Charities & Community Support
EarthSpirit
EarthSpirit is a non-profit organization providing services to a nationwide network of Pagans and others following an Earth-centered spiritual path. Based in the Boston area, our membership extends across the United States, and also to several other countries. EarthSpirit was founded in 1980, with the goal of helping to create an active Pagan community in New England. This having been achieved, EarthSpirit has turned its primary focus toward work to help develop Pagan concepts and attitudes for living in the present age, to encourage communication and understanding among people of different traditions and ideologies, to provide opportunities for shared spiritual experience, and to help educate the general public concerning Earth-centered spirituality.
Officers of Avalon
The Officers of Avalon is a fraternal, educational, and charitable organization. We seek to provide a community and network for Pagan first responders and to serve as a voice for them. We seek to provide accurate information and improve public perception about Pagan spirituality through education. We seek to defend followers of Pagan spirituality by working against misinformation, discrimination, defamation, harassment and intimidation. We are an outreach to Pagans in the Emergency Services. We also seek to demonstrate that Pagans are a charitable people. To that end, we work on the collection and distribution of donations to communities in need for natural disaster relief. Join us today as an Officer of Avalon or a Friend of Avalon.
Society of the Evening Star
In order to forge a better understanding of the universal language of spirituality and to break down the barriers between religions, the mission of the Society of the Evening Star is to provide an educational facility, library, housing and outdoor green space for the elder leaders of world faiths and minority religions to practice, to teach and to mentor students who are searching for spiritual answers. S.O.T.E.S. firmly believes that such teaching will assist in realizing the potential within us, will manifest a better life for all within the community and will help remove many of the obstacles that prevent the enjoyment of a fuller and richer life. The Society of the Evening Star was incorporated in 1983 as a non-profit organization based in Rhode Island. S.O.T.E.S. became a tax exempt 501(c)3 organization in 1991, and all donations are tax deductible.
Charities Serving Kids
Bear Necessities
Bear Necessities Pediatric Cancer Foundation is a national organization whose mission is to eliminate pediatric cancer and to provide hope and support to those who are touched by it. Bear Necessities Pediatric Cancer Foundation, Inc. (BNPCFI) is a 501(c)(3) organization founded in late 1992 by Kathleen A. Casey, President. The foundation is named in memory of her eight year old son, Barrett "Bear" Krupa, who died after a courageous five and a half year battle with Wilms Tumor, a pediatric cancer. The foundation's Small Miracle Program has provided a means to fulfill Bear's mission to brighten the lives of pediatric cancer patients by granting special requests to them and to ease the burdens of the families through assistance with some of the immediate needs that they may be facing while fighting this physically, emotionally, and financially devastating disease.
The Children's Heart Foundation
Motivated by the needs of our children, the goal of The Children’s Heart Foundation is to bring health, hope and happiness to children impacted by congenital heart defects, the number one birth defect in the United States. We accomplish this goal by funding the most promising research to advance the diagnosis, treatment and prevention of congenital heart defects.
Fresh Air Fund
Since 1877, The Fresh Air Fund, a not-for-profit agency, has provided free summer experiences in the country to more than 1.7 million New York City children from disadvantaged communities. Each year, thousands of children visit volunteer host families in 13 states and Canada through the Friendly Town Program or attend Fresh Air Fund camps.
UNICEF
UNICEF is the driving force that helps build a world where the rights of every child are realized. We have the global authority to influence decision-makers, and the variety of partners at grassroots level to turn the most innovative ideas into reality. That makes us unique among world organizations, and unique among those working with the young. We believe that nurturing and caring for children are the cornerstones of human progress. UNICEF was created with this purpose in mind – to work with others to overcome the obstacles that poverty, violence, disease and discrimination place in a child’s path. We believe that we can, together, advance the cause of humanity. They also have a special page with a young audience in mind.
Animals & The Environment
Friends of the Earth
Friends of the Earth is led by Brent Blackwelder, an environmental advocate for more than 40 years. Its dedicated staff fight to protect the rights of all people to live in a safe and healthy environment, both at home or in countries around the world. Our campaigns demonstrate our belief that the fight for justice and the movement to protect the health of the planet are part of the same struggle. Friends of the Earth U.S. is also a part of Friends of the Earth International, the world's largest grassroots environmental network. Friends of the Earth International unites 77 national member groups and some 5,000 local activist groups on every continent. Friend of the Earth's International Program Director, Elizabeth Bast, is currently serving on the Executive Committee, which is the governing body of the network. Click here to learn more about the network.
Greenpeace
Our committed activists and supporters have come together to ban commercial whaling, convince the world's leaders to stop nuclear testing, protect Antarctica, and so much more. Today, we have grown from a small group of dedicated activists to an international organization with offices in more than 30 countries. But our spirit and our mission remain the same. Our fight to save the planet has grown more serious – the threat of global warming, destruction of ancient forests, deterioration of our oceans, and the threat of a nuclear disaster loom large. Greenpeace is actively working to address these and other threats. Our core values are reflected in our environmental campaign work: We 'bear witness' to environmental destruction in a peaceful, non-violent manner. We use non-violent confrontation to raise the level and quality of public debate. In exposing threats to the environment and finding solutions we have no permanent allies or adversaries. We ensure our financial independence from political or commercial interests. We seek solutions for, and promote open, informed debate about society's environmental choices.
