What are some of your favorite charities? Ones that are worthy of your time, money or efforts.

These folks helped me when my wife died... They do great things to a lot of people. They are worth your time and money.

http://www.militaryfriends.org/

I like the mission of Project Sanctuary. LTC Jason Strickland is part of the management team there. It's worth a few mins of your time to check out what they do.

MSG Kirt Highberger, not to toot our own horn, but I'm very proud of the work we're doing at Project Sanctuary.

Our retreats support the healing and reintegration of military personnel and their entire family, and more than seven years of data support our best practices:
- 90% of military couples who have gone through the program are still married
- 0% of attendees are homeless
- 0% of attendees have lost their life from suicide
- 100% of attendees who are able to work are currently employed
- 91% of our subjects with PTSD symptoms demonstrated a clinically significant improvement after our six-day retreat (Per Regis University Preliminary Study)

http://www.projectsanctuary.us

I like the Semper Fi fund. https://semperfifund.org/

I strongly encourage researching quality of charities.
http://www.charitynavigator.org/index.cfm?bay=search.summary&orgid=11708#.VMklC8m3DGw
http://www.charitywatch.org/aboutaip.html

And to get meta: research ratings of the raters.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charity_Navigator
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Institute_of_Philanthropy#Criticism_of_AIP_and_other_charity_raters.27_methodology

I donate through CFC at work but these are my top 4:

Walter Reed Fisher House
Project Sanctuary
Toys for Tots
American Legion

Focus on the Family

http://www.focusonthefamily.com/

Uso most definitely

American Heart Association. American Cancer Society

Paralyzed Veterans of America

I have donated more to the Salvation Army than any other charity because I know that more of what I donate will reach those in need than with any other charity.

Locally, I support a little known charity that is helping Marines at Camp Pendleton and Miramar Air Station, as well as young veterans at local community colleges who are subsisting on little more than their GI education benefits while they hope to find employment one day. They are The Helping Hand Worldwide. I learned of them through another member of my local VFW post who works with them as a volunteer. It was through him that I learned of the great need of young families of Marines deployed to Afghanistan and other combat zones.

It seems that we as a nation have let them down and they are in great need of the most basic commodities such as food and diapers. My fellow member of he VFW, working with The Helping Hand collected and transported tons of these things to Camp Pendleton where these young mothers lined up to receive the help. It is heart rending to see them and their plight.

Thus I have taken it upon myself to approach corporate donors seeking assistance for their operation. Some have arranged for their employees to donate diapers and food as well as chipped in matching funds.

We don't know where our tax money is being spent (and probably don't want to know) but charity delivered directly to serving men and women and their families is going where it is desperately needed.