What's needed most to assist in western NC and how to make sure your donation counts
RALEIGH, N.C. (WTVD) -- Seeing all of the heartbreak Helene left behind in North Carolina, it's natural to want to help in any way you can. There are so many great ways to give, but you also must realize this is the time scammers capitalize on emotions.
With homes destroyed, and many people in the western part of North Carolina losing so much, the need is great. Mike DeCinti with the North Carlina Red Cross says, "From everyone at the Red Cross and local state and national people who deal with this all the time. This is unprecedented. They're saying they haven't seen anything like this before."
DeCinti says their crews have been on the ground in western North Carolina since last Thursday, providing shelter, food, and water along with cleaning supplies. The donation, needed the most, "If you want to help out through our organization. The fastest and easiest way to help those folks impacted by the storm in western North Carolina is to make a monetary donation," DeCinti says.
Besides money, donation drives around the Triangle are collecting supplies to help those in need. Before donating, find out where those donations will go, and how they will get to those in need. DeCinti adds, "There's nothing wrong with going to other local community services or organizations that may be collecting items, but what we're finding is because there are so many road closures there's no way to get those needed supplies where these groups want them to go."
The Better Business Bureau warns about crowdfunding sites that will pull at your heartstrings. Meredith Radford with the BBB says, "It's really easy now to copycat, to steal photos from social media or the news and put it on a crowdfunding site, for example, and pretend to be an organization or even a family that was affected by a disaster or tragedy and try to collect money when they have nothing to do with that family or that cause."
You also need to watch out for copycat websites that appear to be a charity or non-profit, the URL may just be one letter off from the legitimate charity, or be .com, instead of .gov. Make sure the website is secure, look for the lock symbol or https. There are also several websites like Charitywatch, Guidestar Charitynavigator, and Give.org which analyze and rate charities to varying degrees.
If you want to use your donation as a tax right off, before donating make sure that's possible. Radford adds, "Not all organizations are tax-exempt. So you want to make sure if that's important to you to be able to get that tax deductible that you're donating to an organization that does have that tax-exempt status."
Before making your donation, you want to make sure it's going directly to those in need. You don't need to feel rushed or pressured as the need is huge, as the Red Cross says the need will be there for weeks and months to come. If you don't have the financial means to help, blood donations are desperately needed and you can also volunteer to help the areas hit the hardest. Find all of that information on how to help the Red Cross here.
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