By: Don Caldwell
Has charity taken a backseat in our fragile economic environment?
Excerpts italicized:
A new ranking of the nation's 400 biggest charities shows donations dropped by 11 percent overall last year as the Great Recession ended — the worst decline in 20 years since the Chronicle of Philanthropy began keeping a tally.
"It shows that charities are really having a tough time, and this is some of the most successful charities in the United States," Chronicle Editor Stacy Palmer said. "Usually bigger charities are more resilient, so that's the part that is still surprising."
"The only caveat is our Christmas was extraordinary," said Major George Hood, the Salvation Army's head of community relations. The group's red kettle campaign raised a record $130 million in 2008 and surpassed that in 2009 to raise $139 million.
"The American public really dug deep during the holiday season, and in the balance of the year really cut back in what they gave to charity," he said.
Only four charities in the top 10 reported increased contributions over last year, including Alexandria, Va.-based CatholicCharities USA, which reported a 66 percent jump. For many, that growth has been driven by donated goods rather than cash.
I read two things from this: First, Catholics may be the biggest single charitable group of Americans. Second, many still place value in Christmas. Both are wins.
(ORIGINAL LINK) Top 400 charities see billions less in donations - Yahoo! News
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