Tired of shopping yet? Close out of your online cart + consider another way to use some of your Christmas fund (or treat-yourself money) by giving back this season. #GivingTuesday is a reminder of community needs and a way to look at the holiday season as more than buying gifts.

Americans gave $389.05 billion in 2016, up 4.2% from 2015 according to the National Philanthropic Trust. Charitable giving is on the rise, but there are dozens of nonprofit organizations in Greenville alone – where to start?

One easy way to make an impact: if you use AmazonSmile instead of Amazon.com when buying gifts, the AmazonSmile Foundation will donate 0.5% of the purchase price to the organization you choose (if you don’t have a charity in mind, just search “Greenville, SC” to see a list of participating organizations).

So what happens to your donation + how does it impact the community? Some organizations share the percentage of donations between programs and administrative purposes (75% towards programs and 25% administrative is ideal). United Way of Greenville County uses only 15% of donation money for fundraising and admin costs + Project Hope Foundation was recognized by the S.C. Secretary of State for using 95.4% of its funds for program services.

If you want a deeper look into an organization, ProPublica offers a Nonprofit Explorer: type in the name of an organization + instantly see tax filings that’ll show you stats like how much money the organization brought in total + how much goes towards expenses like paying executives.

Giving to charity also means you get to make deductions on your taxes, but there are a few things to keep in mind:

Double-check that the organization is IRS-qualified, usually with a 501(c)(3) status (most charities are)
Your donation doesn’t have to be money to qualify: things like household items, property + clothing also get you deductions
Get a receipt or keep a written record – for donations over $250 you’ll need that info + to disclose if you received anything in return

Individuals + families are more concerned than ever with contributing to charity, but businesses are doing their part, too. From 2015 to 2016, corporate giving jumped 3.5% to a total of $18.55 billion + many Greenville businesses partner with nonprofits, have employees volunteer their time, or simply contribute money to local organizations.

There are also philanthropic organizations like Greenville Women Giving, Community Foundation of Greenville + Greenville Partnership for Philanthropy working together to raise funds + support local causes. In other words, there’s a big community of charitable givers in GVL + plenty of room to join in on giving back.

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Giving to charity also means you get to make deductions on your taxes, but there are a few things to keep in mind:

Double-check that the organization is IRS-qualified, usually with a 501(c)(3) status (most charities are)
Your donation doesn’t have to be money to qualify: things like household items, property + clothing also get you deductions
Get a receipt or keep a written record – for donations over $250 you’ll need that info + to disclose if you received anything in return

Individuals + families are more concerned than ever with contributing to charity, but businesses are doing their part, too. From 2015 to 2016, corporate giving jumped 3.5% to a total of $18.55 billion + many Greenville businesses partner with nonprofits, have employees volunteer their time, or simply contribute money to local organizations.

There are also philanthropic organizations like Greenville Women Giving, Community Foundation of Greenville + Greenville Partnership for Philanthropy working together to raise funds + support local causes. In other words, there’s a big community of charitable givers in GVL + plenty of room to join in on giving back.