Should You Donate to Hurricane Relief Charities?

We are so well prepared for hurricanes in Mexico that it is shocking for us to see what happens in other Central American countries. Hurricane Felix has slammed into Nicaragua and is on its way to tearing up a significant portion of Central America. Someone has to help those people. Their local governments do not have the resources and it is a waste of time and energy to question why. Children and families are in desperate need of help. Their homes are gone. Many are injured. If help doesn't come within a matter of hours - not days, not next week... within hours... the victims of Hurricane Felix will begin to get sick. We saw children covered in fungus within three days of Hurricane Katrina, just from walking through flood waters. The Shriner's Hospital in Shreveport took care of all who could be brought to them, but there are no such resources in Nicaragua, Honduras, Guatemala, or Belize. There, the only hope the children have is that someone will come.

When Americans hear stories such as this, they can't physically go there to help. All they can do is reach for their wallets and donate to a favorite charity. Unfortunately, all charities are not the same and your hard earned dollars often have little chance of making it to the children and families who so desperately need help. Before you donate to any charity, check with the Charity Navigator. You can quickly discover that some of the charities you hear the most about are some of the worst, in terms of aid actually reaching the people for whom it is intended.