R E C O M M E N D A T I O N S
DONATE TO YOUR FAVORITE PROJECT
BARBARA COAKLEY-RIVERA/RAQUEL DIAZ SCHOLARSHIP FUND
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#ONEWORLD MENTORING PROJECT
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THE SPONSOR 8 EDUCATION PROJECT
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The Effects of Your DonationsInterestingly, research has indicated that the people who spend the most time thinking about charitable giving are actually the least likely to give. Unlike impulsive spending, impulsively giving can bring wonderful benefits to your mind, body, and community.
1. Experience More Pleasure In research conducted by the National Institutes of Health, participants who chose to donate a portion of $100 they were provided enjoyed activated pleasure centers in the brain. Although this experiment was controlled and scientific, it did show that donating money simply makes you feel better, which is something we can all benefit from. 2. Help Others in Need We don't live in a perfect world, and there's never going to be a perfect time to give—but there are always people out there in need of help. Whether interest rates are rising, the economy is in the doldrums, or even if you're experiencing financial difficulties of your own, the reality is that when you donate your money, you help others who need it. 3. Get a Tax Deduction If you give to an IRS-approved charity, you can write off donations on your tax return. Certain restrictions do apply, though. To learn more about them, along with whether or not a particular charity has IRS approval, check the IRS website. Donating your cash is a great way to reduce the amount of money you send off to Uncle Sam, and for a good cause, to boot. 4. Bring More Meaning to Your Life When you donate money to charity, you create opportunities to meet new people who believe in the same causes that inspire you. That, and making a real impact on those causes, can infuse your everyday life with more meaning. If you've been stuck in a rut, whether personally or professionally, sometimes the simple act of donating cash can do the trick and reinvigorate your life. 5. Promote Generosity in Your Children When your kids see you donating money, they're much more likely to adopt a giving mindset as they grow up. I write from personal experience. I've donated money to a variety of charities over the years and have always made sure to inform my eight-year-old son of my efforts. Last Christmas, when he and I were shopping at a mall, he spotted a kiosk for a charity and rather than spending some of his allotted money on Christmas gifts, he asked if we could sponsor a hungry child overseas. We signed up then and there. Do the same with your kids and you might see similar results. 6. Motivate Friends and Family When you let your friends and family know of your charitable donations, they may find themselves more motivated to undertake their own efforts to give. It takes a village to address issues such as world poverty, scientific advancement, and early childhood education. Stoking passions in the folks around you is a very positive and tangible effect of your own giving. 7. Realize that Every Little Bit Helps You don't need $10,000 to make a difference in someone's life. In developing countries, even just a few dollars could result in a week's worth of meals for a starving child, much-needed medical attention, and even improved schooling. Don't just think of your cash donation from an American economic perspective. Often that money can go a lot further elsewhere in the world. 8. Improve Personal Money Management If you set a scheduled $100 donation each month for a particular charity, that can motivate you to be more attentive to your own finances in an effort to ensure you don't default or fall behind in your monthly donations. Anything that gets you to pay closer attention to your bank account is a good thing—especially when it helps those in need. 9. Give, If You Can't Volunteer This might not necessarily be a positive effect of charitable giving, but if you're too busy to volunteer or otherwise donate your time, giving money is the perfect workaround. Never think that you can't improve someone's life or the world itself if your personal or professional schedule won't allow the time. Writing out a check is a simple way to show you're willing to help others in any way you can. With a focus on developing countries and those living in extreme poverty, Amador Foundation Inc. recommends the three projects to send your money to in order to have a large impact. Plus, all of Amador Foundation Inc. charities are eligible for personal tax deductions. |
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The Difference Food, Clothing, & Education MakesAccording to UNICEF:
· Globally, malnutrition is linked to nearly half the deaths of children under age 5 · About 149 million children under five suffer from stunting and chronic malnutrition · In 2018, 12.8 million people were at risk of food insecurity and acute malnutrition, a 30 percent increase over 2017 · It’s not just children who are malnourished. Mothers and pregnant women aren't getting the nutrition they need to ensure that their babies develop properly in the womb and are born at a healthy weight · Conflict and economic shocks have created a food crisis in Yemen. Only 15 percent of children eat the minimum acceptable diet they need to survive, grow and develop; 360,000 suffer from severe acute malnutrition, a potentially deadly but treatable condition · UNICEF promotes exclusive breastfeeding, a practice that could save the lives of an estimated 800,000 children under 5 · The human suffering caused by malnutrition is immense. The economic costs are staggering, too. It is projected that undernutrition will reduce Gross Domestic Product by up to 11 percent in Africa and Asia · On average, an extra year of schooling increases a person’s income by 10 percent · 262 million children and teens are not in school · Conflict has forced 27 million children in 24 countries to miss out on school · Girls are less likely than boys to ever set foot in a classroom — particularly in Sub-Saharan Africa, the Middle East and South Asia. In Angola and Chad, for example, just 77 girls are enrolled in primary school for every 100 boys · Disability is the single largest barrier to education. Half of all children with disabilities are not in school. That figure drops to 13 percent for children without disabilities · 387 million primary school children and 230 million middle school children are failing to learn basic math and reading skills · Every year, 12 million girls are married before their 18th birthday; only 1 in 3 adolescent girls who experience sexual violence seek help Today, some 650 million children around the world have no birth certificates · There are 25.4 million refugees in the world, half of them children. 111,000 are forced to survive on their own · More than 12,000 children were killed or maimed in armed conflict in 2018 alone — the highest number in two decades · Typhoons, cyclones and floods and a series of earthquakes and volcanic eruptions have heightened the risks extreme weather pose to children · More countries are embroiled in violent unrest than at any other time in the past 30 years, with around 420 million children — one in five — living in an area affected by conflict WHAT DIFFERENCE ARE YOU WILLING TO MAKE IN THE LIVES OF THESE CHILDREN! |
