Charitable giving: Making your generosity pay - Dec. 30, 2004

Charitable giving: Making your generosity pay - Dec. 30, 2004: "Making your generosity pay

Giving is up, but public confidence in charities is down. How to ensure your money is used wisely?
December 30, 2004: 3:36 PM EST
By Penelope Wang, MONEY Magazine



NEW YORK (MONEY Magazine) - For Michael and Martha Hogan, giving to charity is not just a tradition -- it's a passion. The St. Louis couple, both 51, donate regularly to some two dozen nonprofits, ranging from major groups like the United Way and the National Kidney Foundation to the lesser-known Small World Adoption Foundation, which helped them adopt the youngest of their four children.
'The charities that get most of our time and money are the ones we're familiar with and where we see the most need,' says Michael, an executive at a scientific-research company. But, he adds, 'I'm a total sucker when someone asks me for a small amount"