Charity Checks: A Way to Give the Joy of Giving
Over ten years ago Victor Dorff, clutching a thick stack of mail, observed that there were more solicitations for charitable organizations than anything else. Reflecting on the wastefulness of direct mail (see my previous post), and all the trees felled to keep the mail coming, he thought, “There has be a better way to do this.”
Lisa Sonne, Victor’s wife and co-founder of Charity Checks, recalls their question, “Why don’t we have a universal charitable giving certificate?” An idea was born: Charity Checks.
Essentially a Charity Check is a gift certificate – which can be redeemed at any of the roughly 1 million nonprofit organizations in the U.S.
Back in the day – the late ’90s – it was not unheard of to receive, in lieu of a gift (on a birthday, at Christmas, or on another special occasion), a card that said something to the effect: A gift has been given in your name to the Surfrider Foundation. (You can still do this, of course.) And that was (and is) a wonderful way to support the environment and to involve a friend or family member in giving. But, what if the recipient of the gift doesn’t share the giver’s passion for Surfrider Foundation? What if s/he happens to have a commitment to another philanthropic cause?
When Charity Checks giving certificates are given as gifts, recipients can give to any nonprofit – 501(c)(3) – of their choice. Not just the giver’s favorite group, not just organizations from a select list, but any nonprofit organization in the country. Just complete the ‘Pay to the Order Of’ line on the Charity Checks giving certificate and send it to the charity of your choice. The charity can deposit the giving certificate (as they would any other donation check) and put the funds to use right away. It’s that simple.
Since Charity Checks is a nonprofit organization, purchases of their charitable giving certificates are tax-deductible. Some people purchase the giving certificates for themselves because they don’t wish to receive solicitations by mail during the year. They send the giving certificates anonymously to the charities of their choice, get their tax deduction through Charity Checks, and shrink the stack of mail solicitations they receive.
Some people like to give now, but decide later. “Some people like to make donations this year by December 31 and get the tax receipt, but then choose their charities next year when they have more time. Or use their drawer full of Charity Checks for gifts in the New Year – birthdays, graduations, and special occasions as they occur,” said Ms. Sonne. “We call it ‘pre-paid philanthropy.’ One tax receipt, multiple options.”
Here’s the most astonishing feature of Charity Checks: there are no administrative fees. They simply ask donors to cover mailing costs. (PayPal charges a credit card fee for transactions completed online, but Charity Checks doesn’t take a cut for reimbursement like some groups or add additional processing fees.) When you purchase a Charity Checks giving certificate for $25 or $100 or whatever you wish, every cent of the check goes to the nonprofit of your choice.
How do Mr. Dorff and Ms. Sonne manage this? It’s a labor of love inspired by a spirit of charity. The expenses they incur are recovered whenever a supporter makes a contribution to Charity Checks.
The Dorff/Sonne family has also developed charitable literacy programs at schools in the region. A sponsor purchases giving certificates for students, who learn about the world of nonprofits, do research on charities, and chose an organization to support.
Finally, a quick story – a ‘6 degrees of separation’ tale (or perhaps 2 degrees in this instance) – about how the idea for universal giving certificates transformed into an actual nonprofit organization. A family friend, a landscape architect who worked for Scott Cook (co-founder of Intuit), offered to deliver a package of materials to him. After reviewing the materials, Mr. Cook decided that he’d like to try out the idea. In what was essentially a pilot program, he purchased 42 giving certificates for senior executives at Intuit. He made the gifts and his executives selected their charities. Everything worked without a hitch and Charity Checks was on its way.
I learned about Charity Checks when Lisa Sonne posted a comment on “A Look at Charitable Giving As a Tough Year Comes to an End.” A follow-up phone call led to an engaging conversation and her story about the inspiration for and history of Charity Checks.
As we race toward the New Year, there is still time in the current tax year to make charitable contributions via Charity Checks.