The Humane Society of the United States
Website contains images that might be disturbing to young or sensitive visitors!
The Humane Society of the United States is the nation's largest and most effective animal protection organization—backed by 11 million Americans, or one in every 28. Established in 1954, The HSUS seeks a humane and sustainable world for all animals—a world that will also benefit people. We are America's mainstream force against cruelty, exploitation and neglect, as well as the most trusted voice extolling the human-animal bond. We work to reduce suffering and to create meaningful social change for animals by advocating for sensible public policies, investigating cruelty and working to enforce existing laws, educating the public about animal issues, joining with corporations on behalf of animal-friendly policies, and conducting hands-on programs that make ours a more humane world. We are the lead disaster relief agency for animals, and we provide direct care for thousands of animals at our sanctuaries and rescue facilities, wildlife rehabilitation centers, and mobile veterinary clinics.
National Resources Defense Council
NRDC is the nation's most effective environmental action group, combining the grassroots power of 1.2 million members and online activists with the courtroom clout and expertise of more than 350 lawyers, scientists and other professionals. Worth Magazine has named NRDC one of America's 100 best charities, and the Wise Giving Alliance of the Better Business Bureau reports that NRDC meets its highest standards for accountability and use of donor funds. NRDC was founded in 1970 by a group of law students and attorneys at the forefront of the environmental movement. NRDC lawyers helped write some of America's bedrock environmental laws. Today, our staff of more than 300 lawyers, scientists and policy experts work to solve the most pressing environmental issues we face today: curbing global warming, getting toxic chemicals out of the environment, moving America beyond oil, reviving our oceans, saving wildlife and wild places, and helping China go green.
Word Wildlife Fund (WWF)
For more than 45 years, WWF has been protecting the future of nature. The world’s leading conservation organization, WWF works in 100 countries and is supported by 1.2 million members in the United States and close to 5 million globally. WWF's unique way of working combines global reach with a foundation in science, involves action at every level from local to global, and ensures the delivery of innovative solutions that meet the needs of both people and nature. You can even adopt a wild animal and you (or your child) will get a stuffed animal version of the wild animal.
Humanitarian Efforts
Feed America
Feeding America is the nation's leading domestic hunger-relief charity. Our mission is to feed America's hungry through a nationwide network of member food banks and engage our country in the fight to end hunger. Each year, the Feeding America network provides food assistance to more than 25 million low-income people facing hunger in the United States, including more than 9 million children and nearly 3 million seniors. Our network of more than 200 food banks serves all 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico.The Feeding America network secures and distributes more than 2 billion pounds of donated food and grocery products annually. One of their many projects is the Kids Cafe program, which provides free meals and snacks to low-income children through a variety of community locations where children already congregate—such as Boys and Girls Clubs, churches or public schools. In addition to providing meals to kids, some Kids Cafe programs also offer a safe place, where under the supervision of trustworthy staff, a child can get involved in educational, recreational and social activities.
Kiva
This is an absolutely amazing site! Kiva's mission is to connect people through lending for the sake of alleviating poverty. Kiva is the world's first person-to-person micro-lending website, empowering individuals to lend directly to unique entrepreneurs around the globe. The people you see on Kiva's site are real individuals in need of funding - not marketing material. When you browse entrepreneurs' profiles on the site, choose someone to lend to, and then make a loan, you are helping a real person make great strides towards economic independence and improve life for themselves, their family, and their community. Throughout the course of the loan (usually 6-12 months), you can receive email journal updates and track repayments. Then, when you get your loan money back, you can re-lend to someone else in need.
SEVA Foundation
Seva (say-va) is a Sanskrit word for service. Seva Foundation was formed in 1978 with a mission to alleviate suffering caused by disease and poverty. Our approach is to build partnerships that respond to locally defined problems with culturally sustainable solutions. Working in nine countries in addition to the United States, Seva Foundation supports projects in the area of health and wellness, community development, environmental protection and cultural preservation. Seva currently works to prevent blindness and restore sight in India, Nepal, Tibet, Cambodia, Bangladesh, Egypt, Tanzania and Guatemala. It also supports Native American projects across the U.S. in the areas of health and wellness, community development, environmental protection and cultural preservation.
Survival
Survival is the only international organization supporting tribal peoples worldwide. We were founded in 1969 after an article by Norman Lewis in the UK's Sunday Times highlighted the massacres, land thefts and genocide taking place in Brazilian Amazonia. Like many modern atrocities, the racist oppression of Brazil's Indians took place in the name of 'economic growth'. Today, Survival has supporters in 82 countries. We work for tribal peoples' rights in three complementary ways: education, advocacy and campaigns. We also offer tribal people themselves a platform to address the world. We work closely with local indigenous organizations, and focus on tribal peoples who have the most to lose, usually those most recently in contact with the outside world. We believe that public opinion is the most effective force for change. Its power will make it harder, and eventually impossible, for governments and companies to oppress tribal peoples.
