OzBargain 2021 Christmas Donations - $39,910 to Charities of Your Choice

Updates

  • 18 Dec 1:00PM: We have 991 unique commenters in this poll (at 12PM on 18 Dec), which means we will be donating $39,910 to the 7 most voted charities ($5,702 each). Here is the list of charities we will be donating to this Christmas:

    • beyondblue
    • Sikh Volunteers Australia
    • Cancer Council
    • RSPCA Australia
    • Dementia Australia
    • Aboriginal Literacy Foundation
    • Lifeline

    Donations will be made next week.

  • 14 Dec 9:50AM: We have already reached 50 charities. No more suggestions, but please keep on voting on the already suggested charities.


Original Post

It's that time of the year! OzBargain is committing to donate at least $30,000 to selected charity organisations this Christmas, and we are asking our community for recommendations!

OzBargain has been a for-profit company since 2010 (which surprisingly some didn't realise, from interactions with some users at the birthday meetups). Banner ads and affiliate links served to non-logged in users generates revenue for OzBargain, which is used to pay for all our full-time staff, hosting and other operation costs. Money we make from the banner ads is also used to sponsor all the meetups, free T-shirts and hoodies, monthly prizes, etc. Moreover, we have been setting aside some funds at the end of each year to give to charities voted by the OzBargain community, for the last 10 years.

For this Christmas, we will be donating $30,000 to 6-8 different charities, and for each unique commenter in this forum post, we will be donating an extra 10 bucks, up to $10,000 extra. For example, if there are 1,000 OzBargain users commented in this post, we'll be donating $40,000 to 8 different charities ($5,000 each).

But which charities? It's up to you, the OzBargain community. For starter, I'll pre-select 20 charities from last year's Xmas donation. Commenters can also suggest new charities using the Suggestion box above the comment form.

Add your poll suggestion here

If you are suggesting a charity, please also

  • Provide a link in the comment.
  • Add one or two sentences on what this charity is about, to help the community to decide.

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

The poll will run until Saturday 18 Dec 2021 at 12:00PM. After poll expires, votes will be revealed and we will divide up the final donation amount to give to the top 6-8 charities. I will sort out all the donations next week (before Christmas).

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Which charity should I suggest?

Update: As we already have 50 charities on the list, we are no longer taking suggestions.

There are some limitations on the charity that a user may suggest:

  • It must be a registered charity eligible for DGR (deductible gift recipient). That would unfortunately make NPOs like Wikipedia & Sea Shepherd & some international charities ineligible.
  • As we are OzBargain, it would be great if the charity is Australia based or benefits Australians.
  • The suggestion feature will also be closed after having 50 charities on poll.

Please note that all the suggestions will have to be manually approved by the moderators, so they might not show up straight away.

Q: How many charity organisations will OzBargain donate to this Christmas?

6-8, depending on the final donation amount. For example,

  • No one commented on the post — $30,000 will be donated to 6 charities with $5,000 each.
  • 100 unique commenters — $31,000 will be donated to 6 charities with $5,167 each.
  • 500 unique commenters — $35,000 will be donated to 7 charities with $5,000 each.
  • 1,000 unique commenters — $40,000 will be donated to 8 charities with $5,000 each.

Q: Why is foo charity on the list? Why is bar charity NOT on the list?

All the charity organisations are suggested by the community (either this year, or from previous years). If you think certain charity organisation ought to be on the list, please suggest it (provided that we haven't reached the 50 options limit). If you do not think a certain charity should be there, please leave a comment in the post, and use "Report" to notify a moderator. We will assess your claim and decide whether to remove that charity from the list.

Q: Any bargain?

Free $10 to the top charity when you comment!

Poll Options expired

Comments

    • +2

      @toniyellow had some decent threads about 'efficiency'
      (and others on the orig. post)
      https://www.ozbargain.com.au/comment/10677536/redir

    • So many worthy charities here, but my top vote goes to Pets of The Homeless. It helps out people and their pets, so it’s a two in one charity. They do great work. 👍👏

    • +1

      Asylum seeker resource centre is my vote - they are a long-running charity with runs on the board and integrity. Very practical assistance for people who get minimum government help. The organisation seeks to help those that the Federal government chooses to ignore and forget.

