Here's a list of some charities that are assisting with the Tsunami disaster.

God bless.....

Message: Some other aid sites

Catholic Agency For Overseas Development - http://www.cafod.org.uk/

Care International - http://www.careinternational.org.uk/

International Red Cross - http://www.ifrc.org/

Medicines Sans Frontieres - http://www.msf.org/

Oxfam - http://www.oxfam.co.uk/

Save the Children - http://www.savethechildren.org.uk/sc...jsp?flash=true

Unicef - http://www.unicef.org.uk/

UN world food program - http://www.wfp.org/

World Vision - http://www.worldvision.org.uk/

Christian Aid - http://www.christianaid.org.uk/

Islamic Relief - http://www.irw.org/

Thanks for the info, LN. These are all good organisations. I personally have soft spots for Medicines Sans Frontieres and Save the Children.

On the Fodors Europe forum today I heard about another charity that sounded as if it had a lot of merit. Here's the post by mebanese:

<i>Another aid organization is SOS Children's Villages: http://www.sos-childrensvillages.org/ .

They have villages near the affected areas, and were already helping refugees the day after the disaster hit. So many children have lost their parents that will need placement in orphanages.

If you visit the SOS site, there are links on the right hand side of the page that give up to date information, for example SOS has been able to give aid in the area of Sri Lanka controlled by the rebels.

My husband actually was raised in an SOS home - I can vouch for their excellence.</i>

http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34548415

My husband and I are excited about our trip to Tasmania but...

We have some trouble maintaining this excitement knowing how people are suffering right now. So we have decided to take our trip to Tasmania but forgo our next holiday and instead donate the sum of this to the survivors of the tsumani.

I think this will make us suffer just a tiny little tad but the fact we could even be thinking of our next two holidays is probably way beyond the comprehension of these people on a good day!

We take so much for granted and complain we have to need to budget to have these wonderful journeys. But we are very rich in the grand scheme of things.

If we forgo a holiday and instead give this money we may even enjoy our next journey after that even more. Things not so easy to obtain always offer greater highs and greater excitement. Also we may actually get some gardening done!

We see this offer as perhaps our largest personal aid contribution in our lives so do have one desire to know a little more about where we donate. I would like to say it was of no matter but seeing the Red Cross mismanage/misinform after the Bali appeal I need some level of comfort in who we decide to trust to extract the most benefit.

Maybe direct support like the poster on the other thread would be the way to go. Find a local community that would be able to do so much with a little.

We have made the commitment now so any very good recommendations will be appreciated.

Tassietwister,

I trust the charity organisations to direct the donated funds to where they are best used. They are the professionals, not me. (*)

yes. Pauline. But don't you ever wonder if efforts are duplicated? I do. So many different organisations all claiming to be doing the same thing. This terrible disaster it seems to me is unique in hitting so many in so many places, all of which, with the possible exception of Phuket, are further disadvanted by a lack of access. Even before the tsunami they were remote - either literally or in the sense of having only one road in and out.

I just feel the big need is transport - and coordination. Else there will be stockpiles of supplies at the airports and no way to move them further quickly.

I'm waiting and hoping to hear that governments are sending ships with helicopters to ferry stuff paid for by private donation from the airport to where it's needed.

For someone wanting to find out more about specific NGOs, here's an informative website called Network for Good:

http://www.networkforgood.org/topics...ami122604.aspx

This website has a page on each charitable relief organisation mentioned in the list below. Each page provides information on the relevant organisation, what kind of work it does, what percentage of its funds are used on program services, what percentage on administration, and so on.

<b>EMERGENCY RESPONSEM</b>

* American Jewish World Service

* American Red Cross

* AmeriCares

* Baps Care International

* CARE

* Catholic Relief Services

* International Orthodox Christian Charities

* NetAid

* Salvation Army


<b>FOOD AND MEDICINE</b>

* Aid to Southeast Asia, Inc.

* Action Against Hunger USA

* Direct Relief International

* Doctors Without Borders (Medicines Sans Frontieres)

* International Medical Corps

* MAP International

* Oxfam America

* RescueCorps


<b>CHILDREN AND FAMILIES</b>

* MercyCorps

* Save the Children

* UNICEF

* World Vision


<b>REBUILD AND RECOVER</b>

* Architecture for Humanity

* ADRA International

* American Friends Service Committee

* Lutheran World Relief


<b>LEARN MORE</b>

* AlertNet

* American Red Cross

* Direct Relief

* FEMA

* Relief Web


On the Relief Web website I learned the following:

<b><i>Transport of relief supplies</i></b>

<i>The Australian Government is providing three RAAF C130 Hercules aircraft.

One is being used to transport relief supplies such as tarpaulins, food and medicines to Vanimo, the nearest large town to the disaster area.

<b>Medical aid</b>

Two other Hercules aircraft have transported a Health Support Unit which comprises 60 personnel, including rescue workers.

This mobile hospital will provide assistance with emergency surgical facilities to treat the injured.

It will also work on preventative measures to combat the spread of disease.</i>

Finally, may I please draw your attention once again to my earlier post about SOS Children's Villages:

http://www.sos-childrensvillages.org/

The poster who mentioned that charity on the Fodors Europe forum said that her husband had been raised in an SOS Children's Village, so he had personal experience of what that organisation contributed to people's lives.

Postscript.

