Tag Archives: donation

Super Stars, Super Givers

The twins were born and photographed. The cash was handed over and we’re now learning where all that dough is going. According to a statement issued by the Global Health Committee earlier this week, roughly $2 million of the $14 million Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie made from selling snaps of their newborn twins will go to help fight HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis in Ethiopia. As you might recall Ethiopia is the country where their 3-year-old daughter Zahara was born. Now children there will have a second chance at life thanks to the Jolie-Pitt Foundation. Execs with the Global Health Committee … Continue reading →

Organizing Household Donations for Taxes

This morning, while the kids were occupying themselves, I thought I would conquer a little bit of the spare bedroom upstairs. This is a room that needs a lot of work. Eventually, it will be turned into a bedroom for our youngest son, but right now, its proximity to the attic stairs, as well as its need of repair, has turned it into a sorting or holding room. As we fix up other areas of the house, we will put furniture or other items from the project room into that bedroom. It will probably be the last room we clean, … Continue reading →

Have a Donation Day!

New holiday presents cluttering up your home? Why not have a donation day? One thing about most people’s home, my own included, is that we have way too much stuff in them. From garages that hold storage instead of cars, to basements full of mystery boxes and tubs, to general toy clutter all around the house, we could use a regular clean out to clear out some space and rediscover what we already have. One fun way to get everyone excited about de-cluttering the home is to turn it in to a celebration. Create a donation day party. Believe it … Continue reading →

What to Do with De-Cluttered Books

Now that you have completed your book de-cluttering, what can you do with all of those books you are no longer keeping? (I have 27.) Here are some ideas. Find a new reader in a friend when you pass on your old treasures to be enjoyed by someone else. You can have a special box of books that friends can browse through when they visit, or simply e-mail them with the titles. Since books are inexpensive to mail by media rate, consider sending some to long distance friends as well. If you don’t have many friends with the same taste … Continue reading →

5 Reasons Donating Your Old Stuff Saves Money

You wouldn’t normally think that giving away your stuff as saving money, would you? Well there are plenty of reasons that donating your un-needed items can actually save you money! I am a big believer in donating stuff. When my husband and I married, we basically had two households to combine into one. Later, after my mother passed, we had another household full of stuff. And just recently, we moved to another home, and I started donating like crazy, since moving extra stuff can get costly. So, I have a lot of experience with dealing with extra items and donating … Continue reading →

Need a Little “Fun Money”? Donate Plasma

Perhaps I should start by clarifying. I am not talking about your plasma television. I am talking about your blood. Okay, technically the yellow liquid part of your blood that suspends blood cells. I used to sell my plasma back in college. At the time, I sold my plasma for purely selfish reasons – pizza, beer and text books. If you live in a town near a college, the chances are probably pretty good that you have a plasma donation center near you. The process is actually quite simple (if you are not squeamish about needles, that is). You start … Continue reading →

Frugal Man Leaves $700,000 Estate

Neighbors in one Chicago town were surprised to learn that a retired janitor, who was extremely frugal, left behind a $700,000 estate when he passed away in March of last year. According to the Chicago Tribune, which reported the story yesterday, a friend and neighbor had been appointed to take care of the estate. While cleaning out his small ranch home, she was shocked to find envelopes full of money. “Dozens of them were stashed in dresser drawers, on shelves in a linen closet, in a Fannie May candy box. Every one was stuffed with cash.” The cash in the … Continue reading →

The $10.00 Club – Giving Away Goes a Long Way.

Over the last few days I posted a blog about giving away your money, and another with a few tips on how to do so. Today I am going to share one way some friends and I got together to give away only $10.00 per month – and how it helped a bunch of local organizations. Here was the premise: Everyone spends $10.00 that month. No more or less, We each budgeted $10.00 We choose a local organization that needed our help and/or supplies. The organization provided a short presentation about their cause to us when accepting our donations. This … Continue reading →

Tips for Giving Away your Money

People get confused about giving when you are on a budget. During the last string of devastating hurricanes, it came to light in the news that the majority of givers – donators to various causes, are regular people with low to middle class incomes. Not the rich guys with bundles to spare. Giving helps the one who gives. It is one of those strange phenomenons – that giving actually helps your heart, making it stretch. When you give to others you can see the good in humanity and feel part of a bigger world. It is all about you baby! … Continue reading →

Hollywood Celebrity Gives Early Christmas Present to Alma Mater

Oh, to be a millionaire! Oh, to be the friend of a millionaire… or at least the recipient of a generous gift from a millionaire. The millionaire I am referring to is actress Jada Pinkett Smith and the recipient of her generosity is her high school alma mater, the Baltimore School for the Arts. Smith recently donated $1 million to the school and asked that administrators use the money to build a new theater and dedicate it to classmate Tupac Shakur, who was shot and killed in 1996. “It means a lot when you’re a teacher and your most famous … Continue reading →