How Your Financial Support Helps
Your financial support allows us to directly assist families to help themselves. We help families in need to begin small businesses such as… art, sewing, farming, welding, carpentry, retail sales, car repairs, etc. With those small businesses, they provide for their families and educate their children.
Multiplying Your Donation Dollar
Financial donations made to Art For Humanity are multiplied by a factor of at least five.
Several factors make this possible:
First of all, Art For Humanity is an all volunteer organization with virtually no overhead – no salaries, no warehouse space, etc.
Unlike most charities, we do not distribute money. That is, we do not give money to people. But we do give them a way to earn the money they need. We collect used items. We give those used items to the poor; they keep some of those items for their own use and they sell the rest. With the sale money they:
(a) Buy materials to build a home…..most of the families we work with are homeless.
(b) Pay for school expenses so their children can stay in school…..most families we work with cannot afford to keep their children in school.
(c) Buy the things needed to begin a small family business. With the small business they are able to provide for the needs of their family. Creating art and craft items is one example of a home based family business…..and it is where our name comes from.
Shipping represents about 90% of our expenses and we partner with businesses, the U.S. government and U.S. military to minimize those costs.
Bottom Line
People donate used clothing, computers, shoes, etc. It costs us about $8,000 per container to ship those items. If we were not working in partnership with shipping companies using their empty containers to ship our humanitarian donations and if we were not an all volunteer organization, the cost to ship those items would be closer to $24,000.
When the donations are given to the poor, they use some; they give some away to others, which we encourage, and they sell some. With the money earned from selling, they build a home, begin a business, educate their children and some are able to help with other projects like the Leadership University. We think it is important and helpful to their life if they learn to give as well as receive.
Once delivered, the container of cargo has a street value of approximately $45,000. $45,000 worth of humanitarian cargo is delivered for about $8000. That represents a significant multiplication of donation dollars. Few charities can match that.
We have been told by leading law enforcement and Latino gang prevention officers in Honduras as well as in the U.S. that our efforts represent the very best ways of not only helping families but also preventing youths from becoming members of violent gangs.
When you make a financial donation to Art For Humanity, you are making an excellent investment in a better and safer world.
To offer financial support, click here.