Congress Investigating Children's Charity

[Chris]

Looks like the Boy's and Girl's clubs are in hot water-

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/us_charity_expenses

Seems that while they're making big cuts in services, their execs are taking major $$ out of the place.


I'm a big proponent of charities- especially the one's that serve children. But I also don't like thinking that my efforts and donations are doing anything other than directly assisting the intended beneficiaries.

So how do you know?

[fund razor]

I use these two tools for checking out larger charities.

http://www.charitynavigator.org/

http://www2.guidestar.org/

The subject of costs and compensation is an interesting one. The ratio of dollars spent to dollars raised has become front of mind for many people. In any other business... if I told you that I would spend one dollar to create 3 dollars in revenue you would think I am king Midas. But we need to keep ratios of 1:8 or better to be percieved as effective and judicious.
I spend about $300,000 each year including salaries for 4 people and all other costs raising $3,000,000 for my charity.
I can see circumstances that would warrant a generous executive compensation package for major charities, because they are major jobs, results evaluated and super high pressure. But a million bucks a year to attend a few meetings for boys and girls club is ridiculous.

The charity that I hate the most: St. Jude Children's Hospital.

[fund razor]

While this story was breaking the news of which charities that Mr. Obama would be donating his $1.4 million dollar Nobel Prize money (The one that he won based on what they hoped he'd change) was quietly announced:

President Obama today announced a list of 10 charities that will share his $1.4-million Nobel Peace Prize award.

"These organizations do extraordinary work in the United States and abroad helping students, veterans, and countless others in need," he said in a statement.

The organizations are:

• Fisher House, which provides housing for families of patients at major military and Veterans Administration medical centers -- $250,000

• Clinton Bush Haiti Fund, which raises money to help Haiti recover from the recent earthquake -- $200,000

• American Indian College Fund, which offers scholarships and helps tribal colleges -- $125,000

• Appalachian Leadership and Education Foundation, which helps young people in Appalachia pursue higher education -- $125,000

• College Summit, which works with elementary and middle schools and school districts to increase college enrollment rates -- $125,000

• Hispanic Scholarship Fund, which provides college scholarships -- $125,000

• The Posse Foundation, which steers college scholarships to promising public shool students who may be overlooked by traditional college-selection processes -- $125,000

• United Negro College Fund, which offers scholarship and internship programs -- $125,000

• Africare, which operates health, food, and water programs, primarily in sub-Saharan Africa -- $100,000

• Central Asia Institute, which promotes education and literacy, especially for girls, in remote regions of Pakistan and Afghanistan -- $100,000. (The co-founder, Greg Mortenson, is author of the book Three Cups of Tea: One Man's Mission to Promote Peace, One School at a Time.