Donate Old Belongings to Poor

one can donate the old stuff from old clothes to appliances, furniture and other materials. Rummage through your belongings and give them away to the needy. Delving through old stuff and donating does help the poor people and makes a difference to those who needs such stuff. Donating clothes especially in winter season when the weather is too cold is of great help to the poor and needy people. Unneeded stuff can be donated to brighten someone else day.

Places to donate your old belongings :

1: Soles 4 Souls and Clothes 4 Souls work to provide functional footwear and clothing to those who need them. They accept new and gently used shoes (all styles) and clothing.

2: Dress for Success provides stylish, professional clothing to women who are seeking employment. They accept all forms of business coordinates as well as handbags and coats.

3:Career Gear provides suits and dress clothes to men seeking employment. They accept all forms of business attire as well as briefcases, portfolios, watches and cufflinks, and coats.

4: One Warm Coat holds coat drives nationwide during the fall and winter to help local charitable agencies distribute warm winter coats to those in need, free of charge.

5: Local children's hospitals (or children's wings) are often looking for new and gently used books. Contact your local hospital for more information.

6: Operation Paperback sends new and gently used books to troops overseas. They also distribute children's books to the families of troops in the U.S.

How to Help the Poor

The Poor People, They are not only enjoying the joy of essentials but also have what they want and desire; a luxurious living providing them an extra comfort. On the other hand, there are people who cannot even afford the basic requirements of living. They do not have shelter to live, food to eat, and clothes to wear.People who have extra are living a comfortable and a posh life. While those who have barely the vitals are fighting each day for life.They fail to meet the basic requirements.

Poor people do not have enough clothing, food, education and healthcare. Being poor means deprived economically, politically and socially. They hardly get opportunities. They have inadequate nutrition, higher risk of diseases and lack access to healthcare and basic essentials for living resulting in low achievement.

One cannot make such people opulent but can at least help them achieve the essentials of life and lead a prosperous life. Helping the poor and needy people is a good deed. Caring for the poor and needy people and helping them is a noble endeavor. The more you give to poor and needy people, the more you strengthen their dependency. If you give them the chance or opportunity, you’ll see an effective and long-lasting improvement in their lives. Create a new system built on inter-dependency which motivates them to work and move forward and their dignity is maintained.

charity fraud

Charity fraud is the act of using deception to get money from people who believe they are making donations to charities. Often a person or a group of people will make material representations that they are a charity or part of a charity and ask prospective donors for contributions to the non-existent charity. Charity fraud not only includes fictitious charities but also deceitful business acts. Deceitful business acts include businesses accepting donations and not using the money for its intended purposes.

There are controls and laws governing charities and businesses that accept donations. The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) with the Better Business Bureau (BBB) has regulations that can be found on their websites. 

The United States Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) provides online information about avoiding charity fraud, such as fraudulent schemes that emerge in the wake of natural disasters, claiming to be providing disaster relief. The Internet Crime Complaint Center maintains a list of guidelines to avoid charity fraud when making a donation. 

It is advised that people should follow certain guidelines when they donate and that they should consult a list such as the one on the BBB’s website. This list includes the participants in the BBB Wise Giving Alliance's National Charity Seal Program. Participants have met standards for charity accountability and may, for a fee, display the seal logo on their websites as well as any other printed documents.

Charitable organization

During the 19th century, a profusion of charitable organizations were set up to alleviate the awful conditions of the working class in the slums. The Labourer's Friend Society, chaired by Lord Shaftesbury in the United Kingdom in 1830, was set up to improve working class conditions. This included the promotion of allotment of land to labourers for "cottage husbandry" that later became the allotment movement. In 1844 it became the first Model Dwellings Company - organizations that sought to improve the housing conditions of the working classes by building new homes for them, at the same time receiving a competitive rate of return on any investment. This was one of the first housing associations, a philanthropic endeavour that flourished in the second half of the nineteenth century brought about by the growth of the middle class. Later associations included the Peabody Trust and the Guinness Trust. The principle of philanthropic intention with capitalist return was given the label "five per cent philanthropy".

Charities at the time, including the Charity Organization Society (est. 1869) tended to discriminate between the 'deserving poor' who would be provided with suitable relief and the 'underserving' or 'improvident poor' who were regarded as the cause of their woes through their idleness. They also tended to be against the state provision of welfare, due to its perceived demoralizing effect. Although minimal state involvement was the dominant philosophy of the period, there was still significant government involvement in the shape of statutory regulation and even limited funding.

Charity - Definition

The word "charity" entered the English language through the Old French word "charité", which was derived from the Latin "caritas".Charitable giving is the act of giving money, goods or time to the unfortunate, either directly or by means of a charitable trust or other worthy cause. Charitable giving as a religious act or duty is referred to as almsgiving or alms. The name stems from the most obvious expression of the virtue of charity; giving the recipients of it the means they need to survive. The impoverished, particularly those widowed or orphaned, and the ailing or injured, are generally regarded as the proper recipients of charity. The people who cannot support themselves and lack outside means of support sometimes become "beggars", directly soliciting aid from strangers encountered in public.

Most forms of charity are concerned with providing basic necessities such as food, water, clothing, healthcare and shelter, but other actions may be performed as charity: visiting the imprisoned or the homebound, ransoming captives, educating orphans, even social movements. Donations to causes that benefit the unfortunate indirectly, such as donations to fund cancer research, are also charity.

Institutions evolved to carry out the labor of assisting the poor, and these institutions, called charities, provide the bulk of charitable giving today, in terms of monetary value. These include orphanages, food banks, religious institutes dedicated to care of the poor, hospitals, organizations that visit the homebound and imprisoned, and many others. Such institutions allow those whose time or inclination does not lend themselves to directly care for the poor to enable others to do so, both by providing money for the work and supporting them while they do the work. Institutions can also attempt to more effectively sort out the actually needy from those who fraudulently claim charity. Early Christians particularly recommended the care of the unfortunate to the charge of the local bishop.