By: Melissa Bienenfeld
The consensus around the MyTzedakah office is that December is the absolute worst month to own an email address. We did a fun little experiment where we counted how many “end of year” emails we got from organizations this month. The combined total for the MyTzedakah team was well over 200 emails. 200 emails!! In a given day we’re inundated with at least 5-10 emails asking for an URGENT! PRESSURE! GUILT! donation to every single charity we’ve ever interacted with.
The asks are overwhelming and unending. And as the donor, we’re left completely lost – these charities are ALL deserving. They’re all amazing. We want to support them all. How do we choose? How do I make the most impactful decisions that will make me feel like my tzedakah is really my tzedakah.
Did you know that 12% of all charitable giving happens in December? We recently read some very interesting statistics about ‘End of Year Giving’ in this blog. Organizations spend the last three months of the year (that’s a quarter of the entire year) preparing for the ‘End of Year Ask’ campaigns and the majority of donors do no research before making their donation.
That’s where MyTzedakah comes in…
MyTzedakah Fund is proud to be the only nonprofit organization NOT asking you for your ‘End of Year’ donations. Why? Because we are passionate about supporting the causes we love in a way that provides sustainability and opportunities for growth. We are blown away by the fact that most organizations spend one third of the year hoping to raise money for the ‘End of Year’. Where’s the security? How do they plan efficiently? Don’t you want your dollars supporting organizations that are focused on the real work at hand?
Making sure you have contributed enough throughout the year is important- not only for your taxes, but for your commitment to the Jewish people and community. But we would argue that you can and should examine that commitment at any time throughout the year. Set up your charitable portfolio and ensure that your ‘maaser’ is aggregated and automated at an amount that you feel comfortable with all year long. Because when you get those end of year emails, you’ll know with confidence and certainty that you have no need to feel guilty or pressured into giving intentionally, it’s been set all along, in moments of calm and quiet.
Join us in our mission to change the facts of Jewish philanthropy- it starts with your monthly MyTzedakah Fund.
So create your MyTzedakah fund today… or on January 1st!