Do you give to charity?

Sometimes I do. It depends on what I can afford and who it's for. But I have donated to the ASPCA and the CCFA in the past. But if its for a friend or family member I give what I can.

I tithe half to church, half to charity. I always give money to the homeless.


I also like sites like Kiva and kickstarter. The more I open my hands the more God blesses us with, better ROI then any mutual fund ;)

I went to walk dogs at a local shelter last year. It was so much more meaningful that sending a check.

I am currently donating large amounts to my GI's vacation fund :)

I do, we give old blankets/sheets/towels etc. to our local animal shelter, I send $$$ to the MSPCA, I did send $$$ to some veterinary fund down in LA after Katrina.... it's always to animal care organizations, never people! I've been working in the non-profit healthcare field for well over a decade now, so figure that's where my charity to people is! My daugher & I did a walk for our local MSPCA a couple years ago, we both got sponsors & raised well over $200 together. I don't donate to medical things either... the amount of $$$ I've spent over the years on meds is enough to fund years of research!

Yes. I give as much as I can and even at our worst we could always give something a month. I don't donate to the CCFA or any similar charity. I have a background in international development and the NGO sector so I know how funding works and they types of charities I want to support. We donate to an MD who is doing research we support,a food bank, and a couple of charities in memory of loved ones affected by several different conditions. I do give money to people on the street - I have schizophrenia in my family and though there was a LOT of family support for that person and they were loved and cared for I know what a monster it is and I think of my loved one when I give. As for using money for drugs/alcohol, that's their prerogative I suppose. If I give money, I'm not interested in policing how it's used. Sometimes people have coping mechanisms which I disagree with but I'll still give them money if I feel like it.

I just gave to a homeless girl that was sitting in front of CVS drugstore with her cat. I went in the store, bought 12 cans of cat food for the cat and gave the girl some money.

I feel I am blessed with a good job, good benefits and want to give back when I can.

I like to donate items (clothing, food) to organizations, as a way to help people and avoid adding more trash to landfills.

I don't donate money; I'm on a very strict budget since I live on a graduate student stipend that is only intended to cover cost of living (and cost of living in Boston is pretty high). My partner and I also trying to save for our wedding, and pay off our student loans.

When I do donate money, I don't mind donating to large organizations. While it's frustrating to donate money when you know that a lot of it doesn't directly go to the cause, I also try to keep in mind that these organizations employ people, who need salaries, healthcare, benefits, etc. And it's more worthwhile than spending all of that money on, say, Starbucks.

I refuse to donate to cancer research foundations, but that's because I'm a cancer researcher, so I feel like it's a bit silly for me to donate to those foundations when I'm the sort of person who's supposed to benefit from them (at least from the research foundations).

Not anymore. I used to donate a good amount to Oxfam and CRY. Since I learned how much their senior executives make, I stopped donating.

Our condition is pretty much like yours. Plus, we have a son on Autism spectrum, so we spend majority of our earnings on his therapy. We are not really left with anything after all payments.

I always give to the toy boxes at christmas, except this year when I bought stuff but forgot to take it! I also give money and supplies to schools in the area. I buy food when they have the boxes at the store and put it in. And I take clothes and such either to good will or my Mom takes them to the school where she works. I also volunteer everyday at my son's school and I try to go twice a week to where my sister teaches. I often take the kids in her class small presents and I do birthday month parties for them. It is a very low income school. One kid in her class has had parents bring cupcakes for school. I give books and supplies and money to my sons school and my sisters school.
Everyone can help someone, either with time or money. I had something very touching happen last year. My son and I were shopping for some school supplies and I was explaining to him how we needed to buy extra things for the kids who didn't have them and to help the teachers who have to buy their own supplies. This man walked up to me, he was wearing old clothes and old shoes, it didn't look like he had much at all. And he opened his wallet and gave me 5 dollars and told me to use it for the school. I was so impressed with this man and so happy to see someone just help, even though it was clear he didn't have much himself. As we were leaving he drove by in an old truck that was beat up and barely ran. I rambled with that story, but things like that can make a big difference, not so much because he gave me 5 dollarss, but because everyone in that store saw him and hopefully it made them want to help a little too.
And as we all know karma is very powerful and helping others is a good way to lift your spirits and if you need help one day your good deeds will come back to help you.