Favorite Charities and Non Profits in Naperville

There are a lot of charities in the United States and in my community of Naperville, Illinois. I can't support them all, but I do support those non profits and charities that are local in my neighborhood, support good values, and provide help to those that are in need.

I have found that I enjoy the charities that I can be involved in. This let's me see where my money is going or the passion the people in the non profit have. I have also found that I like supporting charities and non profits that support kids or help families. My top 5 charities are not only those that want my money, but also those that need my time. Needing my time is really important as it provides an opportunity to participate in the charity and even bring others to experience the charity.

As you will see below, the charities I support and participate in mainly support the hungry and kids. They also reach out to the communities for support to keep costs low so most of the money raised goes to their intended audiences. If you don't support a charity or non profit, I hope this gives you cause to reach out and search for those that are worthy in your neighborhood and community.

Picture of my daughters at the Feed My Starving Children facility in Aurora, Illinois.

My favorite charity and non profit

Feed My Starving Children in Aurora, Illinois is by far my favorite charity. FMSC is christian organization that provides food to children in undernourished countries throughout the world. I volunteer at this organization about 5 times per year, giving two hours of my time each time to help pack the food that will be shipped to those that need it. 92% of the donations to FMSC go to the food program which includes buying the food, providing the warehouses to pack the food, and shipping the food around the world.

However, my favorite part of FMSC, is the fact that they get volunteers to pack the food. Typically, a group of 10 to 100 people can sign up to volunteer at a food packing warehouse for a two hour shift. During this two hours, the people learn about what FMSC does, how to pack the food, and actually packs the food. A typical shift will pack about 18,000 meals. I have participated in groups from sports teams and groups from my neighborhood. My kids have participated in groups from their school, boy scouts, and girl scouts.

Volunteering at Feed My Starving Children has taught me and my children that there are a lot of people in the world less fortunate than ourselves and that need support from those of us that can give that support.

To donate to my favorite charity, you can go to this FMSC donation page.

My second favorite charity and non profit

My second favorite charity is Loaves and Fishes in Naperville. Loaves and Fishes provides food to people in need in their community, in this case Naperville, Illinois. My kids' elementary school each year runs a food drive where they collect food that goes to the food bank. My church also holds a food drive where 1/3 of the food they collect goes to Loaves and Fishes.

My kids love both of these food drives, which in turn provides a great learning experience for them and an ability to give back to our community.

Donate to Loaves and Fishes through this link.

My Third Favorite Charity

For the Kids is a Charity Golf Event that each year around the first Saturday in August supports a local child in Maryland that is suffering from a serious illness and whose family needs financial support. This not for profit has created an annual event in their community and each year fill the golf course with golfers who are willing to help out and donate to the cause. Through the help of local sponsors, raffles, a dinner, and various events on the course, the group consistently raises thousands of dollars each to help out its chosen family.

For me, this event allowed me to spend time with my dad each year while he lived in Maryland. I would travel from Illinois and spend the weekend with him, and we would golf most of the weekend including this event. It allowed us to talk and be ourselves and grow closer together.

If you would like to donate or Golf in a Maryland Charity Event then visit their website.

Graphic from the For the Kids website.

My Fourth Favorite Not for Profits

When my kids were in grade school, they all were in scouting. My daughters were in Daisies, Brownies, and Girl Scouts, and my son was in Cub Scouts. My son is the only one who continued on in middle school as he is currently in Boy Scouts.

I adore the scouting organizations as I believe they help provide kids a set of values that they can live their lives through. These are not substitutes for the values taught by their parents or their religious affiliation, but are connected and reinforces the right way to treat people and their environment.

My personal perspective is that when parents are involved in scouting, it strengthens the bond between child and parent while providing the opportunity to interact in activities I wouldn't have been able to otherwise.

I support this not for profit because it supports my local community and the kids in my local community. Their biggest fundraisers are the Girl Scout Cookie Sale in January and February and the Boy Scout and Cub Scout Popcorn Sale in September and October.

My final charity and not for profit

My final charity and not for profit is my local PTA or PTO, in this case it is the parent organization of my elementary school, the Longwood PTA. Continuing the theme of supporting locally and support kids, a PTA or PTO again allows you to participate in the not for profit while helping out children.

PTA's and PTO's are typically misunderstood since all people usually see them do is collect money and do fundraisers. However, after working as a Treasurer, President, and Vice President of my kids PTA, they do a lot more in the school than people give them credit for. For example, the volunteers in my PTA help out in the classroom and organize a lot of the extra curricular parties that the schools no longer spend time doing. It provides a way to communicate information between the school and the parents, and provides a support system for the parents themselves. In 2014, the Longwood PTA held its most successful fundraiser which emphasized fitness and having fun. The Run With the Lions 5K held at St. James Farm in Warrenville, Illinois was a huge success.

I continue to support parent associations as the education of our children is as important as making sure they are all fed.