      • -2

        I think you’ll find the majority of those asylum seekers were proven not to be genuine refugees or have serious criminal or character issues.
        You wouldn’t want those types in the Australian community would you?

        • Based off what info from who? Sorry if this goes on long but its a topic I'm really familiar with

          Ive personally been helped, and have helped with their cause long long ago and none of the many people I personally met there were questionable of character or quality.

          Thats not to say they dont exist, or bad people dont slip through. But what you've asserted is that they actively help and bring in people of questionable quality. Which you have no evidence or proof of, because if you did they wouldve gone under a long time ago.

          I dont know how much you do know, but I think you might misunderstand how poorly we treat refugees of all types here valid or not. The system is not perfect, real refugees struggle to get asylum even with airtight cases and most who are questionable get weeded out, you can only imagine then how it's like for everyone else in between and their struggle. The center exists because the system has been broken for as long as I can remember, and probably wont change very easily or soon.

          Everybody I personally met was genuine, humble and hard working individuals that embraced what it means to be Australian. Many of them were more Australian than a lot of people born here. Many of them went on and ended up bringing more to Australia anyone could have thought from them.

          They ASRS do not exist to harbour and aid the shit heads (who I agree with you are very real) that youre thinking of, but try to fill in the gaps of a shoddy and broken system.

          Reach out and maybe look into some of their stories.

    • What a bargain!1

    • Thanks Scotty!

    • Great community, here's my $10 comment.

  • Great work again OZB!

    • Agreed

    • I’ll add a “agree” comment for the extra $10. Good work OB!

    • I'd add that they are amazing!

  • sounds good! quite the deal. :)

  • +3
    Suggested Multiple Sclerosis (MS) Australia

    MS Australia?

    • As in the post, if you are suggesting a charity, it would be a good idea to provide a link and some brief description:

      Australia’s national multiple sclerosis (MS) not-for-profit organisation that empowers researchers to identify ways to treat, prevent and cure MS, seeks sustained and systemic policy change via advocacy, and acts as the champion for Australia’s community of people affected by MS.

      As of multiple sclerosis, from What is MS page

      MS is the most common acquired chronic neurological disease affecting young adults, often diagnosed between the ages of 20 to 40 and, in Australia, affects three times more women than men. As yet, there is no cure.

    • Awful disease, my $10 is here

  • $10

  • Thanks, what a fantastic community!

  • +2
    Suggested The Heart Foundation

    Heart disease is still the leading cause of death in Australia, and around 1 in 20 people have, or will have some form of heart disease in their lifetime. It's a great charity to get behind.

    ETA - don't know why this didn't go through properly! A suggestion to add the Heart Foundation to the list: https://www.heartfoundation.org.au/

    • I wish there was a charity which provided education to children on healthy eating habits to combat high obesity rates. Kind of like how Herald the giraffe made smoking a dirty habit. Even as someone who donates to the Heart Research Institute, I truly believe that tackling eating disorders and obesity should be the forefront of addressing high heart disease rates.

      • Not all heart problems are caused by unhealthy eating or lifestyle habits
        The rate of congenital defects is still high.

        • +1

          Heart defects and heart disease are different, I'm not disputing that there is good research done by these institutes. The emotional marketing that 1 in 20 die of heart disease is kind of misleading in terms of their research. Unless they're continuing to do research which links obesity to heart disease (which we already know). 2 in 3 Australians are overweight, of which 1 in 3 are obese. Given the clear link between obesity and heart disease maybe something should be done about that.

  • Suggested Kids Helpline

    kids help line

    • Is there an actual link to "kids help line"? This one here? Also when you listed "RFS, SES" these are actually separate suggestions — please just keep one organisation per suggestion.

      • thats the one

        got too excited, ozbargain is just too awesome

  • Commenting so my ozbargain platinum membership is now tax deductible :)

    • Thanks for supporting the community OzBargain/Scotty.

  • +13

    Im not a sikh, but have seen them in different parts of Sydney serving fresh food and donating to homeless and people in need. If there is a way to submit donation on Ozbargain, im happy to donate $20 to them on top.

