The holiday season is likely when charities receive more donations than any time of the year. People are taking time to reflect on what they’re grateful for, and often want to help those who are less fortunate. And because charities, for the most part, are exempt from do-not-call requirements, many often avail themselves of the opportunity to request donations, both by email and by phone. Some of these charities are legitimate. Others, unfortunately, are not.

Charity Scam Story

Debbie hated this time of year. It was the end of March and past time, she knew, to get her tax records together. She glanced through her checkbook. Strange, she thought, I never heard back about that $100 I sent to the wounded Warrior foundation. Maybe I should call and ask them to email me a receipt. It was kind of weird, she thought. She’d been thinking about donating to a veterans’ charity when out of the blue came a phone call. It seemed so auspicious, so meant to be.

“Hello, Wounded Warrior Project, Sergeant Hall speaking.”

Debbie found herself absolutely thrilled that a woman was speaking and identifying herself as a Sergeant. She, too, had served, and it felt good to talk to another lady veteran.

Good afternoon, Sergeant,” Debbie said. “I wanted to ask if I could get a receipt for a donation I made on December 20, 2024. Tax time again, you know.”

The 2 chuckled. “I’ll be happy to look into that for you, Ma’am. Under what name was the donation made?”

Deborah Elliot. 1 b, ends in h. 2 l’s in elliot.”

Keys clicked in the background. “And you said 20 December, Ms Elliot?”

“Yes.”

“I’m sorry. I don’t have any donations for that day under the name of Deborah Elliot.”

“I don’t understand, Sergeant.” Debbie felt an unexplained tightening in her throat.

“Who was the donation made out to?”

“The Wounded warrior Foundation.”

There was a long pause.

“That’s not us,” Ms. Elliot, Sergeant Hall finally replied. “We’re the Wounded Warrior Project.” The sergeant emphasized the last word.

There was more typing in the background. “In fact, I’m on charity navigator.org, and I don’t see a Wounded Warrior Foundation there at all. I don’t think the Wounded Warrior Foundation is even a recognized charity.”

Debbie felt the tears come. “I served, too, Sergeant. I wanted to show my gratitude for having survived by donating to a reputable veterans’ charity. Wounded Warriors is really well known. I thought that’s who I was donating to. Seems like the only ones who got my money were scammers.”

The sergeant sighed. “I wish I could tell you this is the first time I’ve heard this story. Unfortunately, it’s not, and I’m afraid it won’t be the last. How did you find out about this supposed charity?”

“They called. I guess I should’ve done a better job verifying. Or better yet, contacted them myself, huh?”

“That is what we suggest, yes, Ma’am. I am so sorry that happened to you.”

This Holiday Season, Make Your Donations Count

Scam charities do an excellent job of fooling people. They generally have names that resemble real, respected charities, in this case, Wounded Warrior Foundation vs. the real Wounded Warrior Project. They talk about doing work that will pull at anyone’s heart strings assuming they’re not an unreformed Scrooge, and they often have very professional-looking brochures or websites to corroborate their stories. Unfortunately, the only ones who will reap any benefit from your donation are the scammers themselves.

So what can you do to ensure your hard-earned money is going to a real and worthwhile charity as opposed to scammers?

• Don’t donate over the phone or click on email or text message links. Instead call or go to the organization’s website yourself, using a known good number/web address.
• Check out the organization you’re thinking about donating to. Some organizations you may find helpful in this regard are:
  • Better Business Bureau
    • Charity Wise Alliance
      • Charity Navigator
      • Legitimate charities will not pressure you or try to make you feel guilty about wanting to do some research and not donating right away.
      • Donate using a credit card. If the charity wants you to pay using gift cards, wire transfer, or peer-to-peer app, you should seriously question its legitimacy.

The highly recognizable Salvation Army bell ringers outside retail stores should be fine, as they wouldn’t be allowed to solicit donations there were they not approved to do so. This holds true of cashier donation stations for various charities and projects as well.