Better Business
Bureau warns donors to exercise caution
when making donations to relief agencies
and charities.
As with every natural disaster, there are
unscrupulous people who will attempt to
take advantage of the public eagerness to
help victims. In the face of any disaster,
Americans will immediately step forward
with donations to aid the victims and their
families. Unfortunately, the BBB staff has
seen time and time again that scammers
will try to take advantage of the
generosity of the public after a disaster.
That is why it is so important to take your
time and do your research before donating
to relief efforts.
The Houston BBB offers this advice for
donors to ensure their donations go to
trustworthy relief efforts:
* Before donating, visit the Houston &
South Texas Charity Information
Service at http://houston.bbb.org/
charity/ to research organizations
you’re considering supporting.
* Be wary of charities that are reluctant
to answer reasonable questions about
their operations, finances and
programs.
* Ask for written information about the
charity’s program(s) and finances such
as the charity’s latest annual report and
financial statements.
* Ask what the charity intends to do with
any excess contributions remaining
once they’ve fully funded the disaster
relief activities mentioned in
solicitations.
* Don’t give cash. Checks or money
orders should be made out to the name
of the charitable organization, not to
the individual collecting the donation.
* Beware of fake charities that imitate
the name and style of well-known
organizations in an attempt to confuse
donors.
* Don’t give in to excessive pressure for
on-the-spot donations. Be wary of any
request to send a “runner” to pick up
your contribution.
* Be wary of any charity that is
inexperienced in carrying out relief
efforts but is suddenly soliciting for aid
in the wake of the earthquake and
tsunami. Although well intentioned,
they may not be able to quickly deliver
aid to those in need.
* Be wary of appeals that are long on
emotion, but short on describing what
the charity will do to address the needs
of victims and their families.
* Don’t give your credit card number or
other personal information to a
telephone solicitor or in response to an
e-mail solicitation.
* Make sure your contribution is tax
deductible: donations should be made
to charitable organizations that are tax
exempt under section 501(c)(3) of the
Internal Revenue Code. Go to IRS
Publication 78 on the IRS website for a
current list of all organizations eligible
to receive contributions deductible as
charitable gifts.
Additional Thoughts:
Look for details when texting a
donation.
Beginning with the earthquake in Haiti,
it’s become common to send a text to
make a donation. Make sure you
understand the amount to be donated, and
whether there will be any service fees
charged to your account. Be sure the offer
clearly identifies which charity will
receive the donation, then check out the
charity.
Gifts of clothing, food or other in-kind
donations.
In-kind drives for food and clothing—
while well intentioned— may not
necessarily be the quickest way to help
those in need - unless the organization has
the staff and infrastructure to be able to
properly distribute such aid. Ask the
charity about their transportation and
distribution plans. Be wary of those who
are not experienced in disaster relief
assistance.
Find out if the charity has an on-the-
ground presence in the disaster impact
areas.
Unless the charity already has staff in the
affected areas, it may be difficult to get
new aid workers to quickly provide
assistance. See if the charity’s website
clearly describes what they can do to
address immediate needs.
While it is admirable to want to help in a
time of crisis, diligence in research will
make sure that your efforts will help those
in need.
The BBB Wise Giving Alliance produces
reports on over 1,200 nationally soliciting
charitable organizations. The BBB Wise
Giving Alliance does not rank charities
but rather seeks to assist donors in making
informed judgments by providing
objective evaluations of national charities
based on 20 strict standards. The
outcomes of the evaluations - or BBB
Wise Giving Reports - are available
online at www.bbb.org/charity. The BBB
Wise Giving Alliance is an affiliate of the
Council of Better Business Bureaus, the
national organization representing 123
BBBs serving communities across the
U.S. and Canada - evaluating and
monitoring nearly 4 million local and
national businesses and charities. Please
visit www.bbb.org for more information
about BBB.
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The Greensheet (Houston, Tex.), Vol. 42, No. 106, Ed. 1 Friday, April 1, 2011, newspaper, April 1, 2011; Houston, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth515620/m1/39/: accessed July 16, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; .