Chances are good that you have the opportunity to give to charitable organizations multiple times throughout the year. Taking advantage of those opportunities may not always feel like an easy decision. Most people need a good reason to part with their hard-earned cash and their limited time and energy.
There are actually good reasons to give of your time, money, and energy to charitable organizations. Regardless of the specific organization you choose, these are the biggest reasons that donating is a very good idea.
Giving to charitable organizations in the USA improves others’ lives.
One of the most obvious reasons to donate to worthy causes is because doing so improves otusahers’ lives. Because of donations to United Way of Tarrant County, for example, Shannon found safety in a domestic violence service provider, and the Wilson family was able to achieve financial stability through the Pathfinders organization.
When you give to United Way of Tarrant County, lives are changed. Often, you can change someone else’s life for just a few dollars, or a few hours of volunteering.
Giving to charitable organizations feels good.
Giving feels good, and there is science to prove it. One study by Harvard Business School gave participants $100 to give away. Researchers found that when participants parted with that money, the pleasure centers in their brains became active. Giving sparked happiness in the givers.
This phenomenon exists even if you are giving away your own money. If you have ever taken pleasure in a gift recipient’s smile, or felt satisfaction watching the difference a gift makes in a friend’s life, you have experienced the joy of giving.
Giving to charitable organizations gives you another opportunity to partake in the happiness that giving creates. You aren’t just making a difference in others’ lives; you are improving your own.
Giving to charitable organizations helps you to solve tough problems.
The world is full of problems. Homelessness, poverty, lack of medical care, hunger, and more plague our world and our communities. Often, these problems are very difficult to solve. It isn’t always easy to identify and address the root cause of an issue.
One person alone cannot bring an end to hunger or homelessness or any of the other many intractable problems in the world. However, when you donate time and/or money to charitable organizations in the USA, you join together with many others to solve some of the toughest problems that exist. For example, here at the United Way of Tarrant County, we use your dollars to not just alleviate suffering but to actually solve the causes of that suffering. We work with partners to create solutions that work. Together with the many others involved in the charitable organizations of your choice, you can make a difference that you could never make alone.
Giving to charitable organizations allows you to support causes you love.
There are as many causes to support as there are charitable organizations. Any problem that troubles you, any cause that captures your heart, any goal that resonates with you, is addressed by a charitable organization somewhere.
When you give money or time to one of these organizations, you have the opportunity to support causes you love. Through United Way of Tarrant County, you can choose from our 45 partner agencies to find the one that means the most to you.
There is great satisfaction in giving. There is even more satisfaction in giving to a cause that is close to your heart. The power to take action on something that speaks to you personally is within reach. All you need to do is donate.
Giving to charitable organizations allows you to make a big difference with a small amount.
Between 2017 and 2018, homelessness in Tarrant County increased by 5 percent, and more than 100,000 families in the area find housing to be unaffordable. Between 2014 and 2015, 7,709 children were homeless in the county. Not even the richest people on earth have the money necessary to end this difficult societal problem once and for all. The sheer amount of time and money necessary to address, let alone resolve, many similar issues can feel overwhelming. How much can one person do?
It turns out that, by giving to charitable organizations, single person can do quite a bit. For example, for a few dollars, you can provide a family in need with a meal. By combining your donation with many others’ donations, your organization of choice can have the money they need to reach their goals for the year.
Giving to charitable organizations in has many advantages. Your generosity improves others’ lives, feels good, allows you to solve tough problems, allows you to support causes you love, and allows you to make a big difference with a small amount. Enjoying these benefits makes giving to a cause you care about a smart as well as a generous move.
Here at the United Way of Tarrant County, you can give to any of our 45 vetted partner organizations. Donations like yours help more than 300,000 people every year, while allowing you to choose which causes you support. When you give to United Way of Tarrant County, you give to the causes close to your heart and have the opportunity to experience all of the joy and benefits of giving.