How Charity Helps

In our quest to figure out if charity and philanthropy is helpful or harmful, the positive aspects are the most obvious. Various charities and philanthropies do all kinds of good things in the world. I think the most helpful way to realize this is to look at a few case studies of charities. These individual charities were given four stars by CharityNavigator.org. Visit this link to learn more about how they rate charities. Also, as the saying goes, a picture is worth a thousand words, so these images should help us understand just what these charities are doing in the world.

Action Against Hunger is an international charity that works to provide clean water and food to people around the world. According to their website, Action Against Hunger “carry out innovative, lifesaving programs in nutrition, food security, water and sanitation, health, and advocacy.” The organization analyzes the nutritional needs of a certain population and works to treat and prevent malnutrition. They also attempt to provide clean, renewable sources of water, and set up health clinics around the world. Additionally, Action Against Hunger works to find the causes of hunger and solve those issues politically. This charity is one example of hundreds that work to help people in need all around the world.


A boy eats food provided by Action Against Hunger (I couldn't figure out how to make this picture smaller. Sorry!)

Another type of philanthropy is religious organizations. One example of this is Warm Blankets Orphan Care International. Despite its completely cheesy name, this group helps children in need throughout the world. This group follows some of the Biblical teachings that I referred to in the History post. Isaiah 1:17 says “Learn to do good; seek justice, reprove the ruthless, defend the orphan, plead for the widow.” Warm Blankets works with local churches around the world to establish what they call a Family Home. This is basically a small orphanage, run by local widows, that shares a building with a church.


A group of kids in front of their Family Home

One last philanthropy case study is Teach for America. This is an organization that recognizes the inequalities in education for students in America. They recruit college graduates who volunteer to teach for two years in a low-income community. These teachers work to give needy students a great education that they might not have received from their normal teachers.


A corps member of Teach for America- New York City

These charities are just three specific examples of what thousands of charities do worldwide. Obviously, these charities accomplish great things, but is it at a cost? What are the negative aspects of charity? Find this out in my next post!

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