Category: Wise Giving Wednesday

Bitcoin, the cryptocurrency that started back in 2009, is getting a mountain of attention lately, this is mostly due to its meteoric increase in value, particularly in the past several months. Starting with a value of less than a dollar when it first arrived, an individual bitcoin skyrocketed to a high of $19,000 on December 18^th. This digital currency, however, can be divided out so that one can send just a fraction of a coin in making a transaction or purchase. It’s no surprise that bitcoin has attracted an increasing number of investors seeking to benefit from its growing gains. 

Some early investors have become millionaires based on the coins increased value. One anonymous investor, who claims to have amassed many millions from bitcoin, recently established a fund to donate $86 million of this amount to various charities: www.pineapplefund.org.  A charitable organization applies for support and, if approved, receives a donation in bitcoins. Prior to the Pineapple Fund, a number of charitable organizations had already been accepting bitcoins as a donation option for contributors. 

There are some cautions, however, for charities and donors to consider regarding bitcoins and other cryptocurrencies: 

• Volatile value and possible bubble. Bitcoin value can rise or drop dramatically in a short period of time, sometimes in just a few hours. Some critics are now claiming that bitcoin is a bubble that will soon burst.  For charities that accept bitcoins or other cryptocurrency, this suggests there are potential risks in holding on to the donation for a long period of time. 

• SEC advisories. On December 11^th, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) issued a public statement on cryptocurrencies and initial coin offerings that recommends that investors and others find out more about such opportunities before they become involved and ask critical questions such as whether trading data is available and the identity of the individuals involved. 

• Criminal activity.  As reported by CNBC and other media, criminals have used digital currencies to move money between countries or transact other business since they are harder for law enforcement agencies to track. 

Of course, there are potential issues with all forms of fundraising and donation options. Each charity needs to decide, on its own, what is best for them given the facts and circumstances.  And certainly contributors should feel free to make donations in bitcoins or other currencies for those charities willing to accept these gifts. 

Before this blog ends, as we approach December 25^th we also want to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and a Happy Hanukkah which ends its celebration on December 20^th this year. 

Video of the Week 

As part of our Building Trust Video Series, we are pleased to provide a video that features Mitchel Rosenzweig, Chief Financial Officer of the Jewish National Fund a (BBB Accredited Charity) which promotes, educates and advocates for community and environmental issues surrounding Israel and the world. Among other things, it plants trees in the desert, builds parks, creates new communities, bolsters Israel’s water supply, and helps develop arid-agriculture techniques.  

Recent Reports 

We are always working with charities to publish or update reports for donors. Visit Give.org or local BBBs to check out any charity before giving. Our recently evaluated charities include:

• American Kidney Services
• ChildFund International
• March of Dimes Foundation

Finally, remember to let us know by going to https://www.give.org/ask-us-about-a-charity1/ if you are  interested in seeing a report on a charity not on the list and we will do our best to produce one.   

H. Art Taylor, President & CEO
BBB Wise Giving Alliance

As reported in The NonProfit Times , a shorter version of the IRS application form for charitable tax-exempt status (IRS Form 1023–EZ) was introduced in 2014 to help the IRS deal with a backlog of applications which had reached 66,000 in 2013. Some applicants were waiting many months or years for an IRS determination to be made on their status.  In the 2015 Annual Report to the U.S. Congress, the National Taxpayer Advocate, which is a division of the IRS, concluded, in part, that “recognition as a tax-exempt organization is now virtually automatic for most applicants.”  Among other things, this lack of alleged due diligence in reviewing these applications creates problems for both donors and charities that are later determined to be taxable.

This report brings to mind one aspect of charity evaluations completed by BBB Wise Giving Alliance – we report on both new as well as established charities. As long as the charity has completed its first full fiscal year, almost all of the BBB Standards for Charity Accountability can be applied. BBB Charity Standards represent threshold accountability practices that charities can meet despite their age or size. This was one of the fundamental objectives that was considered when the charity standards were last revised in an open process with significant involvement from the charitable community and other philanthropic experts. The principles of adequate oversight by the governing board, financial transparency, accurate appeals, and a commitment to results reporting are relevant to all organizations and are addressed in these standards. 

