Happy holidays to all!
While we’re feeling clean, warm, well-fed, happy, fortunate and generous, I thought I’d take a moment to talk about charitable contributions. When we were working, many of us contributed to charities through workplace payroll deduction programs. I always did.
But I confess … when I retired and the paychecks stopped, I should have found another way to contribute to charities, and I didn’t.
I’m back. This year, I chose to support the local food bank. I did my research on Charity Navigator, which is a great tool for helping us evaluate charitable organizations. Will they spend my money wisely?
For example, I was torn between a food bank in the county where I live and a food bank in the greater metropolitan area. My local food bank scored average on financials but had a rather poor showing on accountability and transparency.
The metro food bank had good scores. I went to the website, where I learned they provide other human services such as clothing and legal support for immigrants. That appealed to me, so I donated online and was emailed a receipt. The contribution is tax-deductible.
Lots of people have charitable contributions baked into their lifestyle through church or other service organizations. If you’re like me and counted on payroll deduction, retirement is the time to take the next step.
Find something that matters to you and do a little research before you give because there are charities that sound reputable but aren’t. Decide what you can afford to give and build it into your retirement planning.
The deadline to claim a tax deduction for 2019 is Dec. 31, 2019. While giving is from the heart and not about taxes, it’s no shame to claim the deduction. I think of it as a little extra bonus for doing the right thing.
NOTE: Please read the comment from Dave about tax deductions. A great clarification and heads-up!
I love the reminder that we all need to be more charitable. Beware that you might not be able to deduct the donation as the standard deduction for married filing jointly in 2019 is $24,400. Many retirees can’t get there especially if you don’t have a mortgage
Hi Dave — thanks for sharing this information! It’s a great clarification and heads-up for everyone, but honestly, I’m personally just going to let the tax guy figure it out. I’m good either way.
Indeed. Helping others is important and we must all find what works for us.
We are lucky enough to have more than we need and do contribute regularly, but are working on finding ways to give of ourselves too, not just money. It is easy to stay in our comfort zone, but very important to try to do more. One step at a time.
There are many ways to donate, including time as many charitable organizations need volunteers. There are several sites where you can sign up to donate time – long distance. Taproots is one and there are others. I’ve helped with marketing, business plans, etc. It’s all good for the soul.
Wow, interesting. Anything good for the soul is good in my book.
Excellent point! Thank you for sharing.
It’s easy to let these things slip away. We have a fund set up just for charitable giving. The years we replenish the fund, it’s usually a large enough amount that even with the tax change, we can benefit financially. But it’s mostly about the giving.
Having a special fund is a great idea. Go you!
I like what you say about evaluating charitable donations. I donate regularly to the local food bank. I also donate to the MS Society because of 3 friends with MS as well as the WarAmps. My dad was a bilateral amputee (due to health reasons) and 2 uncles were unilateral amputees. My dad always joked about the challenge of scaring up 2 legs among the 3 of them when they were together!
There are some badly managed charities out there, but it sounds like you found some good ones and are more than generous. I love your dad’s attitude!
I donate time to our local animal shelter weekly and cook Sunday dinner for a homeless shelter twice a month. The animal shelter has been my gig for 26 years now. Our UU church gets a big chunk of our money, and a literacy place I volunteered for when I lived in Seattle gets a yearly donation mainly because I really enjoyed teaching there, and, of course, because I believe in what they do. I wish I could give more, but I think time is just as valuable as money in most cases.
I agree — volunteering time is just as important as donating money … maybe more so. I admire your good works!