An NBA player - Trae Young - wiped out more than a million dollars worth of medical debt with a donation of $10,000. Hospitals sell overdue debt to collections agencies for less than it's technically worth just to recoup some of the money, then the collections agencies try to get it back plus interest. So there are charities that buy debt then forgive it. That seems like such an efficient way to help people. |
Childrens heart link.
TEchnoserve. |
Giving to your and your kids' schools is meaningless. You benefit from that as much as anybody else. |
As you said, you want to "make a real difference in the world." There are many, many charities where your money could help, but when you are donating substantial amounts of money, you really want to make sure that it's being well-used and doing the most good it can. This is the motivation behind the "effective altruism" movement (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Effective_altruism). I'd encourage you to take some time to read some of the detailed articles at GiveWell , which is an organization dedicated to evaluating charities. Traditional charities looks at things like overhead and people served. GiveWell (and similar organizations) try to actually evaluate how much the donation helps people. We give substantially (very low 5 figures) to Give Directly. (For context, we are very rich by generally standards, but middle class by DCUM standards - two well-paid federal employees). The donations to GiveDirectly really make a difference, as shown both through their analytic research and through the examples at https://live.givedirectly.org/ |
Do you have any relatives that could use money to enable them to attend college? |
I have one and I can use the money. Wire me. - not op |
I have health issues and donate to the Crohn's & Colitis Foundation. |
Really admire Doctors Without Borders |
Unless you're giving away 70k a year, I would get off your high horse. |
This, St. Jude's, or the suggestion upthread about wiping out medical debt seem like winners to me. Real impact, helping real people, and the amount OP is talking about could do real good. |
I recently gave $$ to the Fistula Foundation. That's where I would give more- the charity is well run and I feel a real tug towards that cause as a mother who had some complications after childbirth (nothing approaching fistula, but still). |
Pay for childcare for a single mother. You could probably find someone through Catholic Charities or another charity, and be anonymous about it.
That would have made a huge difference in my life when my kids were younger. HUGE. |
I like this. My mother was a widow raising 3 kids and I like this a lot. |
The PP is really only donating $25k to any actual cause that may make a difference. Between schools and church they don’t need that money. |
I remember when my dad wanted to donate $250 to his alma mater, USC. They were in the middle of a $6 billion fundraising push. I told him to save his measly $250 because that was not what the school was actually looking for. It was all he could afford at the time. |