As part of our Building Trust Video Series, we are pleased to provide the following video an interview with Thomas G. Bognanno, President & CEO of  Community Health Charities (a BBB Accredited Charity).  This organization has one of the largest workplace giving programs in the U.S. and during the past five years has helped distribute more than $400 million to its nearly 2,000 member charities which focus on health issues. Also, workplace giving is the subject of the cover story in our latest Wise Giving Guide. 

We are always working with charities to publish or update reports for donors. Visit  Give.org or local BBBs to check out any charity before giving. Our recently evaluated charities include:    

• First Nations Development Institute
• Friends of the Earth
• Global AIDS Interfaith Alliance  

Finally, remember to let us know by going to  https://www.give.org/ask-us-about-a-charity1/ if you are interested in seeing a report on a charity not on the list and we will do our best to produce one.   

H. Art Taylor, President & CEO
BBB Wise Giving Alliance

Today, March 8 ^th, is International Women’s Day which is a “global day celebrating the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women.”  It has been observed since the early 1900s and has grown in popularity over the years due to increased public attention about women’s equality issues.  

Women also have a significant role in philanthropy as well. As reported in the NonProfit Times in 2015, research completed by the Women’s Philanthropy Institute at the Indiana University Lilly Foundation School of Philanthropy found that women are more likely to give to charities than their male counterparts across generations and “are more likely to spread their giving across more organizations, while men concentrate their giving.”  These findings are not surprising to us.  In BBB WGA’s experience, we generally receive more inquiries about charities from women than men.  

So, one way to honor International Women’s Day is to follow their lead in supporting charities.  Of course, we also urge donors to visit Give.org to verify if the selected charities meet the 20 BBB Standards for Charity Accountability. 

On a related note, as part of our Building Trust Video series, we are pleased to provide a video that features Jennifer Windsor, CEO of  Women for Women International (a  BBB Accredited Charity).  This organization was founded twenty years ago to help the most marginalized of women in conflict affected countries to rebuild their lives.  The heart of their program is a 12-month training program that helps provide basic skills such as economic, literacy and knowledge of health and basic rights.  

We are always working with charities to publish or update reports for donors. Visit  Give.org or local BBBs to check out any charity before giving. Our recently evaluated charities include:

• Kiwanis Children’s Fund
• New Venture Fund
• Seeing Eye 

Finally, remember to let us know by going to  https://www.give.org/ask-us-about-a-charity1/ if you are  interested in seeing a report on a charity not on the list and we will do our best to produce one.   

H. Art Taylor, President & CEO
BBB Wise Giving Alliance

While there is no universal agreement on the best way to address poverty, the diversity of available options among charities provide opportunities that help people in their struggle to improve their situation for themselves and their children. We encourage donors to find out more about the charities they choose to support and learn how they are seeking to address the problems they describe so well. And, of course, take the time to verify if the charity meets the 20 holistic BBB Standards for Charity Accountability by reviewing the available reports on Give.org.

As part of our Building Trust Video Series, we are pleased to provide the following video that features Joshua Tripp, COO & CFO of the Grameen Foundation (a BBB Accredited Charity) which helps the world’s poor by providing financial services, information on agriculture and health, and helps poverty-focused organizations improve their operations by providing mobile-based management tools and other technology resources.



We are always working with charities to publish or update reports for donors. Visit Give.org or local BBBs to check out any charity before giving. Our recently evaluated charities include:

• Aid for AIDS International
• Hooved Animal Humane Society
• National Foundation for Cancer Research

Finally, remember to let us know by going to https://www.give.org/ask-us-about-a-charity1/ if you are interested in seeing a report on a charity not on the list and we will do our best to produce one.

H. Art Taylor, President & CEO
BBB Wise Giving Alliance

Earlier this year, Ringling Bros. and Barnum and Bailey Circus announced their closing after 146 years and are now in their final performances ending sometime in May. Falling ticket sales, criticism from animal rights groups, among other things, led to this result.  As reported in The Washington Post on March 29 ^th, while there is no equivalent U.S. federal law, performing animals are banned in many nations in Europe and Mexico and several Latin American countries have also placed restrictions on circus use of animals as well. 

