Posted on 10/06/2024 5:59:45 PM PDT by Morgana
Hurricane Helene hit close to home for some of us at MinistryWatch. I experienced some of the milder effects of the storm in Charlotte. However, some of my former colleagues at WORLD Magazine were devastated. WORLD’s headquarters was all but destroyed. Transportation and communication infrastructure was seriously compromised. The true impact of the storm on Western North Carolina is only now becoming apparent to the outside world.
That’s the bad news. The good news is that when disaster strikes, Christians give.
But where you give makes a difference. I’m sad to say that some organizations use disasters opportunistically, to raise funds, and do little to help people where the disaster occurs.
Others, though, are made for such moments. They have systems and processes to respond quickly and efficiently.
When disaster strikes, MinistryWatch often gets requests from our readers for recommendations. Which organizations are most effective in these post-disaster situations?
Below you will find a list of organizations curated from the MinistryWatch 1000 database. All the ministries below specialize in disaster relief, and they have a 3-, 4-, or 5-star rating for Financial Efficiency. They also have an “A” Transparency Grade. That means you can be sure that they are a solid Christian ministry, with a clear evangelical statement of faith, and that the money you give will go to its intended purpose, which is to directly help people who have been affected by disaster. We have not contacted every ministry on this list to determine whether they are doing Hurricane Helene relief, but we have included the websites for each ministry so you can look for yourself.
Please note, however, that many great ministries may not be on this list. For example, JAARS, based near Charlotte, is not historically known as a relief and development ministry, but because of its proximity to the disaster area, and because of its unique capabilities (it flies planes and has sophisticated communication technology), it is making special efforts in the aftermath of Helene. Steve Biggerstaff is vice president of advancement for JAARS. He told MinistryWatch:
“After 40-50 years of conducting mountain aviation training in/around Avery County, NC in preparation for deploying mission pilots overseas, we are acutely familiar with and invested in the well-being of this hard-hit community and have been deploying aviation-based relief efforts since early Saturday, September 28.
“JAARS has three aircraft dedicated to the Helene response, two fixed-wing aircraft ferrying supplies into Avery County Airport and one rotor-wing aircraft distributing supplies to outlying/isolated people and communities
“Our partner SARDOGS (“Search And Rescue Disaster Operations Group”) out of Monroe, La., has now brought two aircraft to Avery County, a fixed-wing and a rotor-wing, and we’re coordinating their efforts as well.”
He added: “We’re primarily operating in and around the Black Mountain/Spruce Pine corridor, including but not limited to hard-hit Avery County (our base of mountain aviation training for many decades) and Rutherford County.”
I also want to share advice that MinistryWatch has shared before about giving to disaster relief. When you give, please consider the following principles:
The Old Rules Apply. Just because there’s a crisis, that doesn’t mean a ministry that has been poorly run suddenly becomes well-run. In fact, often a crisis causes a weak organization to break. That’s why even in the midst of crisis and urgent appeals, take an extra moment to do your homework. MinistryWatch gives ministries a Donor Confidence Score, a Financial Efficiency Rating, and a Transparency Grade. (You can search on a ministry and check their scores here.) Don’t give money to poorly rated ministries, or to ministries that do share enough information to produce a rating.
Beware of “Matching Gifts” or “Challenge Gifts.” These sorts of giving schemes can be legitimate, but in times of crisis, they are often used to heighten the sense of urgency. Educate yourself about Challenge Gifts and Matching Gifts by clicking here.
Boots on the Ground. When crisis erupts in a far corner of the world, it is too late to establish a presence there. Ministries that are the most effective are those who have already been operating there. They have “boots on the ground”: personnel, partners, processes, and infrastructure. Give to these ministries.
Ask Where The Money Is Going Ministries with a real plan should be able to tell you where the money is going. If the fundraising appeal doesn’t specifically say so, ask. If the ministry doesn’t respond with clear and specific answers, it’s possible it is just using the crisis opportunistically, hoping for a financial windfall. Search
MORE INFO ON LINK
I’d really like to, but all my money is tied up in pledges to Hezbollah, y’know, so strangers in MI will like me and vote for me.
Does anyone here know if Gary Sinese’s charity is OK to give to for NC rescue/relief?
We have been big supporters of his homes for vets charity.
Samaritan’s Purse(Franklin Graham) and Operation Blessing (CBN) were first on the ground in North Carolina, joining President Trump, a full week before the “government” did anything.
I watched it live as it happened.
I highly recommend those two organizations.
I wouldn’t give to anyone but local relief organizations and even then not without having a good feeling that my money isn’t enriching someone like so many charities do.
I give through Ryan Hall Y’all. If my denomination actually does something, I might donate through them.
Definitely not the American Red Cross.
Yes.
And they get things DONE. :-)
My husband wants to donate to Samaritan’s Purse. Does anyone else have an opinion about this charity?
Good organization.
It’s hard to copy/paste their list but if you can read it here it is.