  • Nice one guys

  • Good stuff 👍

  • So many worthy causes its difficult to choose only one… but this year I am going for Beyond Blue.

  • +1

    +1 Cancer Council

    Impressive running total, and history of regular donations, what a great example for other businesses.
    https://www.ozbargain.com.au/wiki/help:charity_donations

  • +5

    +1 Sikh Volunteers Australia - doing great work to those in times of need

    • Totally agree, they have shown up for everyone in need time and time again

  • Cash only.

    • Thought you're Mod haha.

      • You're not the first to say that haha. I'm one of the power users who can edit deals, add missing details to deals and mark deals as expired or sold out.

  • Thank you

    • +$10

      Onya scotty and team.

  • Merry Christmas Ozbargain. Thanks for your generosity.

  • +$10
    Thanks Scotty and the OZB crew for your generosity.

  • Thanks Scotty! Merry Christmas!

  • +19
    Suggested NeuroEndocrine Cancer Australia

    I'm nominating Neuroendocrine Cancer Australia

    These types of cancer are rare, but they're also on the rise and doctors don't know what the cause is. Ask a doctor or anyone about pancreatic cancer, lung cancer, brain cancer…. they all know in the ins and out of it. Ask them about Neuroendocrine Cancer? They've either 'heard of it' or know nothing about it.

    They can be found anywhere in the body and most commonly around the lungs, kidneys, pancreas and bowels. The side effects depend on where the tumour is located as they secrete different hormones and this often leads to misdiagnosis. When they're usually finally discovered it's often too late and they've spread to the lymph nodes. A neuroendocrine tumour in the pancreas for example is treated them same way as normal pancreatic cancer - a whipple procedure. It carries all the same risks and can be fatal. This is what killed Steve Jobs - a gasteroenteropancreatic neuroendocrine tumour or GEP-NET for short.

    The cause is unknown and there is no cure. Only management like surgery. Some key facts are that the typical 5 year survival rate is 48%, 1 in 2 patients are misdiagnosed with something else, typically diagnosed when aged 50+, not all tumours are slow growing and chemo is usually ineffective. Fortunately there are some Clinical Trials underway that are showing promise.

    Why am I so passionate about this? I was diagnosed with one of the rarest types of neuroendocrine tumours earlier this year and considering I'm under the age of 30 it's pretty much unheard of.

    • +8

      We're all praying for you Clear - you'll beat this 💖

    • +1

      I second this amazing organisation, they are so incredibly helpful at both fundraising and education for this awful cancer.
      Sadly it takes too long to diagnose in many cases as the symptoms can be vague, or mimic other diseases, which means it has progressed further by the time it is diagnosed.
      My younger sister has lived with this cancer for 12 years so far, with some sort of treatment at least once a month.
      Fingers crossed for you Clear xox

      • +1

        Out of curiosity where was it found in your sister? I assume she went through surgery?

        • It was found first in her pancreas, but had spread to her liver. Yes she has had multiple surgeries - originally to remove part of pancreas and spleen, later to remove liver lobe & gall bladder.
          She has also had a LOT of other stuff as well.
          Stay strong xox

          • @Cool Jools: That's how mine would have ended up in 5 years had it gone undetected. Such a horrible thing to go through but I'm glad she's made it through.

    • +1

      You’ve got my vote. Thank you for sharing your story 👊

  • Thank you!

  • Thanks!

  • +1

    Phone is fine

  • So good

  • happy holidays!

  • Cheers Scotty!

  • Nice work

  • thanks

  • +10
    Suggested Project Underdog Rescue

    https://www.projectunderdogrescue.org.au/

    Project Underdog Rescue is an animal welfare organisation that rescues and re-homes animals that are at risk of unnecessary euthanasia. They also provide vital animal care services to vulnerable members of the community through a program called Companion Carers (e.g. if someone is ill and does not have a support network, Project Underdog will care for their pets while they recover so they do not have to surrender them to shelters).

    Please consider voting for Project Underdog to support their work!

