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Orphans Now! Home
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FAQ
How can I lend financial support to one of these orphan relief projects?
The easy way, of course, is to donate money. You can click on the links to our partner projects and go to the organization's web site. Each organization will have instructions on how to contribute. When you make your gift, earmark it for the named project and 100% of your donation will go to that project.
Another powerful way to help is by becoming involved in fund-raising for one of these projects. Click here for some ideas.
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Projects for which we are currently rasing money.
October 21st 2011
Agape Total Childcare Center/Orphanage
Project Selection Criteria
We believe that many people do not donate money because they have read newspaper accounts or watched TV stories about charities whose real goal seemed to be in supporting the high-flying lifestyles of their founders and executives. Some charities are poorly run, and their administrative expenses eat up a large percentage of donations, reducing the amount of money that goes directly to aid. Donors question if their money will make it to the area it was intended or if it will be absconded by local officials through corruption and bribery. When we identify a project it must meet the following:
1) Sponsoring NGO known to us. The individual project must be initiated or sponsored by an organization we have personally visited. We must know the founders or principals and be comfortable that the work they are performing is up to the task. We don't want time or money wasted on projects that are not likely to be completed, or that might unintentionally harm those they are meant to help.
2) Ready to Go. We feel people are more likely to give when they know their money will be put to use immediately. If you support one of our identified projects, your money will not sit in somebody's bank account unused. Our motto for project funding is "Here today, there tomorrow."
3) Efficient use of Resources. Efficiency can be subjective, but we try to identify projects that generate the most bang for the buck. Many projects may be considered good and valuable, but we try to identify projects that in our opinion:
- Benefit the most children possible
- Get the most bang for the buck
- Provide the benefit in a quality manner without being spread too thinly to be effective. A million dollars spent helping five children is good, but we prefer to focus on projects that EFFECTIVELY help the most children for the amount spent.
4) Definable Goals and Endpoint. Vague and open-ended projects can be a recipe for waste. We want to know exactly what is being done and how much it is going to cost. Need $50,000 to build an orphanage for 20 kids in Zambia? Great! Need $50,000 for "child assistance" over the next three years? Not necessarily great.
(Please remember that just because a project doesn't meet our selection criteria, does not mean that it is not a worthy or valuable project. It's just not one we feel led to actively support.)
Click here for Frequently Asked Questions.
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