Cars are one of today's most
popular in-kind gifts. But their popularity has
spawned shady operators. Many cars are processed
through for-profit vendors, who sometimes give as
little as 10 percent of the sale price to charity.
But some charities do their own dealing. Last year,
Volunteers of America received more than 75,000
vehicles (www.carshelpingpeople.org).
"It's much more cost-effective for us to
do it ourselves," says Jim Hartman, national
director of the vehicle donation program, noting
that his group receives 100 percent of each gift and
will pick up vehicles nationwide.
advertisement
Donating
time: Many charities, especially struggling or
smaller groups, couldn't survive without
volunteers. State budget cuts have forced the Vision
homeless shelter in Luzerne County, Pa., to lay off
several staffers. Without a roster of 3,000
volunteers to undertake tasks like supervising
overnight shifts, the shelter--now housing 35
men--would close its doors.
Many firms are
making it easier for employees to offer their time.
Timberland, an outdoor clothing company in Stratham,
N.H., for instance, gives staffers 40 paid hours of
volunteer time each year. Recent projects include
building baseball parks in Valley, Ala., and
painting schools in Baltimore. "It gives me
great pride," says Carolyn Casey, director of
social enterprise. "And it motivates the heck
out of me."
If your office doesn't
sponsor such a program, visit
www.volunteermatch.org, where more than 26,000
nonprofits post gigs, from long-term tutoring stints
to one-day homebuilding sessions. In 1999,
VolunteerMatch hooked up expert knitter and
crocheter RuthVolk, 42, with Bundles of Love, an
Apple Valley, Minn., group that provides handmade
baby clothes to low-income parents. Now she's
on the board and devotes 100 hours a month to the
group and its mission. Perhaps summing up the
enduring appeal of American philanthropy, she says,
"It's addicting to know you're
needed."