***************************************************************************************
Organization name Total revenue ECFA Rating Transp DCS Website
Water Mission 34,080,738 Yes 3 A 100 www.watermission.org
Kinship United 8,262,958 Yes 5 A 100 kinshipunited.org
Blessings International 5,329,652 Yes 3 A 100 www.blessing.org
Nazarene Compassionate Ministries 1,768,010 Yes 5 A 100 www.ncmi.org
The Luke Society 4,306,095 Yes 3 A 98 lukesociety.org
Christian Relief Fund 12,333,459 Yes 3 A 97 www.christianrelieffund.org
Healing Hands International 6,525,352 Yes 3 A 97 hhi.org
Extreme Response International 5,082,388 Yes 4 A 97 extremeresponse.org
International Christian Concern 4,200,886 Yes 4 A 97 persecution.org
Favor International 3,384,843 Yes 5 A 97 favorintl.org
Hope Unlimited for Children 1,128,852 Yes 5 A 97 www.hopeunlimited.org
Children to Love International 2,620,675 Yes 3 A 96 childrentolove.org
Children’s Hunger Fund / CHF 176,314,987 Yes 5 A 95 www.childrenshungerfund.org
World Relief 163,081,631 Yes 4 A 95 www.worldrelief.org
Living Water International 24,213,554 Yes 3 A 95 www.water.cc
World Hope International 23,543,316 Yes 4 A 95 www.worldhope.org
Cornerstone Assistance Network 12,729,429 Yes 4 A 95 cornerstonefortworth.org
Christian Aid Ministries 147,971,322 Yes 5 A 94 christianaidministries.org
Medical Teams International (Medical Teams) 70,549,306 Yes 3 A 93
medicalteams.org
Loving Shepherd Ministries 7,027,099 Yes 3 A 92 loving-shepherd.org
MAP International 1,018,868,113 Yes 5 A 90 map.org
Operation Blessing 90,081,546 Yes 5 A 90 www.ob.org
Alfalit International, Inc. 3,897,873 Yes 4 A 90 www.alfalit.org
World Vision, Inc., U.S. 1,510,055,945 Yes 4 A 89 www.worldvision.org
MANNA Worldwide 8,533,944 Yes 4 A 88 mannaworldwide.com
Persecution Project Foundation 4,188,281 Yes 5 A 87 www.persecutionproject.org
Venture 6,005,204 Yes 4 A 84 venture.org
Kids Around The World 7,191,493 Yes 4 A 82 kidsaroundtheworld.com
Love a Child 41,314,040 Yes 3 A 80 loveachild.com
Convoy of Hope 435,592,269 Yes 4 A 79 convoyofhope.org
Samaritan’s Purse earns a 100% score, from Charity Navigator (they rate charities on what % of donations go towards the cause vs OVERHEAD).
Operation Blessing earns a 99%.
Both highly rated for giving majority of donations ratio, to their cause.
See 13.
Wow! They need all the help they can get in parts of SC, western NC & VA, as well as eastern TN. Then there's Georgina and Florida. It looks like Florida is due for Hurricane Milton on Wednesday. Possibly pretty close to a direct hit on where Helene hit Florida last week. Wow!
Interesting the differences in "ratings" of charities from one rating organization to another.
I see you looked at Ministry Watch and there is also Charity Navigator
It's hard to choose who is going to do a better job of getting aid to the hurting people that need it the most.
Mrs P and I made a donation to Samartian’s Purse this week. I just hope they are sending it to where it is needed most.
By the way, Samaritan's Purse is headquartered in Boone, NC which got hammered by Helene like so many other parts of western NC. Their facility must have gotten flooded, lost power, or both. The last I heard they had to relocate to The Cove which is where the Billy Graham Training and Conference Center is located. (All in the family.)
Thanks.
Saw this on the “Make South Carolina Great Again” Telegram. I can totally vouch for WORD 98.9 FM. I listen to it regularly in the car (and online) at the north end of Lancaster County just south of Charlotte. It is a rock solid conservative station from Greenville. Unfortunately, I didn’t listen to it much this past week. I was concentrating on watching YouTube footage of the flood damage unfolding in NC and the surrounding areas.
Just finding out today that Greenville County, SC was about 97% without power this time last week, but they still have 10% of the county without electric power as of this afternoon (Sunday 10/7).
The below is the Telegram post regarding getting information to and from those affected by the ravages of Helene in upstate SC and western NC.
https://t.me/makescgreatagain/9027
IMPORTANT INFORMATION FOR PEOPLE IN NC
Hi, Ann. I sure hope the Milton hurricane isn’t as bad as it looks.
I don’t want to distract you from reading, but thought you might like this information.
In case you aren’t aware, there is a radio station out of Greenville, SC that has been providing a lot of help for the folks who have been affected, particularly those in western North Carolina. They’ve put aside their regular show and have been using the time to connect those who need help with those who can help. Someone will call in asking for something they need. Then someone will call in saying they can provide it. The radio station then puts the people in touch with each other. A neighbor of someone in a bad situation called in, and folks listening to the radio were able to get to that location and make sure the person was OK. This station has also been passing on information where folks can make donations and what is most needed. (Example: the weather forecast is for much colder weather this next week, so warm dry clothes are needed — and where to drop off the warm clothes, dry socks....) Someone called in who had his power back and asked where to take his generator for someone who needs it. This station has also passed on information to private helicopter pilots. People also call in to clear up rumors.
The station can be picked up with battery-operated radios in North Carolina. This also lets folks know they are not forgotten.
WORD, 98.9 FM It’s a fairly strong station that covers western NC, upstate SC, and into Georgia.
You can also listen to it on the web: https://www.audacy.com/stations/989word#
They usually have paid programming and reruns on the weekend, but have some live shows today to get information out. (Monday-Friday) Noon to 7pm. Noon - 3pm, Straight Talk with Bill Frady 3pm - 7pm, The Charlie James Show The schedule page often has a rewind for the previous day’s show: Right now, Friday’s shows are available. (Click on the schedule for Friday.) https://www.audacy.com/stations/989word/shows/show-schedule
Safe travels! Judy
PS Cash only in western NC. This is an example of one of the reasons central electronic money would be a disaster.
They have a reputation for doing great work, but the top guy is very highly paid. (More than his peers at similar organizations. This is a few years old. https://paddockpost.com/2022/12/09/executive-compensation-at-samaritans-purse-2021/
Here’s the 2023 Form 990 $812,909 into Franklin Graham’s pocket that year. (Not including what he’s getting from his other organizations).
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