Volunteering and Doing It Yourself!

[Photo from businessforum.uk.com]

One important lesson, about which I will bet we can all agree, is that before you should ask someone else to volunteer to help in your charitable effort, you should first attempt the task yourself.  In other words, presently, I am trying to help a senior friend and hope to learn from this experience more about how this organization -- and other volunteers -- can (or cannot) help senior citizens!

Time Problems and Charity/Volunteer Work

Who really has time any more to do volunteer work?  Sometime, it seems that we never have the time, right?  The point of this post is that, when you start a charity, or do volunteer work for any charity, it is inevitable that there will be periods when you simply cannot find the time to devote to it!  We all juggle busy work and family schedules.  But don't give up on your charitable goals!  Just try to prioritize and make time for your charitable endeavors as soon as you are able!  Don't you agree?

Articles of Incorporation: Emphasize Your Tax-Exempt Status

While you are drafting your articles of incorporation, it is important for you to pland and consider inclusion of language which emphasizes the tax-exempt nature of your nonprofit organization.  In other words, down the road, before or after your charity gets going, you are likely going to want to solicit or accept charitable donations.  So, in order for the donations to be deductible for the donor, this means that you ultimately are going to be required to file a request with the I.R.S. for what is called nonprofit, tax-exempt 501(c)(3) status, (in addition to incorporating your charity with the your state's Secretary of State's Office).

Therefore, I would recommend that, (while drafting your articles of incorporation), you should go to the I.R.S. website to get the language that the I.R.S. requires for tax-exempt 501(c)(3) status and, assuming it applies, simply plug that language into your articles of incorporation!  Doesn't that make sense!?

Of course, if you were to forget this step now, then  later, before you apply to the I.R.S. for tax-exempt status, you could probably simply amend your articles and include the verbiage then.

Please also note that there are a number of internet articles dealing with each of these issues.  Hopefully, this blog will become a useful source for how to start a charity, too! 

Reasons to Incorporate Your Charity

Look, I realize that alot of this information and practical tips about starting a charitable organization is not exactly exciting, suspenseful reading!  But I do hope that these tips will help someone "out there" as they learn how to start a charity.  Maybe, as we get more into this, I can try to make it more interesting!

Today, I want to talk a little bit about the importance of incorporating your charity. 

After you have researched and determined that the need exists for your new charity, it is important for you to learn about the importance of incorporating it.  And don't be intimidated by this process!  You can probably get alot of information about this topic from your state's secretary of state's website. There are a number of reasons to incorporate.  For instance, for a number of reasons, it may be a legal requirement in your state.  (I would recommend that you also consider consulting with a local attorney concerning the necessity of incorporating and how to "get 'er done!")  Having a corporate shield also can provide legal protection for individual volunteers and board members who participate in the charity.  Incorporation also provides rules and organization for governing the charity.  In addition, if you intend to solicit contributions, the IRS will require that you not only incorporate, but also that you obtain IRS approval as a nonprofit 501(c)(3) corporation.  We will talk more about that process later!

These are just some of the many reasons why you should incorporate your new charity as soon as possible! 

Practical Tip: Research The Need For Your Charity

This blog deals with my efforts to start a charitable organization in Augusta, Georgia to help promote visitations and friendships between volunteers and lonely senior citizens.  If you decide to start a charity in your community, you may have a totally different purpose, or goal, which you want to achieve.  Regardless of the purpose, or goal, one of your first tasks should be for you to research the need for such a charity in your community.  Obviously, if you determine that other organizations are already meeting the need, or goal, you  have in mind, then you may elect to simply join in and help them, or you may decide to go in a different direction with your goals or ideas.

In my case, I have been doing research (for several months) by contacting various nursing homes and assisted living facilities to learn whether or not there is a need for the volunteer services I want to provide.  I have primarily talked with social directors and others who interact with their resident senior citizens.  The consensus, thus far, has been that there are, as I had predicted, a number of elderly people who have no one, i.e. no family or friends, who ever come to visit with them.  I have also gotten some good feedback from the nursing home employees about my idea for this charity.  As an attorney, here in Augusta, Georgia, I have also observed, from working on various cases, that there is a need for this charity.  But I am glad that my research has confirmed this!

So, the "tip of the day" about starting a charitable organization is to first do your research!  Make sure there is a need for the charitable goal you have in mind.  Okay, that's enough for today!  I have only just begun and there is so much more planning and other work to do, in order to help get Augusta Friends of Seniors, Inc. off the ground!  Please stay tuned and please also consider what you can do in your own community!

About Augusta Friends of Seniors, Inc. and This Blog

This is the first post in a new blog about a new nonprofit, volunteer-based organization which I am starting, along with help from family members and friends.  This new charitable organization will be called Augusta Friends of Seniors, Inc.  The primary purpose of this new charity will simply be to promote visits and friendships between volunteers and lonely senior citizens in our community.  We have a lot of work to do to get this charity off the ground!

There are, at this point, three main purposes of this blog.  First, I want to chronicle and promote the good work being done to help lonely senior citizens and, hopefully, inspire others to join us.  In addition, I hope to provide guidance and inspiration to others "out there" about how to start a charitable organization in their communities.  And finally, I hope this blog will serve as a journal, and help me keep organized, and also help inspire me to keep working hard on this daunting new task!  Please pray for us and wish us well!