How important transparency is in a charity?

[JoelleWyser-Pratte]

Have you been a donor? Have you also tried to run a charity program or an organization? What do you think of being transparent when it comes to the donations and other funds?Do you find it significant? How do you keep the transparency in your charity for those who have one?

[hamchan]

To be honest I don't think most people do any homework whatsoever in donating to charities. The ones with the biggest advertising budgets get the most.

[scfr]

This is one of those "it depends" answers.

Transparency becomes increasingly important as a non-profit moves from asking for small donations to asking donors for larger amounts and/or pursuing grants.

When I donate a few dollars or inexpensive goods, or purchase something from a non-profit (holiday greeting cards for example) I just do it.

But when I started thinking about committing a considerable amount of time (and a bit of money) to a specific non-profit, I looked up copies of the IRS 990 Forms to review financials. My personal preference is to focus on local groups where I can participate and really observe how things work and where money goes.

When non-profits apply for grants (I've helped with some grant applications) you'd better believe the entities offering grants dig in to financials, though some more in depth than others.

[wenice]

Transparency is very important in a charity because we are helping a cause here. People in need and the causes or beneficiaries of different charity programs deserve all the help that was given to them by philanthropic groups or individuals. To avoid issues about charity, transparency should be part of the initial plan.

[susan89]

Definitely the transparency is important when we talk about the charity, it's the base of trust. And it's not necessarily to post all the checks or some other documents to prove that you're not a swindler. Sometime even a small photo report about your charity activity can be a good proof that every donated penny worth of it.

[JudyDunlow]

This reminds my of a senior project one of my suite-mates did in College. Her research paper was on the breakup of each dollar that went to the top 10 food for the hungry type charities. It was very interesting to see their infrastructure and operations breakdown.

Yes, honesty/transparency is necessary with any charity. I need to know where my money is going before I donate anything - whether to my church, food shelter, etc.