Do You Know Where the $$ Goes? Charities & Donations

Something has been eating away at me and I feel the need to share what I have learned. I frequent two websites: Guidestar & Charity Navigator, which provide information about the larger charities out there and their financial information. I became interested in this, when I began to wonder if the money was going where it was supposed to (due to my volunteer work with another organization). This is one of the many reasons why I started UCAAN, because I felt that cancer survivors needed much more than what they were getting. These organizations are making so much money, and yet so many survivors are left with no way to get help. I experienced it first hand, when a charity that I depended on for transportation assistance lowered the amounts that they were giving patients every year (It was drastically reduced by 75%), yet their funds that they raised throughout the year had raised. I was confused and shocked..... I knew what I had to do. I had to build a charity whose soul purpose was to help these cancer survivors, to provide them with the resources and financial assistance that they needed! Eventually as we grow, we will be able to do all of this.... and with your help & support we can succeed and continue to grow!

I wanted to share this topic because, as I searched a CEO Compensation Study conducted by Charity Navigator (
http://www.charitynavigator.org/__asset__/studies/2010_CEO_Compensation_Study_Revised_Final.pdf
), which stated that the average pay for a CEO of a non profit is $147,000/year. And as I compared these studies to what CEO's were getting at numerous Cancer Organizations, I was floored. One CEO was getting $548,000 a year, another was $658,000, another was bringing in over $1,025,000. Although these organizations have been around for over 60 years, there's no excuse for them taking in exuberant amounts of money for their pay. As they continue to take more and more of the money, more and more money is being taken away from these survivors. The money that they need the most is being diminished, while the CEO's are taking in more and more money, with their board of directors close behind them. The organizations claim that they are providing services and giving money to these survivors, when in reality they are taking it away!!

Another thing that bothers me is this...... Have you ever donated to an organization via text? I found out that the only charities that they allow to take donations this way are HUGE charities that take in $500,000 or more per year. But what about the smaller organizations? It's more difficult for a smaller organization to not only be credible, but to also raise funds when they are competing against all of the larger organizations!

My best advice for you is to research your organization that you donate to. Look up their most recent annual report, see how much the CEO and their board of directors take in. Look at their bottom line, ask a survivor how much they've been helped by the organization! Ask!! Ask!! Ask!!

I'm about to provide you with very important websites to look into your charities, while I understand that it's easier to write a check to a charity you have helped for years, it's beneficial for you to look into your charity by spending 10 minutes researching where the money goes. Read the reviews, contact others and find out!!

http://www.charitynavigator.org/

http://www2.guidestar.org/

For charities like mine, we are still young and considered a seed or a small organization, but by talking to people we have helped, you can see all that we have done in a short time, all of the people we have inspired and helped in small ways that in turn made a huge impact in their lives. Because we are still small, we don't have annual reports like these bigger organizations, we raise under $8,000 a year, and unless you raise over $25,000 per year, your annual reports and tax forms will not be published on these sites. This is all just F.Y.I. for you!