Monday, April 20, 2009

Two of America’s Worst Charities Call OC Home

STORY FROM OCREGISTER.COM

Two of the 10 charities on a national “hall of shame” list are in Orange County - The Association for Police and Sheriffs in Fullerton, and The Association for Firefighters and Paramedics in Santa Ana.

Both claim to help those in need - victims of violent domestic abuse, and survivors of traumatic burn injuries - but actually spend the overwhelming majority of their money to raise money, and not to do good works.

This earned them the No. 4 and 5 spots on nonprofit watchdog Charity Navigator’s “Ten inefficient fundraisers” list. Orange County really stands out here; no other state in the nation - not even New York! - managed to contribute two charities to this list. (Way to go, OC.)

The Association for Police and Sheriffs in Fullerton spent 88 percent of its money - $1.2 million - raising money. It only spent 4 percent - a measly $60,000 - to “end domestic violence and help women and children whose lives are devastated by abuse.”
The Association for Firefighters and Paramedics in Santa Ana spent 92 percent of its money - $3.6 million - raising money. It only spent 2 percent - a measly $80,500 - ”to help the survivors of catastrophic fires.”

FULL STORY
HERE

Tuesday, April 14, 2009

Call to Action: 50 Ways To Love Your Neighbor

A compelling list of tangible ways we can love others as Christ has loved us.

Read it all
HERE

Some highlights from the list:
13. Look up the closest registered sex offender in your neighborhood and try to befriend him.

26. Organize a prayer vigil for peace outside a weapons manufacturer such as Lockheed Martin. Read the Sermon on the Mount out loud. For extra credit, do it every week for a year.

29. Go through a local thrift store and drop $1 bills in random pockets of the clothing being sold.

32. Go to an elderly home and get a list of folks who don´t get any visitors. Visit them each week and tell stories, read the bible together, or play board games.

34. Create a Jubilee fund in your Church congregation, matching dollar for dollar every dollar you spend internally with a dollar externally. If you have a building fund, create a fund to match it to give away and by mosquito nets or dig wells for folks dying in poverty.

35. Become a pen-pal with someone in prison.

41. Cover up all brand names, or at least the ones that do not reflect the upside-down economics of God’s Kingdom. Commit to only being branded by the cross

43. Eat only a bowl of rice a day for a week to remember those who do that for most of their life (take a multivitamin). Remember the 30,000 people who die each day of poverty and malnutrition.

49. Serve in a homeless shelter. For extra credit, go back and eat or sleep in the shelter and allow yourself to be served.

BONUS: Come up with your own list of ways to love your neighbor. Do at least one of them before the end of the week.

-kg