Q. & A.: How to Give Back During the Holidays

Hello readers! We’re excited to chat with you today about ways you can give back during the holidays, whether it is by volunteering or through charitable donations, and what it means for your taxes. How do you find an organization in your community to support? What type of aid is needed most? Can you deduct contributions to individuals on your taxes? Beginning at 3 p.m., we will spend the next hour answering your questions.

Hi, Ron Lieber here, I write the Your Money personal finance column here at the NYT. Last week, I did a piece about how to give the gift of giving to kids and teens. Ask me anything!

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Six Ways to Give the Gift of Generosity to Children and Teenagers

Here is a guide to help you teach young people about philanthropy and offer them the tools to give.

The New York Times

Hi, I’m Toba Kerson, the Mary Hale Chase Professor Emeritus at Bryn Mawr College outside Philadelphia. Educated as both a social worker and a sociologist, I am primarily interested in helping people manage chronic physical and mental conditions.

Hello, everyone. I’m Devorah Weiss, a a social worker at the Metropolitan Council on Jewish Poverty and the Jewish Community Center of Staten Island, both beneficiary agencies of UJA-Federation of New York. UJA-Federation is one of the eight beneficiary organizations of The New York Times Neediest Cases Fund. The Times wrote about my work in a Neediest Cases story in 2011.

Devorah Weiss, Staten Island Helper - Neediest Cases

For emergencies, there is 911. For noise complaints, there is 311. For those in dire straits on Staten Island, there is Devorah Weiss, a social worker whose cellphone number is passed on as a last resort.

The New York Times

Hi, I’m John Otis. I’m a reporter at The New York Times and have written more than 100 stories for the Neediest Cases over the past five years.

And I am the editor of this year’s Neediest Cases campaign, the 105th in The Times’s history.

I really sympathize with EDP’s quandary. I live in Center City Philadelphia and pass many individuals on the street begging for help everyday. My personal solution is to give the majority of my donations to organizations that address causes and groups about which I am most concerned but to save some money for individuals who are in great pain.

I agree with Toba’s response above. Great to give both to an agency like Met Council and help a homeless person. Often people on the street reject offers to be taken to a shelter and often present with mental health issues as well.

We have two questions coming in from readers who ask about getting children involved in giving back.

For your nieces and nephews Shomita, try the following if you can afford it: Get them a present or two, as you may have in the past. But maybe also give them a check with the “to” part empty and ask them to come up with a cause that they want to support. They fill in the “to” part and can report back to you on why they want to support that cause. You could also go and volunteer at that organization with them.

Doug, I don’t know of any studies that have examined one against the other. Giving money from an allowance or earnings is great, helping parents figure out how to divide their charitable pie is good and following up with work in the community is good too. All of those things will reinforce one another, especially if you establish deep ties to a particular cause or organization.

There are centers for the distribution of clothing and food in most cities and towns. In my experience, they will allow families to come in. And, you know, right now there are folks standing on every street corner asking for money and food.

Why not make up a dozen brown bag breakfasts or lunches and distribute them to people who are hungry. Have your children wish each person a better new year and give out the brown bags.

Some people will ask about the contents and reject the offering, but those are important lessons as well.

Also, when parents model giving, it makes a huge impact on their children of all ages as they grow and creates memories to recreate as adults.

Ron, I’ve received a question from a reader who is a recent college graduate and has federal student loans. Can someone offset their students loans by volunteering?

Matthew, depends on how you define volunteer. There is loan forgiveness available in certain amounts under some circumstances for people who enroll in the Peace Corps, VISTA or Americorps. The Army, Navy, Air Force and Marines are an option too. More ideas here: http://www.finaid.org/loans/forgiveness.phtml

This program is intriguing too… http://www.sponsorchange.org/?page_id=27

Ellen, often churches, synagogues and other organizations refer needy clients to Met Council

The organizations supported by the Neediest Cases fund give help to any who need it, regardless of any religious affiliation. A great example is a story I did a few years back featuring UJA, a Jewish organization, helping an Eastern Orthodox priest fallen on hard times.

There are also three Christian charities that regularly help those of other Christian faiths, or even those who aren’t very religious.

H.I.V. Led to Stigmatization, Diabetes to the Loss of a Foot

Peter Gromoff, an Eastern Orthodox priest, lost one of his feet, and part of the other, to complications from diabetes.

The New York Times

May I chime in, too? In my experience, the word goes out on the street that a certain church or synagogue has a lot of coats to distribute or offers better places to sleep or a better meal. Churches and synagogues often put up signs saying what they can offer. Also, the organizations trying to help new immigrants work refer clients to churches ans synagogues.

Susan, no reason to feel ashamed. Organizations are thrilled that people are tax-conscious, because the more they reach for deductions the more generous they are likely to be (since if they get those deductions, they can afford to give more). I don’t think that what you propose would offer enough documentation if you were ever audited, but it would depend on the IRS auditor. Still, many such organizations hand out a blank form and let you fill the amounts in yourself. Chances are a quick email to them will yield the form you need.

You know, the organizations expect you to ask for documentation for the IRS. Many have pre-printed receipts for you. This is the way of the United States.

We have received several questions about how to find a reputable organization to support.

Met Council will answer any questions a donor might have with great transparency. It’s a reputable organization and in existence for many many years. Thousands have been helped.

Maria, Guidestar is a good site to start at to do some research. The challenge here is that there isn’t a ton of agreement in the world of non-profits about how to define and measure success and impact.

So while Guidestar and the like can help with accountability (are they legal? spending all their money on salaries?) they can’t help a ton on impact (who is getting the most results per charitable dollar). Organizations like United Way are trying to do more of this – and local community foundations can help too.

