"Giving Back" Tuesdays

Often when I'm researching different charities to share with you, I can't help but wonder how legitimate and honest some of the organizations really are. Even if the charity is well known and popular, it's always a good idea to look further into the organization to make sure your money is going where promised. The nations largest and most-utilized evaluator of charities, Charity Navigator, has a team of experts that assess the financial health of over 5,000 of America's best-known charities. This website is full of detailed information on just about every charity out there, so before you pop that check in the mail to your favorite cause, look them up on this website to learn more about where your money is really going.

According to Charity Navigator, the Top 10 Charities Stockpiling Your Money are:

1 American Forest Foundation
2 St. Louis Art Museum Foundation
3 Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan
4 Historic New England
5 Christian Ministries Foundation
6 California Academy of Sciences
7 The Federation, Jewish Communities of Western Connecticut
8 American Indian College Fund
9 Kalamazoo Institute of Arts
10 Peter G. Peterson Institute for International Economics

In their own words, "we support a charity's need to build endowments and save for tough times and emergencies. But charities shouldn't just save money to save money. These 10 charities have tons of money. But are they getting the biggest bang for your buck? Each has stockpiled at least two years of reserves in the bank. Each has grown its revenues at least 25% for each of the past 3 to 5 years. Despite those deep pockets, these charities operate stagnant operations, expanding their programs by less than the rate of inflation (3%). Shouldn't all that cash be used more aggressively?"

I don't mean to put a negative spin on giving back, I just want to bring awareness to everyone to be smart about donating! I don't want to be taken advantage of when trying to do good and neither should you. Now on a positive note, the Top 10 Best Charities Everyone's Heard Of (according to Charity Navigator):

1 American Red Cross
2 The National Christian Foundation
3 PATH
4 Conservation International
5 The Rotary Foundation of Rotary International
6 American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee
7 City of Hope
8 World Wildlife Fund
9 The Nature Conservancy
10 Direct Relief International