    • +1

      Vote for PUR. They do great work

    • Go Project Underdog!
      Thanks :)

      • Like this one

    • +$10

  • +$10

    Thanks! Keep up the great work

  • Google: how to establish a charity organisation :D

  • +$10
    Cheers!

  • +1

    Awesome work Ozbargain!
    Go Project Underdog Rescue

  • Excellent deal. Thanks.

  • Share your thoughts!

  • Good job guys!

  • +1
    Suggested Sydney Children's Hospitals Foundation

    Sydney Children's Hospitals Foundation

    From their site :

    Give sick kids a brighter Christmas

    We’re here for the newborns and the not-yet-borns, the toddlers and the teenagers.
    From the kids with common injuries to those with rare conditions.
    We’re here for the kids that stay a short time or a long time, making an impact that lasts a lifetime.

    • +$10
      Those kids have had it extra rough over the last couple of years with Covid restrictions on visitors, activities and toys to distract them from the hard times they are going through.

  • +1

    This is so cool, NFPs need this after a big year. Project Underdog Rescue's Companion Carers program is going to help people and their animals who really need assistance this Christmas.

  • Suggested PanKind (The Australian Pancreatic Cancer Foundation)

    http://www.pankind.org.au/

    PanKind, The Australian Pancreatic Cancer Foundation, is exclusively dedicated to improving outcomes for Australians impacted by pancreatic cancer.

    From personal experience, Pancreatic Cancer is an insidious form of cancer that is often detected too late. Because of that, mortality rates are high and even surgical options are invasive, complex and often with poor outcomes. Early detection relies on it being picked up because they were looking at something else. That needs to change.

    • +1

      I was volunteering at Tour de Cure Spring Lunch yesterday & heard a gentleman speak about his golfing friend who was diagnosed with Pancreatic Cancer a few years ago in in late December & gone by early February. His table was from PanKind.
      Cancer in any form is so cruel.

  • Suggested Choice Passion Life (formerly known as Cerebral Palsy League)

    Cerebral Palsy League became Choice Passion Life a couple of years ago, they do great work for people with CP, and I am a long term supporter of their work, I'd love to see some more coin go their way

    • I had no idea they'd changed there name I thought they had ceased to exist.

  • -1
    Suggested White Ribbon Australia

    White Ribbon Australia

    From their site:

    White Ribbon is the world’s largest movement engaging men and boys to end men’s violence against women and girls, promote gender equality and create new opportunities for men to build positive, healthy and respectful relationships.

  • +10

  • thx

  • Great initiative!

  • +1

    Thanks scotty and OzB! Please choose any of the mental health advocacy groups. In these COVID times, mental wellbeing should be one of the priorities.

  • A great initiative this! Good to see it come back each year.

  • Great initiative as always team!

  • +1
    Suggested Deaf Services Limited

    Summary of activities

    Deaf Services Limited is a specialist organisation recognised as a prominent end to
    end service provider, across all age groups, for Deaf and hard of hearing groups.

    Deaf Services provide unique opportunities and programs for Deaf and hard of hearing
    people to access services, allowing them to become empowered, connected and
    achieving a quality of life on par with hearing peers.

    Our programs work to reduce various barriers, linguistic, cultural, physical, legislative and attitudinal, promoting participation of Deaf and hard of hearing in mainstream society.

    Programs include: Early Childhood Development Programs, Community Engagement
    and Development Activities, Interpreting Services, Educational Programs, Lifestyle
    Supports for Adults with an additional disability and an Ageing Well Service.
    Deaf Services continues to develop the capacity of Deaf and hard of hearing
    communities through a diverse range of representation to Government, Industry and
    Community Sector to ensure the needs of Deaf and hard of hearing people are
    considered.
    https://www.deafservices.org.au/Who-We-Are/About-Us/Our-Visi…
    https://www.ozbargain.com.au/comment/11070916/redir
    https://www.acnc.gov.au/charity/charities/d127a517-39af-e811…

  • happy holidays!

  • Great initiative. Thank you scotty & OzB!

  • Thanks!

  • Doctors Without Borders are needed more than ever with covid ravaging the planet

    • So true, amazing volunteers.

    • Mercy Ships are manned by volunteers & run on donations.

Login or Join to leave a comment