OzBargain 2017 Christmas Donations - $28,600 to Charities of Your Choice

scotty on 11/12/2017 - 12:03
Last edited 18/12/2017 - 22:30 by 1 other user

Update — poll is now closed. Thanks for all who have voted & comments. At the closing of the poll, we have 860 unique commenters in this thread so the final amount to be donated to the charities is $28,600. Top 5 charities from users' votes are:

  1. beyondblue
  2. Cancer Council
  3. RSPCA Australia
  4. R U OK?
  5. Médecins Sans Frontières Australia

Which would receive a donation of $5,720 each. I'll get that done this week.

If you have been a member of OzBargain for a while you'll remember that we have been doing biannual charity donations at around June (EoFY) and December (Christmas). For this Christmas, OzBargain will be donating $20,000 to 5 charities of your choices. Moreover, for every unique commenter in this thread, we will be donating an extra $10.

This is how the community can participate:

  1. Check whether your favourite charity has already been suggested (under Poll Options). If it has, vote it up! Otherwise you can suggest it by posting a top-level comment (i.e. not replying existing comments). Update: We now have almost 50 charities listed here. I think it's a big enough list and I'll pause the suggestion but you can still vote.

    Suggest a poll option

    If you are suggesting a charity, please provide a link & 1 or 2 sentence telling us what the charity does. It would greatly help other OzBargainers making decisions.

  2. Even if your preferred charity has been suggested, leave a comment and let us know! Remember every unique commenter on this thread will add an extra $10 to the donation.

  3. The poll will run for 7 days. After the poll expires, votes will be revealed and the top 5 charities will be sharing the pool of donation of AUD $20,000 + $10 x number of unique commenters. For example if 500 OzBargainers commented in this thread, we'll donate $25,000 to the chosen charities at $5,000 each.

    I am also putting a cap of maximum 1,000 commenters (just in case), making the cap of the donation at $30,000. If we can reach that level the donation will be shared with top 6 charities from the poll.

Which charity should I suggest?

  • It must be a registered charity eligible for DGR (deductible gift recipient). That would unfortunately make NPOs like Wikipedia & Sea Shepherd ineligible.

  • As we are OzBargain, it would be great if the charity is Australia based or benefits Australians.

  • There are many worthy charities. However as it's for Christmas this year, let's prioritise on charities working on social welfare. While we complained about spending way too much on impulse buys, there are many who don't have regular to access food & shelter, let along online shopping.

To get started, I have included top 10 most voted charities from last year's poll. Suggestion & commenting starts today (11 Dec) and will close at 12PM on Monday 18 Dec. I will then work out the total amount of donation we will send to the charities, and hopefully get all the donations made by Christmas 2017.

Poll Options expired

Site Discussion

Comments

  • scotty on 11/12/2017 - 12:03
    +14

    To get started — here are the top 10 most voted charities from last year.

    • Alzheimer's Australia

      We are proud to officially announce the launch of Dementia Australia, a unified, national peak body for people, of all ages, living with all forms of dementia, their families and carers.

    • beyondblue

      beyondblue provides information and support to help everyone in Australia achieve their best possible mental health, whatever their age and wherever they live.

    • Cancer Council

      To realise our vision, Cancer Council Australia and its members undertake a broad range of activities — Research, Information, Prevention, Patient support, Treatment, Advocacy, Fundraising, Networks, Sun protection products etc

    • Kids With Cancer Foundation Australia

      Kids with Cancer Foundation commenced in December 1997 with the aim to provide funding for: childhood cancer sufferers, their families and other institutions that assist children with cancer.

    • Médecins Sans Frontières Australia

      Médecins Sans Frontières (Doctors Without Borders) is the world's leading independent organisation for medical humanitarian aid. Every day more than 30,000 staff are providing assistance to people caught in crises around the world.

    • Prostate Cancer Foundation Australia

      Dedicated to reducing the impact of prostate cancer on Australian men, their partners and families, recognising the diversity of the Australian community

    • R U OK?

      We inspire and empower everyone to meaningfully connect with people around them and support anyone struggling with life.

    • RSPCA Australia

      The RSPCA is a community based charity that works to prevent cruelty to animals by actively promoting their care and protection.

