yendi

I've seen more than a few folks who have issues with The Red Cross or The Salvation Army, and would rather send their money through a different organization. I totally get that -- even though I'm pretty sure they're no longer letting top execs embezzle money, I still can't bring myself to give to The United Way, so I understand where people are coming from.

That said, it's worth remembering that even in a time like this, there are people and organizations that aren't above taking money that should go to the needy. In some cases, it's outright theft. In others, it's gross mismanagement. Either way, it's worth being careful.

Perhaps the best resource is Give.org's list of major Katrina charities. Give.org is run by the Better Business Bureau, and maintains report cards on most significant charities. Remember that just because someone is on that list, doesn't mean that they're legit -- read the report cards.

Give.org also has a nice page of tips for giving in the wake of a disaster that everyone should read.

And they've got a full report card of charities, disaster-oriented and otherwise, that's also incredibly valuable.

You certainly won't find every charity on here (hospitals and other groups are omitted), but it's a great starting point.

ETA: Local charities are more likely to show up in the regional databases -- http://search.bbb.org/ to look 'em up.