But don’t think that the Big Top is folding forever, a number of smaller traveling circuses still continue in the United States. Some of these traveling shows have a history of doing performances to benefit charities. For example, the website of one such circus notes that it works with municipalities, service organizations, booster clubs and charities to hold fundraising events.  In another instance, a circus reports that it is a charity itself that supports a youth program in South Africa. 

In past years, for some circus fundraising events, there have been instances of questionable ticket sale marketing particularly on behalf of police and firefighter organizations.  Examples of problems include telemarketers that ask businesses to sponsor blocks of tickets with the promise that they will be used for needy children to attend the event when no such arrangements have been made, overselling the number of tickets available for an event, and/or circumstances that result in very little of the money raised going to the specified cause. 

If approached by a fundraising circus activity, BBB Wise Giving Alliance advises individuals to ask how much of the ticket sales will go to the designated charity and to take the time to verify if the mentioned organization meets the 20 BBB Standards for Charity Accountability. Also, visit the organization’s website to see if the charity is funding the type of programs and activities that you want to support. 

As part of our Building Trust Video series, we are pleased to provide a video of Joshua Rednick, President and CEO, Diabetes Research Institute Foundation (a BBB Accredited Charity) which funds basic, re-clinical and patient-based diabetes studies. Key funded research areas include tissue engineering, immune tolerance, regenerative medicine, stem cell research, and nanotechnology to restore biological insulin production.  

We are always working with charities to publish or update reports for donors. Visit  Give.org or local BBBs to check out any charity before giving. Our recently evaluated charities include:  

• Children’s Cancer Research Fund
• Kiwanis Children’s Fund
• Seeing Eye   

Finally, remember to let us know by going to  https://www.give.org/ask-us-about-a-charity1/ if you are interested in seeing a report on a charity not on the list and we will do our best to produce one.   

H. Art Taylor, President & CEO
BBB Wise Giving Alliance

Since its start in 2012, the Giving Tuesday campaign, initiated by the 92^nd Street Y in New York City, helped create a designated day for giving on the Tuesday after Thanksgiving in the U.S. It has since grown into a social media powerhouse that helped raise $116 million in 71 countries and generated 114 billion impressions on Twitter and reached over 917,000 Facebook users. (For the past two years, BBB Wise Giving Alliance and Better Business Bureaus advised participants in this campaign to give wisely by verifying if their selected charities meet the BBB Charity Standards). 

Seeing the success of this phenomenon, a number of new “giving days” have emerged.  In order to prompt alumni giving, especially from younger graduates, various college and universities have created their own special days of giving.  As reported in The Chronicle of Philanthropy this month, the University of Michigan was able to raise $4.4 million in 24 hours for its designated giving day in 2015. Some schools reportedly were seeking to increase donor participation rather than just dollars. 

Not only charities, but fundraising companies are also seeking to engage in giving days. For example, Kimbia, an online fundraising and crowdfunding platform, working with The K Foundation, a donor advised fund, helped start  its own Give Local America campaign two years ago and had Tuesday, May 3, 2016 as its Give Local America day. The campaign also worked with community foundations and provided participating communities with logos, templates and other graphics to help carry out local campaigns for the May 3^rd event. (The Chronicle of Philanthropy reports that Kimbia’s online giving software experienced problems during this May 3^rd campaign that impacted the ability of many donors to contribute.)

As future giving calendars are likely to see even more designated giving days, BBB Wise Giving Alliance reminds potential donors to verify the trustworthiness of charities by visiting Give.org to verify if the charity meets our 20 holistic standards. 

On a separate note, as part of our Building Trust Video Series we are pleased to provide a video featuring Dr. Preston W. Campbell III,  President and CEO of Cystic Fibrosis Foundation  (a BBB Accredited Charity) which seeks to cure cystic fibrosis and to provide all people with the disease the opportunity to lead full, productive lives by funding research and drug development, promoting individualized treatment, and ensuring access to high quality, specialized care. 

We are always working with charities to publish or update reports for donors. Visit Give.org or local BBBs to check out any charity before giving. Our recently evaluated charities include: 

• American Rivers
• CRISTA Ministries
• TechnoServe 

Finally, remember to let us know by going to https://www.give.org/ask-us-about-a-charity1/ if you are  interested in seeing a report on a charity not on the list and we will do our best to produce one.  