    • The Fred Hollows Foundation

      We help train and empower local eye doctors, nurses and health workers to create a sustainable system of care in the communities that need it most. The work we do has a very clear purpose: to make sure everyone, whether they’re rich or poor, has access to high quality, affordable eye health.

    • World Vision Australia

      World Vision is a worldwide community development organisation that provides short-term and long-term assistance to 100 million people worldwide.

    • sss333 on 11/12/2017 - 20:58
      +2

      👍

    • melicue on 12/12/2017 - 10:00
      +5

      William Wilberforce Foundation

    • [Deactivated] on 12/12/2017 - 15:46
      +2

      World Vision does great things and is very dollar-efficient.

  • Clear on 11/12/2017 - 12:04
    +12

    Here's my extra $10. Sticking that one on beyondblue.

  • neo on 11/12/2017 - 12:13
    +6

    $10 for Cancer Council.

  • Realsteel on 11/12/2017 - 12:13
    +6

    My $10 also goes to Beyondblue! Great initiative guys! Well done.

  • MathNerd on 11/12/2017 - 12:16
    +7

    Here's my $10. Good work Scotty and the OzB team for contributing to such worthwhile causes!

  • pyramid on 11/12/2017 - 12:18
    +4

    My $10 . Excellent work every year…Thanks Scotty & Co.

  • doweyy on 11/12/2017 - 12:20
    +6

    Great initiative, thank you for giving back to the community in all these ways scotty, would love if my $10 went to RSPCA.

  • toniyellow on 11/12/2017 - 12:21
    +6

    Appreciate you guys doing this on an ongoing basis

    My vote goes towards the Cancer Council because
    • They do a wide range of things – support for cancer patients, research, advocacy, prevention/education.
    • They are non-denominational, and present in regional as well as urban areas, so they have the potential to impact a range of Australians.
    • They have won or been finalist in the PwC transparency awards a few times so they are upfront about how they spend their money (unfortunately PwC don’t seem to do this anymore)

    I have commented similarly in the past, they are my ongoing favourite charity, partly because I have experience with their services . But I am interested to hear others' opinions on charities they are passionate about as there are many worthy causes out there.

  • dasher86 on 11/12/2017 - 12:24
    +3

    $10 for the Cancer Council.

    • Dave Id on 12/12/2017 - 22:05

      Ditto.

      • negger on 15/12/2017 - 09:53

        +1

  • ihbh on 11/12/2017 - 12:29
    +5
    Suggested St Vincent de Paul Society

    They provide the added benefit to society of recycling things which promotes sustainability.

    https://www.vinnies.org.au/donate

  • sparkles on 11/12/2017 - 12:34
    +5

    Woot $10 dollarydoos!

  • railspider on 11/12/2017 - 12:37
    +3

    Here's an extra $10 for charity.

    Well done Scotty & the OzBargain team for another successful and generous year.

  • j4ice on 11/12/2017 - 12:40
    +4

    $10 for Médecins Sans Frontières

  • onetwothreefour on 11/12/2017 - 12:45
    +3

    Thanks

  • iscooljoey2 on 11/12/2017 - 12:46
    +3

    Excellent initiative, thanks OzBargain and Scotty.

  • coco1458 on 11/12/2017 - 12:46
    +3

    $10 for beyond blue

  • [Deactivated] on 11/12/2017 - 12:47
    +2
    Suggested The Salvation Army

    Suggestion of charity: The Salvation Army.

  • boomramada on 11/12/2017 - 12:51
    +3

    R U OK?

  • pernunz on 11/12/2017 - 12:52
    +12
    Suggested Effective Altruism Australia

    Effective Altruism is a school of thought that says "If you're going to donate money to charity, shouldn't that money be spent in the best way possible?" There's a book called "Doing Good Better" which details this further, about how you measure what is a good and effective charity.

    Effective Altruism Australia is registered for tax deductible status in Australia, and utilises research from a variety of programs dedicated to finding out the 'best' charities.

