2006 Charitible Contributions Recap

Happy New Year! In closing out the books on a few things for 2006 this morning, I decided this was a good time to review my charitible contributions for the year. For several years, I've been committing a minimum 10% of my wages to philanthropy. My accountant prefers that I make my donations personally, rather than through my firm Inspiration Inc. However in spirit, these funds are possible through my dedication to my work, and my customers' dedication to working with me. For that, I deeply thank each and every one of you.

Would you like to see some of the causes you helped me to support in 2006? Here are the names of the organizations and the percentages of total contributions that went to each cause.

Contributions in 2006:
Of 10% total personal contributions, this is split by category.
49% went to elephant conservation
45% went to local road repairs
4% went to wildlife conservation
2% went to AIDS research

Volunteerism in 2006:
Service as an Advisory Board Member for the Day Spa Association

Here are the actual organizations supported:

Sheldrick Wildlife Trust is a small organization in Kenya that rescues orphaned baby elephants and rhinos and reintegrates them back into the wild. I'm so enamoured with the people (and the babies) there that I went to Kenya to meet them in 2005. Some of their expenses include 1 tiny little airplane that they use to rescue the infants, acreage for the babies to roam, medical supplies, and food for both the babies and the keepers. Remarkably, the keepers actually sleep in the stalls with the infants at night. Their work is very special and they are my favorite charity.

Amboseli Trust for Elephants is the organization of the esteemed Cynthia Moss. Their research into the lives of elephants has been pivotal. Of particular interest to me are some of their discoveries about the psycho-social patterns of these remarkable animals. I had a chance to meet Ms. Moss in person last spring. Click here for photos.

The Elephant Sanctuary in Tennessee rescues circus and zoo elephants and gives them a new life in the American countryside. They are doing some very interesting research on the effects of post-traumatic stress disorder in elephants--something that they are well-acquainted with, as the elephants that they rescue have been badly abused by their previous owners.

Millsap Degnan is a 501(c) organization that rebuilt a road in our community. Rather than wait around for the county government to pay for it, we formed a grass roots committee to pay for it ourselves. This isn't the type of cause that is dearest to my heart, but I do believe that philantropy and responsibility should begin with private citizens taking care of business at home.

World Wildlife Fund is a well-respected international animal conservation organization. Besides donating funds, I also participate in their Take Action Campaigns for various political issues related to animal conservation. When there is a need for people to speak out to local governments, the WWF makes it easy by alerting you by email. Then they have an easy online system where you can send a letter to the proper authorities.

Aids Walk San Francisco has been around a long time, which is a bittersweet commentary. I'm glad the organization is going strong, but sad about the cause still being a huge issue. My best friend Jeffrey Nelson died of AIDS and I know many people with HIV. There has been some progress in that people with HIV are able to live much longer, at least here in the US. However, the worldwide epidemic is in serious need of improvement.

The Day Spa Association is a privately-held organization with the heart of a philanthropist. They do many good things for the day spa industry in the areas of professional development, consumer protection/awareness, group health care insurance for spa employees, and a 501(c) charitible giving fund called Spa Care. As an Advisory Board Member, I vote and contribute on important industry topics and am the chair for the membership committee. If you are a day spa or solo spa professional, I encouage you to become a DSA member.

So what about this coming year?

For 2007, I anticipate doing even more work towards elephant conservation. I'm still sorting out my own philantropic policies. Mostly I just follow my heart in the moment, but I've decided some time ago that I'd rather have a greater impact in 1 or 2 key areas than make random small donations--it's more meaningful this way.

So I think that I will continue to make the Sheldrick Wildlife Trust my preferred charity. When I was there, I had asked them what was the one thing they most needed. It was another airplane. Someday, I want to buy them one.

You'll also find me serving on the DSA board. If you're going to the Day Spa Expo in February, you might even meet me during my volunteer hours at the DSA booth or at the Hearts for the Cure charity event on Thursday night.

What were your favorite charities in 2006? By all means, please give them a plug in the comments* section below. Include a link. In addition to funds, charities need website traffic. So you can piggy-back on the traffic my blog gets by promoting them in the comments area. Happy New Year!

*If you're reading this via email newsletter, you can click on the article title above to visit the blog site where you can comment.

Comments

[Nicholas]

This is really inspiring to hear... there are a lot of truly privileged individuals out there who sadly think that 10% is way too much, but I think it's required...

Personally, I try to put a lot into The Philippines, which is my native homeland..

But, I'm really encouraged that you gave to AIDS research as well..

God Bless..

[Jaya Savannah]

Yes, a lot of priveleged people feel that 10% is too much, but what also frustrates is how people of average or below average income think they have to be rich before they will give.

When I started tithing in the late 1990's, I was broke. The dot com bubble had busted in the economy, and people weren't spending on personal development services like they had been. It was scary to write a check to a good cause, when I wasn't sure how I'd pay all my bills.

I made a deal with myself. I would start out at paying 1% and each month bump up a percentage point. My first check was just under $15! But this cool thing started happening: the more I gave, the more my income went up. Some call it the laws of abundance. I wish more people would trust that theory. IT WORKS.