Why the Roles of Charities Should Never be Underestimated

When we sit at home and quibble about how stressful our days have been, and what hasn’t gone quite right, we sometimes lose the value of what is truly important in life. All around the world, millions live in poverty, a million miles away from the comparative luxury of our everyday lives.

Living in places such as the United States of America and Great Britain, it is easy to become ignorant of the challenges faced by those in third world countries and areas hampered by conflict. This is where the help and support of charities play a pivotal role in improving the living conditions.

Child Sponsors

In Syria, orphanages are reportedly overcrowded with children without any family to turn to. With no home to go to and without any suitable education, thousands of children in the country are left without the most basic of human rights.

These are the scenes that we, the privileged, hardly ever see. With numerous Muslim charities, such as Human Relief Foundation (HRF), helping to secure sponsorship to allow some of the children the essentials that they otherwise would have been forced to survive without, more and more is being done to help those in need.

Saving Lives

There is perhaps nothing more sacred than human life. And yet, every day, countless children around the world die needlessly from preventable causes. Whether it’s from hunger, disease, or violence, these deaths are senseless and preventable. But we can change that. By working together to improve access to food, clean water, and basic medical care, we can help protect the sacredness of human life. We can also do more to protect children from violence and exploitation. By speaking out against child labor and trafficking, and by supporting programs that provide education and opportunity, we can help create a safer world for all our children. It only takes a little effort to make a big difference.

Raising Awareness

One of the key roles that charities do is to raise awareness of issues, not necessarily just about those living in poverty. For example, the National Autistic Society (NAS) does amazing work to educate about those on the autistic spectrum and working with those that are.

NAS has built up a reputation, as a result, as one of the most authoritative voices on the subject, and regularly holds special events designed for those that live with autism. They are just one of many charities that organise such events in their area, helping to raise awareness and education those of whom may not fully understand.

Medical Research

It is no secret that medical possibilities have come on in leaps and bounds over the last 50 years, but there is still much more to be done. Unfortunately, there are many medical types of research that do not receive government funding, or are grossly underfunded, and rely on charitable donations in order to continue their work.

The research into a cure for cancer is one such cause that sees many charities set up in the name of aiding research, as well as helping those affected by the disease. Other areas of research that see numerous charities raising awareness and funding research in search of a cure are Alzheimer’s and motor neurone’s disease among others.

Close to Home

While many relief programmes do focus on those in need overseas, the same charities carry out fantastic work much closer to home. Poverty is not exclusively a third world problem, with hundreds and thousands of Americans living on the street without access to food or clean water.

Around the country, shelters are inundated with homeless people looking for a place to sleep for the night. These shelters are funded by charitable donations, while also relying on the hours of volunteer workers to keep facilities running in order to provide the support that is so desperately needed.

Although we may not see the positive effect that charities have in our everyday lives, without them, the world would be a much worse place. Ignorance is bliss, for us at least. But for those that cannot close their eyes and pretend that the troubles of the world are nothing more than a terrible nightmare, ignorance is the biggest obstacle between life and death.