    More information can be found here: https://effectivealtruism.org.au/faq/

  • Shadowsfury on 11/12/2017 - 12:56
    +3

    Here's another $10

  • idontalwaysnotlie on 11/12/2017 - 13:06
    +4

    Médecins Sans Frontières for me

  • loulou1 on 11/12/2017 - 13:11
    +6

    Thanks for this, great initiative. No Human Fund this year?

  • HighAndDry on 11/12/2017 - 13:14
    +2

    Thanks for doing this, here's to an extra $10.

  • EFC94 on 11/12/2017 - 13:21
    +3

    Kids with cancer for me

  • cassidy02 on 11/12/2017 - 13:25
    +10

    My vote is for https://petsofthehomeless.org.au They collect pet food donations/money to buy food and help support homeless people who have pets to look after in addition to themselves.

    • kzu on 11/12/2017 - 18:03
      +4

      I second this!

    • Yvonne82 on 11/12/2017 - 18:15
      +4

      Pets Of The Homeless provides assistance with pet food, supplies, veterinary care and emergency boarding to people and pets in need so they have my vote!

    • fr0z3nb1t3s on 11/12/2017 - 21:28
      +3

      Pets of the homeless helps best friends stay together at difficult times.

      • KupoHo on 15/12/2017 - 10:16

        Wow I've never heard of this charity! There use to be a homeless man in the city who had a very well looked after dog but couldn't find housing as nowhere would accept pets :( definitely getting my vote :)

        Love seeing this initiative every time it comes around, good job ozbargain community :)

  • cummins on 11/12/2017 - 13:26
    +4
    Suggested HeartKids Australia

    Adding in something in memory of my little bro…
    HeartKids - www.heartkids.org.au
    "…help our Aussie heart kids by funding vital support and life-changing medical research into childhood heart disease'

    • seanbaussie on 11/12/2017 - 18:39
      +2

      HeartKids were a support when my 5 week old baby went into hospital for 5 weeks and nearly died multiple times.
      That was 11 years ago but they still have a special spot in my heart.

    • itajac on 13/12/2017 - 21:18
      +1

      I've not needed their services but always strive to support children.Thank you again Ozbargain for this wonderful initiative.

  • hectic3 on 11/12/2017 - 13:35
    +4

    $10 to MSF for all their work on ebola.

  • cypher67 on 11/12/2017 - 13:35
    +3
    Suggested Starlight Foundation

    Starlight Foundation - They do amazing work for kids down on their luck

  • sw0rdy on 11/12/2017 - 13:40
    +3

    $10 :)

  • theHMASfriendship on 11/12/2017 - 13:46
    +8

    RSPCA because dogs are the best people

  • Tink on 11/12/2017 - 13:46
    +3

    Thanks Scotty & OzB :)

  • Heracles26 on 11/12/2017 - 13:46
    +3
    Suggested Against Malaria Foundation

    Www.givewell.org

    Great resource to see where your donation is best spent.

  • tassieeagle on 11/12/2017 - 13:47
    +5

    Great work Scotty. All fantastic causes.

  • MsBin on 11/12/2017 - 13:52
    +7
    Suggested Indigenous Literacy Foundation

    Throwing in my vote for the Indigenous Literacy Foundation.
    Being able to read opens so many doors. But in very remote Indigenous communities, books are all too scarce and literacy levels are so much lower than anywhere else in Australia. Our mission is to make a difference to the lives of Indigenous families by not only gifting thousands of new culturally appropriate books – with a focus on early literacy and first language - but also by running programs to inspire the communities to tell and publish their own stories.

  • McEels on 11/12/2017 - 13:52
    +6
    Suggested Charlie Teo Foundation

    +$10. Fantastic work as always Scotty and team @ OzBargain.

    I'm suggesting http://www.charlieteofoundation.org.au/ - Professor Charlie Teo quit the Cure for Brain Cancer org as they apparently had 60% of donations spent in overheads rather than to the actual cause. He's set up a new foundation to fund brain cancer research with the aim at limiting the overhead to 15% max to use the donations for what they were intended for.

  • MJ101 on 11/12/2017 - 13:56
    +3

    Great work!

  • [Deactivated] on 11/12/2017 - 13:59
    +2

    All good causes, so here's another $10.

  • weetyrs on 11/12/2017 - 14:01
    +6
    Suggested Leukaemia Foundation

    +$10 to Leukaemia Foundation.

    Father passed away at the young age of 63 from Leukaemia in Jan 2016.

    Would love for the foundation to hit top 5 if possible.

  • Wystri Warrick on 11/12/2017 - 14:01
    +6

    Suggestion & commenting starts today (12 Dec) and will close at 12PM on Monday 19 Dec.

    Today's the 11th Scotty:).

    Would've gone for the salvation army, but someone told me that a lot of the money goes to the board members and other expenses.
    So beyond blue gets my vote.

    Highly commendable on the donation Scotty :)

    • Wystri Warrick on 11/12/2017 - 16:22
      +1

      Ps. Scotty we love :)

    • scotty on 11/12/2017 - 16:51
      +3

      I must be too excited to go to the Western Sydney meetup thinking it's 12th already. My bad.

      • Wystri Warrick on 11/12/2017 - 17:05
        +2

        Aha first time I've actually seen you do a typo.

        Oh cool, next year nothing is going to stop me from going, I want an Ozbargain T-shirt =).

        BTW I still love you xoxoxo =).

    • tryagain on 12/12/2017 - 11:06
      +2

      Don't know if there board gets remunerated but their overall administration percentage is pretty low in comparison to most charaties so I suspect someone was making it up.

  • mooney on 11/12/2017 - 14:04
    +3

    +1 for Starlight Foundation.

  • garetz on 11/12/2017 - 14:10
    +3

    +$10 for Indigenous Literacy Foundation

  • kusama on 11/12/2017 - 14:10
    +4

    $10

  • silverrat23 on 11/12/2017 - 14:13
    +2

    Another $10 for beyond blue here

  • garffi on 11/12/2017 - 14:13
    +2

    +$10 Great work Ozb!

  • barbarella on 11/12/2017 - 14:24
    +4
    Suggested Cambodian Children's Fund

    https://www.cambodianchildrensfund.org/
    Cambodian Children’s Fund transforms the country's most impoverished kids into tomorrow's leaders, by delivering education, family support and community development programs into the heart of Cambodia’s most impoverished communities. Our very own Scott Neeson does an amazing job helping those children get out of the rubbish dumps and into school.

    • $10 for Cambodian Children's Fund
  • Rollingball on 11/12/2017 - 14:34
    +2

    Thanks. +$10

  • angelkulit025 on 11/12/2017 - 14:35
    +2

    $10…$10…$10 for cancer council please

  • debb on 11/12/2017 - 14:40
    +5
    Suggested OzHarvest

    "OzHarvest is Australia’s leading food rescue organisation, collecting quality excess food from commercial outlets and delivering it directly to more than 1000 charities supporting people in need across the country."

    Thanks OP! Luv your work!

    • Tyrx on 11/12/2017 - 21:38
      +6

      I love the work that OzHarvest does, but unfortunately they are one of those charities who have unjustifiably high administration costs. If you look at their 2015 annual report, you will find that they spent $3,261,343 on the salaries/benefits of their staff. That's more than half of their total revenue which was 6,450,704 for that period…

  • Johche on 11/12/2017 - 15:17
    +3

    Costly comment

  • donga100 on 11/12/2017 - 15:26
    +4

    $10 to Fred Hollows. They can cure someones blindness for $25.

    • driveahardbargain on 11/12/2017 - 23:18
      +2

      Good call

    • macca9123 on 12/12/2017 - 09:42
      +7

      Agreed. Give the gift of sight. Fred himself operated twice on me when I was a child.

    • random110 on 12/12/2017 - 12:59
      +2

      Great choice

  • [Deactivated] on 11/12/2017 - 15:32
    +2

    +$10

  • BT9 on 11/12/2017 - 16:13
    +2

    $10

  • Fusakin on 11/12/2017 - 16:54
    +2

    For your generosity, I thank you.

  • lowndes8 on 11/12/2017 - 17:12
    +2

    Great cause

  • samfisher5986 on 11/12/2017 - 17:17
    +2

    This is great!

