By Nicholas Kristof / The New York Times
This is a time of year when many readers are thinking about charitable donations, and have we got some suggestions for you!
For more than a century, The New York Times has organized a fund, now called The New York Times Communities Fund, to support those in need. The Times covers credit card fees and administrative costs, so every penny goes to organizations we’ve vetted.
The Communities Fund supports nine nonprofit groups engaged in early literacy, fighting poverty, feeding the hungry and other worthy causes. Most operate in the United States, but one helps girls attend school in sub-Saharan Africa. (Conflict alert: I’m on the board of the Communities Fund.)
You can donate to a pool that is divided among the nonprofits, or you can select one or more of the nine organizations to direct your money to. More information and a donation form are at nytcommunitiesfund.org.
That’s a Times-wide effort with a 113-year history. But we as members of the Opinion team also have our own favorites, and you can see our more personal recommendations in the Times Opinion Giving Guide 2024.
My own contribution to this collective effort is my 15-year-old holiday giving guide suggesting several extraordinary nonprofits whose work I’ve come to particularly admire. This year I recommend one volunteer opportunity — Crisis Text Line — and three nonprofits well worth a donation.
One is the Fistula Foundation, which for an average cost of $619 repairs obstetric fistulas — devastating childbirth injuries that leave women incontinent and humiliated. Another is Muso Health, which provides health care in impoverished nations in sub-Saharan Africa and has a remarkable record of saving children’s lives. The cost of bringing another person into Muso’s network is just $22 a year.
My third option, operating here in the United States, is Reach Out and Read, which distributes books to parents of very young children and coaches them on the importance of reading. It lifts children onto the magic carpet of reading.
So far, readers have donated more than $6 million to these three organizations in my giving guide. We estimate that this sum will help more than 130,000 people. To learn more or to donate, visit KristofImpact.org.
We don’t all agree on politics or policies, but here’s a chance for us as readers and writers to come together and make a better world.
This article originally appeared in The New York Times, c.2024.
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