Think Before You Donate

It’s always a good idea to donate the clothing, electronics, and household items you no longer need—it keeps your unwanted things from cluttering local landfills, and it gives them a second life when they’re brought home by a new owner.

But how much thought have you given to where you donate?

The Charlotte area is among a growing list of cities nationwide that are seeing a sudden appearance of unattended collection bins. While they may appear to be reputable donation sites, items placed in many of these boxes do not benefit a licensed charitable organization and don’t qualify for a tax deduction. Also, they may be exposed to the elements or subject to theft.

As one of many nonprofit organizations that are fueled by the donation of gently used items from our community, we think you should give as much thought to where you donate those items as you do when you donate money.

At Goodwill, your donations directly fund programs in our community—90 cents of every dollar spent in our stores goes straight into funding for job training and employment services. Plus, our donation sites are staffed seven days a week with attendants who will accept your donations and give you a receipt for your tax deductions.

Whether it’s Goodwill, Salvation Army, Crisis Assistance Ministry, or some other worthy local cause, make sure your donations are going back to help local people in need.

Got donations? Click here to find the Goodwill donation site nearest you.

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