If you're looking for ways to safely donate this holiday season, check out the Community Foundation of Tampa Bay.
They can help connect you with a number of non-profits in five different counties in the Tampa Bay area.
First, they encourage you to find a non-profit that you're passionate about. But, they also suggest looking at the critical needs list on their website.
Sheila Kinman, Senior VP, Philanthropy at the Community Foundation of Tampa Bay, said, "The critical needs list is a list that's been vetted by the Community Foundation and includes nonprofits who have an urgent critical need that could disrupt their ability to operate and support the people that they're serving. So this is a list where people can see the need, it'll let you know if it's fully or partially funded, and the donors can connect directly with those nonprofits to support that need."
The Community Foundation of Tampa Bay also makes sure these non-profits are in good standing with the IRS.
If you're having trouble deciding on a non-profit, the foundation suggests picking a few charities. If you can, give a fewer amount of charities a larger donation to make the most impact.
