Wise Giving Wednesday: Helping During the Heat Wave

Hero image for Wise Giving Wednesday: Helping During the Heat Wave
calendar icon Jul 20, 2022

 


Unusually high temperatures and humidity continue to blanket much of the United States. Overseas, the United Kingdom, France, Spain, Greece, and Portugal are also experiencing record-breaking heat waves. Some donors may seek to help those who are most vulnerable. BBB Wise Giving Alliance offers the following giving tips.

  1. Food banks welcome your help. As reported by Feeding America (a BBB Accredited Charity) more than 38 million people, including 12 million children in the United States, are food insecure. More families may reach out to their local food banks for support during these times. The heat wave may also put stress on the volunteers available for distribution. Contact your local food bank to help identify their needs.  
  2. Homeless seek relief. When temperatures approach 100 degrees, the homeless become particularly vulnerable. Homeless shelters in your area may provide cooling relief and may be in need of other basic necessities, such as bottled water and sunscreen.
  3. Review heat safety advice. This week the American Red Cross (a BBB Accredited Charity) posted a list of ten heat safety tips to reduce risks of developing heat-related illnesses, especially for older people with chronic medical conditions. Although many of these tips, such as staying hydrated, are common sense, heat strokes can be life-threatening.
  4. Help wildfire first responders. Dry, heated conditions sparked wildfires in North Texas. Parts of California also battle wildfires amid rising temperatures. Relief organizations such as Direct Relief (a BBB Accredited Charity) respond to wildfires each year by, among other things, providing masks, medicines and other resources to health agencies and first responders.
  5. Support environmental groups addressing climate change. Visit Give.org to see if a charity addressing climate change issues meets the 20 BBB Standards for Charity Accountability. These BBB Accredited charities include: Environmental Defense FundNature Conservancy and Sierra Club Foundation

Video of the Week

As part of our Building Trust Video Series, we are pleased to revisit a video featuring an interview with Miki Jordan, President & CEO of Wayfinder Family Services (a BBB Accredited Charity), which offers services for individuals of all ages with vision loss and, often, additional disabilities through the organization's early intervention, education, recreation, mental health, workforce readiness and rehabilitation services.  


Heart of Giving Podcast

In this week’s Heart of Giving Podcast, BBB WGA interviews Taylor Hebble, Chief Marketing Officer, Hope for Haiti. Ms. Hebble is a brand management and social impact professional specializing in public relations, campaign strategy and community engagement.


Recent Reports

We are always working with charities to publish or update reports for donors. Visit Give.org or local BBBs to check out any charity before giving. Our recently evaluated charities include:

Finally, remember to let us know by going to give.org/charity-inquiry if you are interested in seeing a report on a charity not on the list and we will do our best to produce one.


Stay Informed. Join Our Mailing List
This site is protected by reCAPTHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply