Arlington, VA (April 3, 2023) – In the past two weeks, devastating tornadoes have hit Arkansas, Mississippi and other states leaving a path of destruction.  Recovery efforts are now underway.

To help those seeking to support relief efforts, BBB Wise Giving Alliance offers the following tips.

1. Is the disaster relief appeal clear? Seek out appeals that are upfront and clear about what disaster relief services you are supporting.
2. Is the charity experienced in disaster relief?  Support experienced organizations that stand ready to provide quick and effective assistance. Be cautious of organizations that form overnight in the wake of a disaster
3. Should you donate goods? Donating money is the quickest way to help and provides charities the flexibility to channel resources to impacted areas. Instead of donating food, consider supporting food banks near an impacted area. Visit Feeding America (a BBB Accredited Charity) which works with food banks across the country.
4. Have you verified the charity’s trustworthiness? Rely on expert opinion when it comes to evaluating a charity. We recommend giving to charities that meet all 20 BBB Standards for Charity Accountability, found at BBB’s Give.org.
5. What about crowdfunding requests? If engaging in crowdfunding, it is safest to give to someone you personally know and trust. Also review the platform’s policies and procedures, keeping in mind that while some crowdfunding sites take measures to vet posts, others don’t.

The following organizations are BBB Accredited Charities (i.e., meet the 20 BBB Standards for Charity Accountability) currently announcing that they are collecting funds to assist tornado relief efforts.  This list will be updated as additional efforts come to our attention.

American Red Cross

GlobalGiving

Salvation Army

Save the Children

ABOUT BBB WISE GIVING ALLIANCE: BBB Wise Giving Alliance (BBB’s Give.org) is a standards-based charity evaluator that seeks to verify the trustworthiness of nationally soliciting charities by completing rigorous evaluations based on 20 holistic standards that address charity governance, results reporting, finances, fundraising, appeal accuracy and other issues. National charity reports are produced by BBB’s Give.org and local charity reports are produced by local Better Business Bureaus – all reports are available at Give.org.

ABOUT BBB: The Better Business Bureau has empowered people to find businesses, brands, and charities they can trust for over 110 years. In 2021, people turned to BBB more than 200 million times for BBB Business Profiles on 6.3 million businesses and Charity Reports on 12,000 charities, for free at BBB.org. The International Association of Better Business Bureaus is the umbrella organization for the local, independent BBBs in the United States, Canada, and Mexico.