Tithing and/or charitible donations

Avatar for sohappilyme
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-26-2003
Tithing and/or charitible donations
9
Tue, 01-06-2009 - 1:01pm

For those of you still buried under debt and/or barely making ends meet each month, do you tithe and/or make financial contributions to charity? I don't want to start a debate about whether you should do those things or not, but I'm wondering what you all do in light of your own struggles when it comes to giving to your church or others in need. If you do give, is it a set amount or percentage or do you give what you can? Do you give regularly or does it depend on the money you have available at the time?

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Goal #1:

Sarah
iVillage Member
Registered: 10-01-2008
Tue, 01-06-2009 - 1:15pm

To be frank, we don't attend church like we should.

Norma


"Patience is the best remedy for every trouble"- Plautus


iVillage Member
Registered: 04-10-2003
Tue, 01-06-2009 - 1:27pm

Good question. I sponser a child through World Vision Canada. Its only $40 a month and its purpose is to help the community become self-sufficient rather then focusing on the individual (something I feel is very important). Before I sponsored, I made sure to go through their statements and see what was being spent where.


I also donate $10 per pay for different charities in the community as well as organizing the Christmas campaign at work. My goal is to increase my charitable contributions by $5 a pay everytime I get a raise.


Bex -

Avatar for cl_phocid
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-26-2003
Tue, 01-06-2009 - 2:17pm
I volunteer one day a week with wildlife, and I like to give the organization money, usually a fixed amount each year.

All my best,
Danni

iVillage Member
Registered: 01-06-2009
Tue, 01-06-2009 - 3:29pm

We give things more then money really As I grow out of my clothes we give them to the thrift store where they sell them to poor ladies at a 1.00 a dress. I feel that is helping someone. We give food that we get on sale or free when they have buy one get one free at the store.


Recently I got back in my Church and started to go back to Mass Now I am making out a check for 30.00 a month that is about 1% of our income a month. I know it is not the 10% but we are still tight and also we need to get the debt paid off still.


This is I feel the best we can do at this point.


Mary Ann


Avatar for mahopac
iVillage Member
Registered: 07-24-1997
Tue, 01-06-2009 - 4:04pm

We have always given money to nonprofits, even when we didn't have much to give. My parents ALWAYS used church envelopes, and if they could contribute every week - as well as give to other charities - with as many children and as much debt as they had, so can I. They had it much harder than I ever did.

I have a literal tithe (10%) as my goal, but I haven't reached it. I think we're at about 5%, but it varies by year - I've set a dollar amount for the year, and it will end up being somewhere between 5 and 10%, depending on how much I make. When I get a windfall, I do try to set aside 10% of it right away for large one-time donations. I consider a variety of organizations to be doing God's work and therefore my contributions are part of my tithe - from my church to religious organizations to suicide prevention to international relief work to missionary work to education.

Kelly

Avatar for earnhardt_jr_fan
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-25-2003
Tue, 01-06-2009 - 4:31pm

We are not religious and do not attend church, so that isn't an issue for us.


I tend to help out individuals vs donating to a large charity. I know a lot of people who have been laid off from the auto industry and while we are certainly not rolling in money, I will try and help them out - sometimes with clothes, sometimes with food and sometimes with money.


I did see on a local news channel that the Food Bank of Eastern Michigan is down to just about nothing. I am going to donate $15 to them this pay period. I read somewhere that for every $1 we donate, the food bank can turn that $1 into $15 worth of food! So, I think my $15 would go a LONG way towards helping them out. :0)

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iVillage Member
Registered: 03-27-2005
Tue, 01-06-2009 - 6:24pm

We always tithed a full 10%


stacy


iVillage Member
Registered: 06-25-2006
Tue, 01-06-2009 - 7:11pm

I too sponsor a child with a once a month payment for $24.

iVillage Member
Registered: 02-01-2008
Tue, 01-06-2009 - 11:41pm

This is an interesting topic. I know that I have had to cut back on charitable giving since my daughter started college four years ago.

I give to the United Way through my paycheck, sponsor a child in Guatemala through CFCA, and am a member of my local PBS/NPR station. I also give monthly donations to my church and local food cupboard using online bill pay. It's easier than writing out checks, finding the donation envelopes, and reconciling my checkbook! The bill pay site also lets me print lists of checks sent out that I use for my income taxes.

I budget only $100 a month for all charitable giving. I wish it could be more, but it WILL be when I'm out of debt. I think it's important to give, but I need to be very selective and conservative until I can afford to be more generous.

Mary Jo