Is it still charity

[Cellophane]

… when you buy something from a charitable organization, or is it just “shopping with a concience”? There is a site I love to go to for my giving. You can buy either services (send X amount to send two African girls to school/feed a community for a week/provide baby blankets to an orphanage, etc) or you can buy things, like mugs, jewelry, scarves, tote bags, etc. I like to send my charity money here, but I was wondering if it counts as charity because I’m getting something (if you buy the stuff and not the services) for my money. Is it only charity if you give money, but don’t get anything other than a good feeling back for it?

 

[Swan]

Oh, I think it is. In fact, I do this quite often. It’s great for gifts, too. I mean, why not buy something that is meaningful and helps out some real folks not just some big corporation? I’ve gotten quite a few things from fair trade sites: a lovely shawl from Guatamala, soap from a woman’s group in some inner city, coffee, art, clothing, all sorts of things. I think is a wonderful alternative.

 

[Called_to_Serve]

There are many ways to be charitable Cellophane.

 

[kitkatty]

Most definitly charitable giving!

 

[rwoehmke]

Strictly speaking, IRS regs require that the value of anything you receive as a result of a donation should be subtracted from any charitable deduction. Of course unless your charitable deductions are way out of line from what persons in your income give to charity you will probably never be called on it unless you mess up somewhere else in your return. There are also rules for how much one can deduct, without getting a receipt from the charity involved.