I am reading on other forums that some employers are matching their employees' donations to tsunami disaster relief funds. If your employer is doing that, please do let your company know of your donation!

Thanks for posting all this great information and especially Judy in Calgary you have compiled a wealth of knowledge.

&gt;&lt;

Thanks Judy for posting the charity organizations, it's very overwhelming to try to figure out what / who / where to donate. I'm sure none of us are multi-millionaires, and we'd all like to feel whatever we can afford to send makes the most impact.

I was discussing this with a woman I work with at my wholesaler for Hawaii in San Francisco -- she was trying to get her co-workers to chip in and build a company fund for donations.

I don't know all the ins/outs of these various organizations, but when I mentioned the Red Cross she warned me off saying that only 60% of what is collected actually goes to the people who need it most - she suggested &quot;Doctors Without Borders&quot; and told me my donation would go further than with the Am. Red Cross. As I said, I don't know if this is true, but she seemed more informed than I am!

Regards,

Melodie

Melodie,
There was quite a lot of media coverage given to the Australian Red Cross and the amount of donation money reaching the nominated target some months ago. From memory no real conclusion was reached - however, I think it is a matter of fact that certain percentages are siphoned off for the upkeep of the organisation, wages etc.
I think you will find that is the case with a great many of the organisations,in Australia and worldwide.

&gt;&gt;&gt;&gt;&gt;&gt;I think it is a matter of fact that certain percentages are siphoned off for the upkeep of the organisation, wages etc.&lt;&lt;&lt;&lt;&lt;&lt;

Hi Prue,

I'm sure you didn't mean it to come across like this, but &quot;siphoned off&quot; almost makes it sound like corruption.

I think the overhead costs of the largest NGOs, even if they divert donated funds from needy people, do maintain the large infrastructures that enable those organisations to respond to huge disasters like this one.

A supposed expert was interviewed on a news broadcast I watched in the last couple of nights. I think it may have been on CBC (Canadian Broadcasting Corporation). I forget what his name was or what his exact area of expertise was. Anyway, he seemed to know what he was talking about.

He addressed this very issue of overhead costs. He pointed out that one has to pay salaries to keep in place a staff that keeps an organisation up and running, so that it can respond to a disaster in a timely manner. He asked the question, &quot;What do you want? Do you want amateur volunteers to fly the planes that deliver relief supplies, or do you want professional pilots to fly the planes?&quot;

He said that Medicines Sans Frontieres, while it was a most admirable organisation that did incredible work, nonetheless was not large enough to respond adequately to a massive disaster. He said that for these calamities that hit such a vast area and affected so many people, one really did need the responsive capabilities of the United Nations organisations like Unicef and the largest of the charities like the Red Cross.

That is not to say that the smaller NGOs are of no use. In a situation like this, everyone's efforts are required.

The image that comes to my mind is of Dunkirk, when thousands of soldiers were resecued by fishing boats and the like. When that emergency was underway, no one stopped to argue if boats were too big, too small, or whatever. If it could float, it was taken across the Channel to fetch soldiers from the beaches that were under attack.

A personal observation about the overheads of the NGOs. A while ago I thought I would like to work for an NGO. I kept an eye out for job ads. After seeing several ads, I came to the conclusion that I could not afford to work for an NGO. The salaries they offered were so low that I just couldn't see my husband and myself continuing to do what we're doing now, putting two sons through university, etc. So, from what I've found out about NGO staff members' salaries, I would not criticise NGOs for their overheads.

There are many organisations that do good work. I personally think that money given to them, whether it's given to a big one or a small one, is money well spent.

Here's some information that was posted on the US site and offers some percentages for the big charitable organizations.

Message:
I looked up organizations on two sites that rate charities - American Institute of Philanthropy (www.charitywatch.org) and Better Business Bureau Wise Giving Alliance (www.give.org). Below is a comparison

Name,% Spent on Programs,Charity Watch Rating

Americares, 98%,A
American Friends Service Committee,80%,A-
American Red Cross,82%,A+
CARE,92%,A-
Direct Relief Intl,99%,B
Intl Rescue Committee,90%,A
Oxfam,76%,A-
Project Hope,93%,B+
Save the Children,90%,A-
World Vision,85%,B+

Based on what I read, I think that AmeriCares Foundation is well suited to contribute to. Its stated purpose is &quot; to provide emergency medical and other disaster relief aid to areas throughout the world.&quot;

Any of these organizations are wonderful, and you may decide that another one is more suited to your goals or considerations.

Judy,
The 'siphoning off' was exactly what the allegations were that were raised in respect of our Australian Red Cross - however nothing was ever proven and certainly no action was taken.
However, I think, as I say, that in a great many cases, particularly those such as aid to foreign countries substantial amounts do not ever reach their target.
I am involved in a charity work and am aware of this as a fact of life - but certainly do not want to start any sort of debate on this Forum on the why's and wherefores of disaster aid.

This is a little bit off-topic, but I was wondering if the west coast of Australia saw any effects due to the earthquake/tsunami? Seems the changes in tide, etc. were noticed as far away as Africa, but I've not heard any reference to Australia's west coast. Minor question, granted, but just curious.

sinehat: I'd been asking myself this same question and so did a little bit of Googling on the subject. Yes, there were tidal surges in WA, but the effects were minimal:

http://www.abc.net.au/am/content/2004/s1273023.htm

Thanks RalphR