Thanksgiving is fast approaching, and right behind it Giving Tuesday, a day to help our communities and the world. In past years, Cutetropolitans have shared causes and charities that mattered to them, so let’s get that discussion started early this year. This is your official Cutetropolis Giving Tuesday discussion. Join in and tell us where we should share this year.
blood donation
I like this idea, and everyone who can donate, should. I know a lot of people who can’t donate blood due to outdated MSM rules (men who have sex with men).
I don’t have any particular charity but I would suggest maybe giving to one that helps the resettlement of refugees and works against injustice in the world. I have two local charities for refugees that are run mainly by volunteers, I’ve supported them in the past and I’ll put them on my list for Giving Tuesday.
I would love to see a donation go to Sleepy Burrows Wombat Refuge – they’re doing so much, including trying to save at least some of the thousands of wombats suffering from mange. They have a new cure that takes less time and is very effective. We get so much joy from them.
I think since this is an animal themed site I’d go with animals like the Bats or a rescue group that helps with puppy mills. Or one that helps with the wild burros or manatees that had bad encounters with rotor blades.
Bat World Sanctuary is a great place to donate if you’d like to help bats! They do wonderful work!?
How about a local shelter hit by the hurricanes this year?
I like that.
Me too. There’s sure to be some shelters that had a rough time this hurricane season.
Great suggestion! Maybe if we look into a few reputable shelters and concentrate our efforts to that one or not. Just thinking out loud via keyboard.
Really love this idea! Does anyone have research on reputable centers?
Please consider The Cat House on the Kings in Parlier CA. It is the largest no cage no kill lifetime cat sactuary and adoption center.
Thank you so much for this early thread, Mike!
I actually work on issues in philanthropy and the non-profit sector for my day job. I’ve worked with Asha Curran, one of the originators of the #GivingTuesday movement, while she was a fellow with my organization and trying to understand all the data generated by #GivingTuesday donations.
And in my private life, I take my philanthropy very seriously, even though it’s small. I have recurring $5/month donations set up for: NRDC, ACLU, Planned Parenthood, Bitch Media, KQED (local public radio), and makeitok.org (mental health). I also try to give an additional $50-$100 per month to a one-off cause, like Emily’s List or CAIR or NAACP.
Here’s some animal charities I like:
The Morris Animal Foundation
Central Coast Pug Rescue
Cat House on the Kings (+1 to someone else’s rec)
Sleepy Burrows (+1 to someone else’s rec)
Humane Society of Silicon Valley
The Natural Resources Defense Council (overall wildlife)
The Peninsula Open Space Trust (wildlife/environment in the bay area)
World Wildlife Fund (overall wildlife)
The San Diego Zoo
The Woodland Park Zoo
Curiodyssey (local small zoo and education center in the bay area)
Geez, that’s already a lot, but I have more!
CAIR – the Council on American Islamic Relations (interfaith issues and advocacy for Muslim Americans)
The Southern Poverty Law Center (rights for disenfranchised people in the South, especially black folks)
Emily’s List (supporting progressive women in politics)
Bet Tzedek (pro-bono legal services in LA)
No One Left Behind (support for translators and other contractors from the Iraq War)
Second Harvest Food Bank
MALDEF – the Mexican American Legal Defense and Education Fund
Prolly more if I think about it….
Second makeitok.org. (Which reminds me, I have a Hilarious World of Depression episode to listen to..)
Ermagerd, I love THWOD! much love, Allein
Hello, fellow THWODball!
I donated to them last year and got the mug to keep on my desk at work. I use it for water (after I realized that a black mug makes it hard to tell when your tea is ready). (Unfortunately, the lettering started to peel off within about a week. Most of “Hilarious” and “Depression” are still there but the “World” is gone. … Hmm…that came out more bleak than I intended.)
THWODBALLS UNITE! sorry about your mug.
The site is awesome and really useful for explaining things to people when I don’t have the spoons.
It’s okay. They also sent me a pillbox, which has the color logo printed on it so it can’t peel off. (I don’t actually have any pills in it, though…it’s kinda hard to open.)
Now I have the theme song in my head (which I love).
To add to your list re: disenfranchised people. Two organizations that help Native Americans:
Four Directions – advocacy for voting rights on the reservations. They’re the ones that just helped in North Dakota, trying to get addresses and ID cards for the Native Americans.
Lakota People’s Law Project
Plus another where you can adopt a Navajo elder and provide them with food, etc.
ADOPT-A-NATIVE-ELDER
I love all these ideas. If I had to pick two, I’d go with Sleepy Burrows Wombat Refuge and a shelter that was in hurricane-land.
Fellow cutetropolitans, we might also consider giving our gracious host an extra tip on that day–I’m sure it’s not cheap to run this blog, not to mention all the writing.
Well said! Sign me up as another vote for Sleepy Burrows.
Also, if our budget permits, the Anti-Defamation League (they don’t limit themselves to fighting only anti-Semitism – they’ll stick up for anyone who’s facing prejudice). Oh, and the ACLU.
If I had to pick one, I’d go with Sleepy Burrows because animals.
So many wonderful suggestions!
I like the wombats of course, and Murray C. said it best: We get so much joy from them.
One thought I had after reading part 2 of Heather Noelle’s list was, what about HIAS? I don’t know much about them, but they might have been the reason for the Squirrel Hill Synagog Massacre. They are getting some of my money this year no matter what.
And finally, I would like to nominate a local place in south eastern Pennsylvania and parts of New Jersey. We have a 24/7 emergency vet clinic called VSEC. Every person I’ve encountered there has been incredibly kind. They treat both the pet and human. It is where I took Wombat Kitty when I found him. https://cutetropolis.com/2018/06/15/the-tale-of-wombat-kitty/?ref=ttl
Any updates on wombat kitty? I’d love to see a picture of him all grown up.
I get to kitty-sit for him over Thanksgiving! Will definitely send update pics. 🙂
So many good places!
I’d also add that as this is a site for teh cute, donating money to teh ugly animals seems like a good idea.
Someone mentioned a Food Bank. Great place to donate.
I know that Food Banks vary depending on where they are, but the one in my area not only provides food for those who need it, but for the last few years they have also provided cooking classes. I think that is a great idea because some of the recipients may not know how to cook or how to make their supplies stretch for more meals.
I was surprised to discover that the Food Bank also accepted donations of diapers and other things for babies. It makes sense, but it never occurred to me that people would donate that.
They also get some pet food, but not much.
Also, menstrual products are welcomed, same with homeless, woman’s shelters– they are expensive but so necessary. Instead of canned goods etc. I donate stick deodorant, toothbrushes, toothpaste and ‘feminine’ products.