{"id":9216,"date":"2017-05-22T04:26:24","date_gmt":"2017-05-22T04:26:24","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/?p=9216"},"modified":"2017-05-23T04:30:06","modified_gmt":"2017-05-23T04:30:06","slug":"want-to-support-veterans-4-tips-for-finding-good-charities","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/want-to-support-veterans-4-tips-for-finding-good-charities\/","title":{"rendered":"Want to support veterans? 4 tips for finding good charities"},"content":{"rendered":"

Brian Mittendorf<\/a>, The Ohio State University<\/a><\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

On Memorial Day and throughout the year, many Americans honor those who have lost their lives in the line of duty by donating to charities that help military veterans. It can, however, be daunting to choose from the more than 8,000 such groups<\/a> operating nationwide. \"The<\/p>\n

Donor trepidation is magnified by the scandals<\/a> that have embroiled vets\u2019 groups. In fact, more than 10 percent of the charities tagged as \u201cAmerica\u2019s Worst Charities<\/a>\u201d by the Tampa Bay Times and the Center for Investigative Reporting in 2013 focus on veterans.<\/p>\n

As a professor who researches nonprofit organizations and teaches about their finances, I have observed that while some some veterans\u2019 charities do squander donors\u2019 dollars, others make the most of donations in meeting their mission. Fortunately, a little research goes a long way toward spotting the difference between a good cause and a lost cause. <\/p>\n

The following four tips will help you vet these charities.<\/p>\n

1. Learn what exactly the charities do<\/h2>\n

Be wary of vague statements about a group\u2019s activities. While language indicating that a charity \u201csupports\u201d or \u201chonors\u201d veterans does not always signal a problem, it does mean you should seek more specific information. Many of the veterans\u2019 charities<\/a> that have faced criticism<\/a>, such as Paralyzed Veterans of America<\/a> and National Veterans Services Fund<\/a>, have had vague mandates to educate the public<\/a> about what veterans need.<\/p>\n

A detailed description of a group\u2019s mission and activities can instill confidence that veterans truly benefit from its work. An exemplary charity is the Honor Flight Network<\/a>, which flies veterans to Washington, D.C. to visit military monuments and honor fallen colleagues. The benefits are self-evident, as I\u2019ve seen firsthand as a flight volunteer. Fisher House Foundation<\/a>, which provides temporary housing to families of veterans receiving treatment at VA facilities, is another good example. There are many ways that organizations can and do directly serve veterans. To find them, look for clear-cut programs you find meaningful and significant.<\/p>\n

2. Find out what share of the money raised for organizations actually supports them<\/h2>\n

Another common pitfall: for-hire fundraisers that siphon too much of the donated funds. <\/p>\n

Michigan\u2019s attorney general determined that only 39 percent of funds raised by professional solicitors<\/a> for charity in the state in 2016 actually supported those groups. The fundraising contractors kept the rest of the money. The picture is even more lopsided for veterans\u2019 charities in the state, with only 23 percent of donations<\/a> making it into their coffers. The track record in Michigan is no anomaly \u2013 New York<\/a>, Massachusetts<\/a> and other states have found similar patterns. <\/p>\n

\n \"\"<\/a>
\n Operation Homefront, which Consumer Reports named as one of the best veterans\u2019 charities last year, clearly states on its website how much it spends supporting its mission.<\/span>
\n Operation Homefront<\/a><\/span>
\n <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Professional solicitation is not inherently problematic \u2013 but outsourced fundraisers keeping most of the money raised for a charity is a real concern. The federal government does not track this information but most offices of state attorneys general maintain databases that indicate how the organizations raising funds in their states stack up. Since national campaigns also show up in these databases, even if your own state doesn\u2019t make all the details easily accessible, you can use the online tools other states offer to evaluate different charities. New York\u2019s<\/a> database is especially user-friendly.<\/p>\n

3. Check out IRS 990 forms<\/h2>\n

OK. I know perusing IRS forms is not everyone\u2019s favorite activity. But it\u2019s the best way to discover how donor dollars are actually spent. Finding a charity\u2019s tax form is easy, even if groups don\u2019t post them on their own websites, thanks to databases like Propublica\u2019s Nonprofit Explorer<\/a> and the Foundation Center\u2019s 990 Finder<\/a>. <\/p>\n

\n \"\"<\/a>
\n <image id=<\/span>
\n Semper Fi<\/a><\/span>
\n <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

If you do check out a 990 form, be sure to go to page 10. That\u2019s where nonprofits classify their expenses<\/a>, both by function and type. There, you can see where donated money primarily goes. If the organization has a stated focus on providing financial assistance to veterans, for example, you should see lots of grants to individuals on line 2, and not so much in the way of advertising, travel and postage listed on the other lines. <\/p>\n

Consider how the Semper Fi Fund<\/a>, a group that provides financial and other aid to injured and ill post-9\/11 veterans and their families, stated its functional expenses for its 2016 fiscal year. The numbers indicate that the group spends over 90 percent of its funds on its mission. Three-fourths of that mission spending is direct grants to individuals \u2013 a good sign.<\/p>\n

4. Inquire about donor privacy policies<\/h2>\n

When you make charitable donations, you give away both money and personal information. What charities do with your personal data is part of the picture and how they handle this information varies widely.<\/p>\n

Consider how the Wounded Warrior Project<\/a>, among the nation\u2019s most visible veterans\u2019 organizations, has handled donor data. The group came under fire in 2015 and 2016 for alleged waste<\/a>, as well as routinely selling personal information culled from its donors to other nonprofits<\/a> and defending this practice. The controversy resulted in a shakeup at the top<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Other groups do a better job of protecting donor privacy. Fisher House Foundation<\/a>, which clearly states a policy of not sharing or selling donor lists, offers a good example of how to do this. If an organization doesn\u2019t state its privacy policy on its website, take the time to ask.<\/p>\n

When it comes to vetting charities, a little work goes a long way. These four steps should help you find veterans\u2019 charities with goals that match your own and that you can trust to make the most of the money you give away.<\/p>\n

Brian Mittendorf<\/a>, Fisher College of Business Distinguished Professor of Accounting, The Ohio State University<\/a><\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

This article was originally published on The Conversation<\/a>. Read the original article<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Brian Mittendorf, The Ohio State University On Memorial Day and throughout the year, many Americans honor those who have lost their lives in the line of duty by donating to charities that help military veterans. It can, however, be daunting to choose from the more than 8,000 such groups operating nationwide. Donor trepidation is magnified […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":44,"featured_media":9217,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[5,277],"tags":[1722,244,1724,2411,1725,2412,2413,2183,1026,2336],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9216"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/44"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9216"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9216\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9218,"href":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9216\/revisions\/9218"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/9217"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9216"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9216"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9216"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}