Donations to Haiti Will Not Harm Giving to Other Causes, Experts Say

Some fund raisers are privately concerned that the extraordinary outpouring of gifts to help victims of Haiti’s earthquake could depress other giving, adding another obstacle in an already difficult fund-raising environment.

But most experts say that the outpouring of generosity to Haiti will have little impact on charitable support for other causes.

“It’s a natural question but the reality is this kind of giving very seldom has any impact on other charities,” said Bob Carter, vice chairman of Changing Our World, a nonprofit group that consults with charities. “People who don’t normally give to charity will rise to a crisis and make a gift, and very few people who are generally philanthropic are going to stop giving to things they believe in.”

Melissa Brown, associate director of research at the Indiana University Center on Philanthropy, said the experience of charities after the 2004 Asian tsunamis backed up that assertion.

“People give to the tsunamis and everything else, rather than [giving to] the tsunami instead of other things,” she said. “It’s over and above any other giving that they do.”

She said she expected this to continue despite people being more worried about their finances because of the recession.

That said, charities that sent out direct-mail solicitations in the past week will probably receive fewer responses than they might have if the earthquake had not struck, said Lisa M. Deitlin, a fund-raising consultant, in an e-mail.

“If the mailing can be delayed a few weeks,” she said, “my recommendation would be to delay it.”

She also encouraged charities that were holding fund-raising events this month to consider dedicating some time during the event to talk about how donors could help Haiti, or direct a portion of the amount raised to aid earthquake victims.

Fund raisers with experience raising money during past disasters said they were not too concerned.

“I can’t recall ever seeing or hearing a prospect to local campaigns saying, ‘Gosh, I can’t do that because I gave money to fill-in-the-blank disaster,’” said William Krueger, president of Capital Quest, which helps nonprofit groups raise money for capital campaigns.