7 Charities All Parents Should Support

When you become a parent, you realize that nothing matters as much as protecting and nurturing your child. Unfortunately, many children’s parents can’t provide the protection they need. Around the world, kids are affected by disease, armed conflict, sex trafficking and malnutrition. 

You can play a role in protecting vulnerable children by partnering with charities that are dedicated to their care. These seven organizations support struggling communities and protect children whose parents are unable to meet their needs. If you’re looking for a way to give back, start here. 

• Lifewater International

Women and children often have to walk for miles to access clean water. Others simply accept their situation and get sick from their water over and over. Lifewater International is a non-profit Christian organization that provides clean water to vulnerable communities. They partner with local churches to teach sanitation principles and make clean water accessible for the long term. 

On this charity’s website, you can choose a specific community and donate to their water project. Each project has information on how many people will benefit from clean water, how much money has been raised so far and personal details about local residents. Lifewater protects children from waterborne diseases and strengthens entire communities. 

• Save the Children

Save the Children works to protect kids in countries around the globe, including the United States, Ukraine, Africa, South America and the Middle East. In 2020, they cared for 197 million children and helped 12 million children access life-changing education.

In addition to health care and education, Save the Children also operates an emergency response program. They advocate for children’s rights in the political sphere and protect girls from child marriages. This charity works with refugees as well as impoverished communities in the United States. 

• Hellen Keller International

This charity offers vision and health care to communities around the world. They have programs specifically for children who have blindness and other disabilities. In 2021, this charity performed thousands of cataract surgeries and treated people for preventable blindness. 

Hellen Keller International also runs a nutrition program to prevent blindness and other health problems by meeting nutritional needs. They provide vitamin A, iron and zinc to young children and pregnant mothers. They deliver food and support farmers so families can more effectively feed themselves. 

• Four Diamonds

Every year, 16,000 children in the United States receive a cancer diagnosis. Four Diamonds is a children’s hospital that focuses on cancer treatment and support. They carry families through the entire process of treatment and recovery and conduct research to improve treatment processes. 

Donations help ensure that patients don’t have to pay for any of their treatments. The hospital’s holistic care involves social workers, therapists, nutritionists, chaplains and other professionals, as well as skilled doctors and nurses. They help families cope with the stress of childhood cancer while doing everything they can to ensure recovery and survival. 

• RememberNhu

Over 1.2 million children are sold into the sex trade every year. Most of these kids only survive for an average of three years before dying from physical and emotional abuse. Inspired by a girl named Nhu who was sold into slavery at a young age, the faith-based organization RememberNhu works to rescue vulnerable children before abuse occurs. 

They currently work in 17 countries and have directly prevented over 2,250 children from being trafficked into the sex trade. RememberNhu’s model effectively shuts down the sex trade in entire villages by educating families and eliminating the supply of children available for sex brokers. This model has protected thousands of children indirectly. 

• My Stuff Bags

As this charity’s website notes, over 300,000 children a year are removed from dangerous living conditions. These kids are suffering from abuse, homelessness, neglect and abandonment. My Stuff Bags provides physical objects like toys, stuffed animals and blankets that can comfort children during this disorienting transition in their lives. 

After children are removed from a difficult situation, many services aren’t prepared to supply their needs. My Stuff Bags can offer personal items to remind children that someone cares about them and they aren’t alone. So far, this charity has provided more than 650,000 bags to children in crisis across the United States. 

• Our Military Kids

Our Military Kids offers grants to military families so that they can afford extracurricular activities for their kids. When one or more parents are absent due to military service, children can suffer. Extracurricular activities can help give them the structure and character building they need to thrive. 

To date, this charity has given out 77 thousand grants to support military families. These grants help military families to handle the stress of missing a parent. They promote physical activity and community bonding and can improve military kids’ mental health. 

Kids Need Your Help

Your child has a loving parent, but many other kids are not so fortunate. Children around the world are suffering from injustice, dirty water and displacement. You can help change the trajectory of their lives by partnering with a charity that focuses on kids. 

Use this list of seven impactful charities to get started, but don’t stop here. You can use Charity Navigator or another service to vet the thousands of charities that are working to empower and protect children around the globe. Your investment will change lives, one child at a time.