Small gifts a godsend for people in crisis - The Boston Globe

Small gifts a godsend for people in crisis - The Boston Globe: "F or one woman, a $172 check meant the chance to start a new life. For an area father, a taxi voucher helped stave off a potential return trip to jail. And for an area homeless shelter, a $1,000 grant allowed the purchase of an industrial-sized refrigerator.


Nonprofits depend on grants to fulfill their missions, so conventional wisdom would suggest that the more zeroes in the grant, the better"

Living | Dollar for Darfur helps light up a life and Web site | Seattle Times Newspaper

Living | Dollar for Darfur helps light up a life and Web site | Seattle Times Newspaper: "Dollar for Darfur helps light up a life and Web site

By Haley Edwards

Seattle Times staff reporter

KEN LAMBERT / THE SEATTLE TIMES

Jonah Burke of Seattle is the founder of Darfurwall.org, a Web site seen in the background. Each number represents one of 400,000 lives lost in the Darfur crisis. People who donate a dollar or more light up one of the numbers.

In January, we ran a story about Darfurwall.org, a Seattle-run Web site that raises money for humanitarian aid in Darfur, Sudan. The nonprofit site relies entirely on social-networking sites and 'word of mouse' (links on blogs) to advertise its existence. Once visitors stumble upon the site, they're asked for very small amounts of money — $1 donations are all it takes."

Spend/Thrift: Checking out your charity - International Herald Tribune

Spend/Thrift: Checking out your charity - International Herald Tribune:
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As a consequence, getting involved in philanthropy, whether to lend or give money, is an option open to many more people than it was in the past.

'For a really long time, philanthropy was the province of the wealthy,' said Keith Taylor, founder of Modest Needs, a charity that facilitates small, one-time donations through the Internet. 'What you're really seeing is a fundamental shift as to what contributes philanthropy. What's happening now is you're seeing a shift back to what philanthropy really means' - that is, the simple act of people helping people."

SanLuisObispo.com | 06/05/2007 | Nonprofit strategies: Make a big difference by giving small

SanLuisObispo.com | 06/05/2007 | Nonprofit strategies: Make a big difference by giving small: "Nonprofit strategies: Make a big difference by giving small
By Barry VanderKelen

When thinking about charitable donations that make a big difference, it’s easy to point to the million-dollar gifts as examples."