H. Art Taylor, President & CEO
BBB Wise Giving Alliance

About a month ago, we wrote about floods in West Virginia and now we sadly note that Louisiana has also experienced devastating floods as well. The Louisiana Governor’s office reports that over 12,000 went to shelters in Southern Louisiana and many thousands more are displaced from their homes.  In the aftermath of such misery, people are seeking safety, food and shelter.  Many Americans will want to help by donating to various charities.  In such circumstances, it makes sense to turn to established charities that have experience, facilities and procedures in place to deal with such tragedies. Listed below are some of the national charities that are BBB Accredited Charities (i.e., that meet all 20 BBB Charity Standards) that are engaged in some aspect of relief. 

In addition, we suggest that donors keep the following tips in mind as well to help avoid questionable appeals for support: 

Find out if the charity has an on-the-ground presence in the impacted areas. Unless the charity already has staff in the affected areas, it may be difficult to bring in new aid workers to provide assistance quickly. See if the charity’s website clearly describes what the charity can do to address immediate needs. 

Find out if the charity is providing direct aid or raising money for other groups. Some charities may be raising money to pass along to relief organizations. If so, you may want to consider “avoiding the middleman” and giving directly to those that have a presence in the region. Or, at a minimum, check out the ultimate recipients of these donations to see whether they are equipped to provide aid effectively. 

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 distribute such aid properly. Ask the charity about its transportation and distribution plans. Be wary of those who are not experienced in disaster relief assistance. 

Understand crowdfunding. Keep in mind that some crowdfunding sites do very little vetting of individuals who decide to post for assistance after a disaster, and it is often difficult for donors to verify trustworthiness of crowdfunding requests for support.  The Office of the Attorney General in Louisiana issued a statement on August 16^th announcing that it would be working with the crowdfunding site GoFundMe to add additional fraud protections to help ensure donations to help flood victims go to the intended cause.

CHARITIES ENGAGED IN LOUISIANA RELIEF

Note that BBB Wise Giving Alliance report links are for the national offices of these organizations.

• American Red Cross:  link to BBB Charity Report,   link to donation page for Louisiana Relief  
• Salvation Army: link to BBB Charity Report, link to donation page for Louisiana Relief 
• Feed the Children: link to BBB Charity Report, link to donation page for Louisiana Relief 
• Feeding America: link to BBB Charity Report, link to search page to locate Louisiana Food Banks 
• United Way Worldwide: link to BBB Charity Report, link to page listing Louisiana United Ways 
• Brother’s Brother Foundation: link to BBB Charity Report, link to donation page for Louisiana Relief
• Direct Relief: link to BBB Charity Report, link to donation page for Louisiana Relief

On a separate note, as part of our Building Trust Video Series we are pleased to provide a video that features Michelle DeLaune, Chief Operating Officer of the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (a BBB Accredited Charity).  This organization works closely with families of missing children to help rescue and recover them and also seeks to help prevent child sexual exploitation. 

We are always working with charities to publish or update reports for donors. Visit Give.org or local BBBs to check out any charity before giving. Our recently evaluated charities include:

• Christian Freedom International
• National Federation of the Blind
• United Way Worldwide

Finally, remember to let us know by going to https://www.give.org/ask-us-about-a-charity1/ if you are  interested in seeing a report on a charity not on the list and we will do our best to produce one.  

H. Art Taylor, President & CEO
BBB Wise Giving Alliance

• American Red Cross:  link to BBB Charity Report,   link to donation page for Louisiana Relief  

• Salvation Army: link to BBB Charity Report, link to donation page for Louisiana Relief 

• Feed the Children: link to BBB Charity Report, link to donation page for Louisiana Relief 

• Feeding America: link to BBB Charity Report, link to search page to locate Louisiana Food Banks 

• United Way Worldwide: link to BBB Charity Report, link to page listing Louisiana United Ways 

• Brother’s Brother Foundation: link to BBB Charity Report, link to donation page for Louisiana Relief

• Direct Relief: link to BBB Charity Report, link to donation page for Louisiana Relief