The West Side Nut Club Fall Festival is a wrap, and non-profit organizations are on everyone’s mind. Beyond eating a lot of fried food, here are 5 ways you can help non-profits year-round!
1. Don’t believe everything you read on social media.
At some point, you may see social media posts that are negative toward certain non-profit organizations. Be sure that you get the actual facts before judging the situation. Recognize that just because it’s on the internet does not mean it’s true! If you would like to donate items, make sure to check out the local non-profits—sometimes a “big name” non-profit is actually locally operated, and they may not have the same financial reports. By judging based on social media, you may be biased against a quality organization.
2. Do your research about what organizations need.
Next, discover what the true needs are within the organization. If you donate your unwanted stuff to the wrong place, you can actually harm the non-profit by causing them to have to sort and discard items they are not prepared to handle. If the non-profit says they do not accept mattresses or TVs, DO NOT donate them. Each item of that nature costs the non-profit about $25 to recycle or dump, and that can add up quickly! Organizations would much rather spend their supporters’ donations serving a need than paying a fee.
On the flip side of that, you may be surprised at what some organizations will accept, like broken items and torn/stained clothing. Some non-profits have programs in place for recycling certain materials that you may think are trash. Before filling the landfill, do some research to see if you can give it to a non-profit that will recycle or re-purpose the items instead. You can find a few donation opportunities here!
3. Request a tour of the non-profit.
Remember, it’s wonderful to read about an organization online, but you will only fully understand it when you experience it. Immerse yourself in the experience. Get to know the people they are serving. When you take the focus off of yourself and the items you “need” long enough to truly see other people, you may discover that your “needs” are actually “wants”. Embrace gratitude for the items you do have, and your perspective about your stuff will shift.
4. Put your resources to good use.
Resources include your time and money—not just your leftover, unwanted items. Instead of binge-watching the latest streaming TV show, think about investing a few hours per week in a non-profit. If you see any changes you want made within a non-profit you like, consider serving on the board! Do not wait until Thanksgiving or Christmas to give back to the community. Non-profits need our time and our financial support all year round!
5. Support existing non-profits instead of creating new ones.
Lastly, be aware of what exists in your community. If you have a great idea for a new organization, do some research to be sure no one else is serving that population or doing what you wish to do. Why reinvent the wheel? It’s better to join forces with others and share the mission than to have too many tiny non-profits vying for our attention. Maybe a larger non-profit can serve the specific need that you see needs to be met without creating a whole brand-new organization.
As my friend Carol says—Go forth & do good works!