Our Clients’ Favorite Local Atlanta Charities

It’s time to give back! Giving season is finally here and many Atlanta charity organizations and nonprofits desperately need your aid. But what are the best Atlanta charities to donate to, and which ones have a meaningful impact? While many of our clients donate to national nonprofits from Goodwill to the ASPCA to their own religious organizations, we wanted to highlight some top-tier, non-denominational, Atlanta-based charities that are doing valuable work in our own communities.

But first, here’s some things to remember when donating for tax purposes.

What To Keep in Mind When Donating to Atlanta-Based Charities

• Is it a 501(c)(3) nonprofit? You can double check using the IRS search tool. The organization will also like have its documentation on their website.
• Are you making a Qualified Charitable Distribution (QCD)? This is typically taken out of your IRA. If so, you may want to avoid a private foundation, as it will not qualify.
• Have you connected with your accountant? Donations don’t need tax incentives, but if you plan on having a good tax strategy, make sure that you plan to itemize.
• Will you get proper documentation? It’s very important to keep receipts.
• Are you accepting gifts in return? A tee-shirt or a water bottle might need to be itemized.
• Will you need to file a gift tax return? For giving very large sums, see the exclusion amounts.

Our Local Atlanta Charities List

We’ve arranged our list of local Atlanta charities by topic, such as food support to environment improvements, so that you can find the cause that you most believe in!

Homelessness Support

• Feet of Clay – Supports survivors of domestic abuse in the Atlanta area.
• Midtown Assistance Center – Prevents homelessness and hunger in midtown Atlanta.
• Ahimsa House – Provides assistance to domestic violence victims with pets.
• Lost-N-Found Youth – Prevents homelessness for LGBTQ+ youths.
• Hope Atlanta – a 125-year organization with the goal of preventing and ending homelessness.
• Hosea Helps – Offers aid to homeless youth as well as feeds the hungry in Atlanta.

Food & Hunger

• Backpack Buddies of Metro Atlanta – Provides weekend meals to children who rely on school breakfasts and lunches. Our team has volunteered with them in the past!
• Open Hand – Directly delivers meals to those in need.
• Atlanta Community Food Bank – An organization with a clear mission to end hunger in Atlanta.
• Hands On Atlanta – Tackles food insecurity, education, and environmental needs through volunteering and organizing. 
• Wholesome Wave – Provides fresh, healthy, and locally-grown food choices to those who need nutrition assistance.

Other Kinds of Poverty Aid

• Helping Mamas – Gives diapers, baby supplies, period products, and other expensive-but-necessary items that mothers and families need.
• Neighbor in Need – Provides critical repairs to the homes of low-income and elderly neighbors in East Lake, Kirkwood, and Edgewood.
• Atlanta Legal Aid Society – Offers free civil legal assistance to protect the rights of those in need.
• Fugees Family – Offers support to English language learners.

Health & Healing

• Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta (CHOA) – Gives pediatric healthcare to those in need.
• Atlanta Regional Collaborative for Health Improvement (ARCHI) – Fights healthcare inequities via cross-sector collaboration.
• Chris 180 – Helps families, youth, and children overcome trauma with therapy, foster care, adoption, and community support services.
• Chastain Horse Park – Provides therapy with horses at Atlanta’s local stables. 
• Kate’s Club – Provides grief support to children, teens, and young adults.

Arts & Community Enrichment

• The King Center – Offers nonviolence education and training and community leadership nationally.
• Woodruff Arts Center – Educates, connects, and informs the next generation through access to the arts, while also investigating the neuroscience of arts healing with the NeuroArts Blueprint Initiative. 
• The Center for Puppetry Arts – Educates, entertains, and inspire imagination through workshops and performances.
• Atlanta Opera – Offers performances and educational programs to the community.
• Atlanta Shakespeare Company – Offers living theater and education to the community.
• Atlanta Beltline – Transforms public infrastructure for better mobility and opportunity in Atlanta.
• Soccer in the Streets – Offers kids free in-school and after-school programs in metro Atlanta.
• Community Foundation for Greater Atlanta – Works toward the goal of shared prosperity in Atlanta.
• Atlanta Women’s Foundation – Lifts women and girls out of poverty.

Environmental Support & Protection

• Keep Georgia Beautiful Foundation – A partner of the Georgia Department of Community Affairs and the Georgia Environmental Protection Division, the foundation’s goal is to reduce litter and waste while beautifying our communities.
• Wild Nest Bird Rehab – Rehabilitates injured and orphaned wild birds.
• Atlanta Botanical Garden – Offers a beautiful greenspace in Atlanta and offers conservation to protect endangered plants across the Southeast.
• Trees Atlanta – Plants trees and improves the urban forest of Atlanta.

Major National Nonprofits with Headquarters in Atlanta, GA

• American Cancer Society – One of the most well-known nonprofits in Atlanta, the society aims to improve the lives of people with cancer and their families.
• The Carter Center – Protects human rights, resolves conflicts, advances democracy, and prevents disease in more than 90 countries.
• Habitat for Humanity International – Builds or provides homes to thousands of families internationally.
• Boys & Girls Clubs of America – Offers afterschool and summer programs for young people to support academic success, characters, and leadership.
• Arthritis Foundation – Pursues a cure for the #1 cause of disability in America.
• Giving Kitchen – Provides help to food service workers.

Corporate Giving

Lastly, as Atlanta is a home to numerous large corporations, many of said corporations run powerful and impactful foundations that have a local impact as well, such as Cox, Home Depot, and Coca-Cola.

Even More Organizations

We’ve just barely scratched the surface of local Atlanta-based charities you can donate to this November. Atlanta Magazine created a list of the top 500 most important people in religion, nonprofits, and advocacy! You could also consider joining a charitable group like the Impact100! Thousands of groups and volunteers are working in your own communities about issues you care about. They can really use your help.

If you’re wondering how to navigate taxable charity donations, major donations and gifts, and other tax-based concerns, reach out to a local Atlanta CPA you can trust!