  • Froot Loops on 11/12/2017 - 17:17
    +8

    Ozbargain just keeps surprising me. Not only do I save a ton of cash, but you now donating profit. Thanks guys. You are a true example of what every Australia business should apsire to

  • try2bhelpful on 11/12/2017 - 17:24
    +4

    This is a great initiative and there are some great causes. Please give my $10 to the Fred Hollows Foundation.

  • MISSMAC on 11/12/2017 - 17:45
    +2

    +10 - Kids with cancer. Thanks for a great year of savings and your generosity toward those who need it most.

  • DiceySlicey on 11/12/2017 - 17:50
    +3
    Suggested Australian Red Cross

    Suggestion: Australian Red Cross.

    for emergency services and other humanitarian aid.

  • jjjaar on 11/12/2017 - 17:50
    +2
    Suggested Lighthouse Foundation.

    Seeing so many more homeless youth now vs two years ago, so my vote is for Lighthouse Foundation.

  • blerk on 11/12/2017 - 17:55
    +2

    Just confirming the Charlie Teo one is his new one, not the old one? (Sorry for the dodgey source: https://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/nsw/brain-surgeon-cha…)

    • scotty on 11/12/2017 - 17:58
      +4

      Linked by ericmclee. Yes Charlie Teo Foundation is the new one, and the one he left is Cure Brain Cancer Foundation.

  • kzu on 11/12/2017 - 18:05
    +6

    Throwing in my vote for Pets of the Homeless Australia! +$10

  • twilsoncrow on 11/12/2017 - 18:19
    +3

    Thank you to Scotty and OZB this is an amazing initiative. Voted for RSPCA. Thanks again.

  • Yvonne82 on 11/12/2017 - 18:20
    +6

    +$10 for Pets Of The Homeless Australia who provides pet food, assistance with veterinary care and emergency boarding to people and pets in need. They help people who are at risk of homelessness or currently experiencing homelessness such as victims of domestic violence. Give to the smaller charities who are doing it with hardly any support. https://petsofthehomeless.org.au/

    • ojm on 12/12/2017 - 13:32
      +2

      Great initiative. The poor pets need care too.

  • PVA on 11/12/2017 - 18:27
    +3

    My vote.
    Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia (PCFA) is a broad based community organisation and the peak national body for prostate cancer in Australia.

    We are dedicated to reducing the impact of prostate cancer on Australian men, their partners and families, recognising the diversity of the Australian community.

    We do this by:

    Promoting and funding world leading, innovative research into prostate cancer
    Implementing awareness and advocacy campaigns and education programs for the Australian Community, health professionals and Government
    Supporting men and their families affected by prostate cancer through evidence-based information and resources, support groups and Prostate Cancer Specialist Nurses.
    PCFA relies on the generosity of individuals, the community and partnerships to carry out our essential work.

    PCFA's five values are:

    Integrity
    Optimism
    Compassion
    Respect
    Commitment

    • sleet on 11/12/2017 - 22:58
      +3

      Yes please. Prostate cancer needs more research. It is one of the highest causes of mortality in men but is rarely spoken about.

  • mintysaurus on 11/12/2017 - 18:31
    +2

    So many choices, it's tough to choose one. Thanks for doing this

  • NW74 on 11/12/2017 - 18:39
    +1

    Best thread ever! My vote has gone to the starlight foundation. The work they do for sick kids and their families is beyond amazing. Just like this initiative!

  • Eskimo61 on 11/12/2017 - 18:47
    +1

    +10

  • PirateKingJack on 11/12/2017 - 18:51
    +2

    $10 for Against Malaria!

    • fenerli on 14/12/2017 - 14:53
      +1

      And another $10 for them from me :)

  • j05h on 11/12/2017 - 18:55
    +1

    Love your work, Scotty!

  • macgregors on 11/12/2017 - 18:59
    +1

    Love this!

  • pbywater on 11/12/2017 - 19:03
    +1

    $10 for beyond blue, the fight against depression an suicide is a tremendous battle!

  • aaraggornn on 11/12/2017 - 19:04
    +1

    $10

  • tadinhah on 11/12/2017 - 19:05
    +1

    $10

  • farnkie on 11/12/2017 - 19:06
    +1

    Awesome

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