Updated Tuesday with additional nonprofits to consider supporting.
It has been a difficult year, but many people have also shown their willingness to help their neighbors.
Giving generously not only helps support those in need, but there's also a financial incentive.
If you donate to a 501(c)(3) public charity before the end of the year, you to take a charitable deduction and potentially reduce your tax bill while improving the community around you.
If you're able and wanting to give back, here are just a few local nonprofits that could use your support.
Cars For Kids
Cars For Kids has been around for nearly 30 years. This charity car donation program will take your car no matter its condition. Your vehicle will then be sold at an auction for a price you can deduct from your taxes. There is also a $50 gift card included.
The nonprofit provides free towing and different pick-up options. Vehicles accepted include cars, trucks, vans, boats, motorcycles, RVs, campers, jet skis, forklifts and trailers.
All of the money raised supports kids who get anything from healthcare to meals so they can focus on their education.
Donations or financial contributions benefit the Texans Can Academies of Dallas, Fort Worth, Houston, Austin, and San Antonio.
To donate, click here.
The Salvation Army of North Texas
Starting 131 years ago, The Salvation Army of North Texas helped people who have fallen on hard times. The nonprofit offers aid to the elderly, the young, offenders, drug addicts and blind and disabled people. It provides food and shelter for the homeless and operates food distribution centers.
The North Texas branch covers 4,078 square miles in Collin, Dallas, Denton, Ellis and Tarrant counties. That makes it the largest Salvation Army Command in the world.
The Salvation Army of North Texas helped about 80,000 North Texans in 2019.
Along with monetary donations, the nonprofit will also accept items such as clothes, furniture and household items as well.
To donate, click here.
The Family Place
Since 1978, the Dallas organization The Family Place has provided safe housing and counseling for victims of family violence.
The Family Place is the currently the largest family violence service provider in Texas.
The organization's three emergency shelters provide 177 shelter beds a night. The Family Place served 11,711 clients in 2019 while also providing 64,605 days of emergency shelter. All of our services are in Spanish and in English.
Some of the other services include an medical clinics, transitional housing, children's counseling and an incest recovery program.
The non-profit allows you to donate wherever the need is greatest or towards a particular program of your choosing. You can also donate directly from a stock, bond or mutual fund.
To donate, click here.
Humane Society of North Texas
The Humane Society of North Texas is not just an animal shelter, it also has a clinic, animal cruelty investigators and humane euthanasia services.
In 2020, this nonprofit will have found homes for more than 8,500 pets and transport more than 2,000 pets to other areas of the country where they can find a home.
The Humane Society of North Texas' outreach services like Rae of Hope provide free basic veterinary care for the pets of nearly 500 senior citizens in low-income areas of Fort Worth. This program also provides low-cost vaccinations to another 600 pets from underserved areas of the city.
While donations help give animals a safe place to live, you can also order items from the nonprofit's wish list that are then shipped directly to the shelter.
To donate, click here.
North Texas Food Bank
The North Texas Food Bank is always in need of donations, especially in the middle of a pandemic. This nonprofit provides food for people in 13 counties across North Texas.
Its Food 4 Kids program gives backpacks full of nonperishable foods to about 300 schools and 11,000 hungry children each week.
The North Texas Food Bank also provides low-income seniors a nearly 40-pound pre-packaged box of food once every month.
The food bank takes both monetary donations and food items such as canned vegetables and canned tuna or chicken as well.
To donate, click here.
Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals of Texas
Starting in 1938, the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) of Texas is an animal welfare agency in North Texas. The organization has three shelters and three spay/neuter clinics in Dallas, Collin and Ellis counties.
These shelters are resource centers with many different programs and services for people and animals.
SPCA of Texas also puts on a summer camp for children to learn about important values related to treating animals and pets correctly.
To donate, click here.
OurCalling
The faith-based Dallas organization OurCalling works to offer long-term support to people without a home.
Volunteers go out into the streets to help the unsheltered homeless in North Texas build a healthy and sustainable lifestyle.
There is also an OurCalling app that allows people to let the nonprofit know when and where they met someone living on the street or noticed a homeless encampment so volunteers can reach out.
OurCalling created a directory that includes shelters, kitchens and clinics where those without means can get food, shelter, and medical care.
Some of the nonprofit's programs include substance abuse recovery programs like AA and NA, peer group meetings for women and men and life skills training.
Donations help provide the homeless with clothes, food and educational opportunities.
To donate, click here.
Hope's Door New Beginning Center
Hope's Door New Beginning Center helps people and families facing domestic abuse, dating abuse and family violence through free trauma-informed services.
This organization provides educational programming to schools and organizations, as well as the Battering Intervention and Prevention Program (BIPP) to help people with abusive behaviors.
Hope's Door New Beginning Center has a 24/7 hotline in English and Spanish for people to talk through safety planning, services, and resources.
To donate, click here.
Union Gospel Mission of Tarrant County
Union Gospel Mission of Tarrant County has more than 130 years of experience providing food, shelter and supportive services to thousands of men, women and children.
This organization has a six-acre campus where residents participate in programs that help develop the skills they need to return to the community as independent, productive members.
Along with monetary donations, other items are also welcome such as puzzle and coloring books for children.
To donate, click here.
United Way of Metropolitan Dallas
United Way of Metropolitan Dallas is a community-based social change organization that puts opportunity in the hands of all North Texans.
The organizations works to improve education, income and health.
United Way of Metropolitan Dallas has a goal of at least 60% of North Texas students graduate prepared for college or a career.
Another goal is to help North Texans have the skills and tools to achieve financial stability. So far, United Way of Metropolitan Dallas has helped reduce the projected number of North Texans in poverty by 300,000.
To donate, click here.
Other places to give
These options are just a few of the many nonprofit organizations helping those throughout our North Texas communities.
Have a cause close to your heart? Interested in searching for more organizations?
The Communities Foundation of Texas has put together a giving guide featuring numerous giving opportunities to make an immediate impact.
The guide is broken down by category and features nonprofits in a number of categories, including veterans, racial equity, education and more.
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