By Suzanne Monson
Special to The Times
It shouldn't bother donors to learn that many legitimate, tax-exempt 501(c)(3)-registered charities contract with other companies, says Bert Colley, president of the Washington Council of the Blind, considered one of the pioneers in cars-for-charity in this region.
Most charitable groups don't have the overhead to run this kind of program, he explains.
"We're an all-volunteer program," Colley says. "We'd have to purchase a fleet of a dozen trucks, run maintenance, employ people, pay out all the Labor and Industry things you have to when you have a business. That would probably knock it down to 12 to 13 percent actual net for us."
Instead, he says, the council receives about 22 percent of the vehicle's sale price. The money supports scholarships, crisis programs and education support. Since starting its program in 1998, the council has gone from a nonprofit group that collected $75,000 in donations to one that made $270,000 last year. Colley calls the 3,600 vehicles it collected in 2002 the council's "best year ever."
To Tom Williamson of Renton, a little money to a charity is better than none at all. That's why he has donated two vehicles to Washington Council of the Blind. "I knew some of the work they did, saw the ads in the newspaper, and I actually did call to see if they were who they said they were," Williamson says. "They made it painless. In both cases, I called the number. They asked me a few questions about the cars — its brand, age, condition — and they sent me a packet in the mail within five days.
"They gave me information on how to calculate the fair market for the tax deduction," Williamson says. "But honestly, I just wanted them to be moved."
http://www.car-donate-program.com
http://www.world-donation.com
http://www.donation-car-us.com
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