Ways of Giving Monetarily...

Sometimes, we give of our time, we give encouragement, a hug, or a lending hand...
but...sometimes, I believe we are moved to respond to give monetarily...
This moving of our hearts causes us to respond by digging into our "wealth" & seek ways to give to others who are in poverty...whether that be to help with a micro-financing initiative in a third world country, assist in giving to help deal with & alleviate the remnants of a global disaster, or just to help provide basic necessities such as clean water, shelter, medicines, mosquito nets, and food to those who are in desperate need...

When I was younger, I used to watch a lot of TV & thus saw all those programs that pleaded with viewers to donate their money to particular causes. I was always smitten by 2 that are ingrained in my mind...the first, the Humane Society asked for donations to help those poor animals ~ to give them a home, medicines to help treat their diseases & sicknesses...the second, helping to alleviate poverty in Africa, especially with all those children dying of starvation...those images of suffering stayed forever in my brain. I was sometimes overwhelmed with tears because of those sad stories & as a kid without money I felt powerless to help in that capacity...Now that things are different & I work full-time, I try to research causes & organizations that I find are reputable and legitimate and make donations based on that. I also watch a lot of documentaries that both inform about prominent issues of the day & that bring many heart wrenching issues to light by promoting awareness & advocacy...

Many NGOs are doing a lot of stellar & important work on the front lines working for and with those who suffer, living in extreme poverty, stricken with disease such as AIDS, orphans, single mothers, those woman who are victims of systematic rape, or those who are most disadvantaged and who cannot survive & fight for themselves...

Here are a few worthwhile organizations & causes you may consider donating money to:

Microfinancing
http://www.meda.org/
http://www.kiva.org/

Other worthwhile organizations
http://www.worldvision.ca/Pages/Home.aspx
http://www.kids-with-cameras.org/home/
http://www.savedarfur.org/
http://www.imagine1day.org/
http://mcc.org/

http://thecovemovie.com/
[about dolphin slaughter in Japan]
http://www.takepart.com/thecove