<prompt> Human: Just a quick question. Who here donates to charity? Which ones do you donate to and how muchwhat percentage of your income do you give?I would like to do this, but I am not sure how much of my income I should donate and where I should donate it to. I am well-off but not to the point where I have money to throw around left right and centre. I am lucky to be as fortunate as I am so I would like to help someone who is struggling. I would rather use my money to help someone locally than just giving it to some giant organisation where Ill never actually get to see whether it is put to use or not.My only ideas so far is to call the local animal shelter and ask them what they need ie. pet food or toys, etc and go out and buy it for them.I would like to help someone out for example buying groceries for someone who is struggling or purchasing home appliances to help get a single mother back on her feet but I have no idea how to get in contact with those who need help.I am familiar with the concept of tithing, which is where you give 10 of your income to your church. I am not religious but I would like to do a similar thing. But 10 seems like a lot to me.  <response>: My only ideas so far is to call the local animal shelter and ask them what they need ie. pet food or toys, etc and go out and buy it for them.Just give your money directly to the organization. Usually shelters charitable organizations have way better buying power than you as an individual, unless you find some crazy loss leader sale products being sold at below cost.For example, if you take 10.00 and go to a pet store, you probably can buy 10 cans of dog food. But if the shelter calls up their supplier, the same 10.00 will probably net them 20 cans of dog food. I would like to help someone out for example buying groceries for someone who is struggling Google up local food banks, and donate to them. Food banks are generally where someone goes if theyre struggling and cant afford food for their table. or purchasing home appliances to help get a single mother back on her feet Google up local womens or womenchildren shelters, and ask them if this is a possibility somehow. They usually have programs to get these women out of shelters and into their own housesapartments. There might be a slush fund you can add to to help provide them with basic furniture stuff. 