You might call the Albany city office for helping the homeless or call a homeless shelter directly and ask how to make a donation.

And here’s more information about Guidestar: https://learn.guidestar.org/about-us

Maria, the foundation of The New York Times Neediest Cases Fund has vetted every organization that receives donations from the Neediest Cases Fund; seven of the 8 organizations have been beneficiaries of the fund for decades.

Some readers wonder whether they should direct their charitable donations to organizations here or overseas.

Hi, I’m Grace!

The Neediest Cases Fund historically assisted people who needed help in the New York area, and that will continue. But this year, the Fund is also supporting the International Rescue Committee, a New York-based organization, and its work with refugees around the world. As a global organization, we believe adding the IRC as a beneficiary will better serve our global community and diverse audience.

Lauren from Durham, N.C., has some advice for where to start if you want to help.

JCK raises an interesting question. All of these reputable organizations need help. One has to think carefully about his or her own values and then distribute charily accordingly. It may seem that money going to another country where everything is cheaper makes one’s contribution go farther, but local needs are just as pressing partly because everything (food, clothing and shelter) is so expensive.

Marci, one way to get school supplies to needy students is through an organization called DonorsChoose. You can select teachers/classrooms/projects by geography and also by need (which they measure by the % of students who get free lunch). Full disclosure: they hosted my last book party. https://www.donorschoose.org/about

JCK and Candace, I receive hundreds of calls from very needy families in crisis in our local area alone. The need is great right here. From financial assistance for rent to food, to job placement and every other need imaginable to help a family reach self-sufficiency.

Another thought on Marci’s question, If you would find donating books to children a satisfying gift, I suggest that you call your local public library to ask if they can direct you to the many programs that distribute books to needy kids. They are not school supplies or lunches, but they are critical for children’s learning.

The impact of giving to a family in need, through caring - makes an incredible difference in their lives. Strangers who reach out from all over the US, help a family in need feel less alone.

Thanks all, I’ve gotta go chase some news. (Related, believe it or not, to whether you can get student loan forgiveness for doing public service work.) Please sign up for more personal finance tips and news from our weekly newsletter. http://www.nytimes.com/newsletters/yourmoney

Ron is gone but the chat continues! Devorah, Toba and John are still here.

Dan, Perhaps taking them shopping to choose toys/books for other kids their age which you can donate to any number of organizations. Make sure to buy them something as well. It’s a difficult concept for a young child to comprehend.

To add to Devorah’s idea, how about taking them to buy copies of their favorite books for other children whose families may not be able to afford them?

A question for you, our readers: What in your hearts or experiences influences your giving at this time of year? What is your motivation? About what do you care most deeply. For example, there are the notion of protecting the most vulnerable in our society, but there is also helping those who have the capacity to be self-sufficient to reach that most satisfying goal. Many of the neediest cases seem focused on the latter? What do you think?

While we wait for responses to Toba’s question, we’ll move to another reader question, which is similar to Toba’s.

Jai, many agencies try to help people move forward in their lives so they no longer require assistance The organizations often make people aware of services they may not have known about, including health insurance and food pantries.

They also connect people with free career training and in the New York area, they provide MetroCards for them to commute to work.

By the way, Jai. Every client is different and not all clients can be empowered to become more self-sufficient.

Great ideas, John. MetroCards are always needed by clients. Helping to connect people to job openings for those able to work is always needed.

Claire, there are many organizations including those who receive money from the Neediest Cases that have ways for Children to participate. Particularly at this time of year, many organizations have ways for families to wrap and distribute gifts, many directly to people’s homes.

In addition, many places provide meals every day and especially want extra volunteers including families during the holidays. Just call the organizations involved with the Neediest Cases.

Ethel, I can only answer for Met Council, but surely at all organizations there are people who’d be happy to discuss this with you and provide meaningful information.

What a tough question. I don’t think that you should worry about the organization being too small to manage your donation. If the donation is very large, call the director of the organization and talk to her or to him about it.

Also, since we are all fearing major cuts in government spending over the next couple of years, those small organizations to which you are devoted can be in even greater need than before.

Lauren from Durham is back! She has a thought on Jai’s question about empowering recipients to become self-sufficient.

Earlier, Toba asked readers what in their hearts or experiences influences their giving at this time of year, and what is their motivation?

Ana, Met Council has many programs that help people in crisis — perhaps they could answer your question directly.

Ana, I can’t speak speak for other organizations, but 100 percent of peoples’ donations to The Neediest Cases Fund go directly to the eight organizations.

And money donated to individual Neediest Cases stories, if earmarked, will indeed helps the person/family directly. It makes an incredible difference in the lives of the person profiled in the paper. I’m in awe of the donations from across the country to help local New Yorkers. I know. I’m the social worker involved.

Ana, regarding the first part of what you asked: One can ask for an organization’s annual report which will tell you how money is allocated. Many of the reports are available on line. Re; the second part of the question, I think that if you would choose among the organizations that are the Neediest Cases recipients, you can’t go wrong.

They have been highly vetted and, with the exception of the newest addition, they have been around for a very long time.

Lauren (again!) has some advice in response to Ethel’s earlier question about how one should best factor in the size of an organization when considering donations.

Looks like it is time for us to wind down. Thanks so much for all the readers who participated and asked great questions.

Thanks so much for including me. I wish you all a happy, healthy and peaceful new year.

Thanks all, please continue giving what you can - and continue making a difference in the lives of others!

Toba and Devorah, much appreciation for your participation

Thanks to all chat participants; happy holidays!

Happy holidays and thanks again. Please read our stories in the Neediest Cases series.

The Neediest Cases

The Neediest Cases Fund marks its 105th year with its 2016-17 campaign, which runs from Nov. 13 through Feb. 3.

The New York Times