Personal Finance: Giving Charitably without Spending a Lot
By Saghir A. Aslam
Rawalpindi, Pakistan
(The following information is provided solely to educate the Muslim community about investing and financial planning. It is hoped that the Ummah will benefit from this effort through greater financial empowerment, enabling the community to live in security and dignity and fulfill their religious and moral obligations towards charitable activities)
Donating your time either as a volunteer or as a member of a committee or board allows you to support a non-profit organization without making a big financial commitment, and it can be a great start to becoming more philanthropic. “Donating time can be as valuable to an organization as donating money.” Many nonprofit organizations rely on donations of time in order to fulfill their missions.
Simple actions, big results
Elena rover, of Katonah, New York, provides foster care for dogs and puppies through Guiding Eyes for the blind, a nonprofit that raises guide dogs and service dogs. Fostering dogs is a significant time investment. Rover walks her charges three miles a day, and she and her family spend time planning with and training the dogs they foster. The financial commitment, however, is minimal, Rover says - just a small amount per day for dog food. The impact of her work, though, is highly appreciated.
“We are incredibly grateful to our generous volunteers. Without the extraordinary dedication of our puppy raisers, we would simply be unable to provide guide dogs to people with vision loss.” All these volunteer hours really add up. According to the Corporation for National and Community Service, 62.6 million adults in the US performed volunteer work in 2013. Those volunteers contributed 7.7 billion hours of time, the equivalent of $173 billion.
Volunteers can help charitable organizations by donating their time in several ways, according to Prebish:
On the front lines. If the organization you support is local, help out by rolling up your sleeves and providing services, such as cooking meals at a soup kitchen, coaching baseball for a community team, tutoring English language learners at a library, building homes in underserved communities; the list of opportunities is endless.
Behind the scenes. Most organizations welcome assistance with office work and administrative tasks, such as writing newsletters, thanking donors, updating websites, and making phone calls. Having these tasks done by volunteers frees up hired staff for higher-level work.
On a committee. “Many organizations have active volunteer committees made up of people with people with special skills.” For example, estate planning skills with a legacy - giving committee at his local public television station. Committee work may also include tasks such as event coordination or party planning.
On the board . Serving as a board member can be a wonderful opportunity to immerse yourself in a cause and help with long term, big picture planning. Keep n mind, though, that board members are also committed donors. Before you volunteer for a board spot, be clear about donation expectations.
Your financial considerations
Donating time differs from donating cash in one major way: your time is not tax-deductible as a charitable donation, although money spent on transportation and other expenses (such as the dog food Rover buys) may be deductible. Be sure to check with your tax professional about substantiation and allowed deductions for charitable giving.)
(Saghir A. Aslam only explains strategies and formulas that he has been using. He is merely providing information, and NO ADVICE is given. Mr Aslam does not endorse or recommend any broker, brokerage firm, or any investment at all, nor does he suggest that anyone will earn a profit when or if they purchase stocks, bonds, or any other investments. All stocks or investment vehicles mentioned are for illustrative purposes only. Mr Aslam is not an attorney, accountant, real estate broker, stockbroker, investment advisor, or certified financial planner. Mr Aslam does not have anything for sale.)
