By Kevin Whipps

It’s the holiday season, and of course we’re all looking forward to hanging out with our friends and family, and maybe taking in a drumstick or two. But some people aren’t so lucky and don’t get the chance to see their families during December. Sometimes, not at all.
That’s why it’s important to remember to help those less fortunate than us. Often we say to ourselves that someday we’ll do that, but just not right now, we’re too “busy.” But it’s the holidays season now, and it’s time to put up or shut up. So how do you find a charity that works for you and will help people out? Let’s give you a few tips.

Look Inside

When it comes with finding a charity to work with, you have to first start with what you want to support. To do that, take a look inside and see what works for you.
Maybe you have a mother who was a victim of breast cancer, or a friend who lived on the streets at one point in their life. Point is, we’ve all known or been someone who needs some kind of assistance, and if we have the ability to help someone in a similar situation, this is a great time to do so.
Find a charity that relates to your personal experiences. Then narrow it down even further if possible. For example, maybe that friend who lived on the streets did so in your hometown. Look for a charity that helps people in that specific region, that way you’re directly affecting change. You can also go the other direction and expand your search. If your mother had breast cancer but you want to support cancer survivors at large, look at that as a charity option. Either way, you’ve started with a focus, and picked a charity based on that.
Find the Givers
Some people don’t donate to charity because they’re concerned about where their money goes. In some scenarios, a charity may be founded towards one specific cause, but the problem is that they don’t donate 100% of the proceeds towards said goal. That’s fine, charities need to raise operational costs too, but it’s when the percentage rates start getting lower and lower that some start to get concerned.
Do some research online to determine what charities in your focus exist, then narrow it down based on some of their specifics. For example, make sure the charity is a registered public charity, meaning it has 501(c)(3) status. Without it, you could be giving money to a scam. Make sure the organization has a history of doing good deeds and actually giving their money away. And whatever you do, don’t just give money to someone who calls you up on the phone and asks for it in the name of someone, who knows who they actually are.
This all comes down to properly researching your charity of choice. As long as you’re comfortable with giving your money to them after doing your homework, you’ll be alright.

Consider Alternatives

At the end of the day, cash is king with most charities. By giving them your money, they can designate where it goes and how it gets spent — it’s their job, so they’re good at it.
But there are other options for specific organizations. Goodwill takes all sorts of stuff, particularly clothes and other household items. Some groups take old automobiles as credit, which comes in handy if you find yourself with a vehicle that you can’t trade in or inherited from a friend or family member. Canned goods also work with the right charity, so stock up if that’s your goal.

Stay Local or Go National

Think about who lives in your area. Maybe you’re in a rural community with a volunteer fire department and a local sheriff who watches the town. Or say you live in a huge city with millions of people, where you pass the less fortunate on your way to work. Think locally, then start to look at a local charity that can help people near you.
Or, consider the opposite direction. Larger problems — cancer, AIDS, multiple sclerosis — are nationwide issues, and therefore need nationwide help. Look outside of your comfort zone to see what you can find.

Whatever You Do, Give

After doing your homework, determining your cause and going through everything else, the important thing to do is give. Who knows, someday you may be on the receiving end and need some help yourself, so give now while you can.

Find out more about the Arizona Pain Foundation.

By Kevin Whipps

When Drs. Paul Lynch and Tory McJunkin began Arizona Pain in 2009, they wanted to give something back to the community in a philanthropic way. But they didn’t want to just keep things small and focus on their immediate surroundings, they wanted to reach out further both nationally and internationally. It was then, on their very first day of business, that the Arizona Pain Foundation was born.

One of the great features of the Foundation is its ability to be flexible in the projects that it funds. The Arizona Pain Foundation board takes some of the tasks, requests and missions of the people involved and considers all of them equally, which then allows them to make charitable contributions to the areas and organizations that can make the most impact. “We’re trying to help those people in the greatest need,” says Dr. McJunkin. This makes sense, as pain management is such a broad field that encompasses so many other treatments and conditions, a foundation based on that premise should also think just as wide.

Flexibility and the ability to move quickly is key to the success of the Arizona Pain Foundation, something that Arizona Pain CEO, Joe Carlon, recognizes. “We had an employee that made her department aware that she was going to go deliver water to the Phoenix Rescue Mission,” Carlon recalls. “She was taking her time and her money and giving those dollars and that time on Saturday morning to deliver water to the homeless with the Phoenix Rescue Mission. I saw that email, and came through her department and [explained] what a perfect opportunity for the Foundation to support something that is important to one of our employees — and, by the way, recognizing something incredibly generous and compassionate behavior on behalf of one of our employees.” The Arizona Pain Foundation then went on to purchase several boxes of water for the Phoenix Rescue Mission, and made sure they were delivered properly as well. Again, the ability to move quickly and easily is a definite advantage of the Foundation.

There is a spiritual component of the Arizona Pain Foundation as well. “The goal of the foundation is to share the love of God by bringing compassion, healing and resources to those in need,” says Dr. McJunkin. Both Drs. McJunkin and Lynch feel that giving back to the community is something they should do as Christians, and the Foundation gives them a way to do that effectively and systematically. That commitment is also backed up by their business. “Arizona Pain contributes a piece of their profits every month to the Arizona Pain Foundation,” says Arizona Pain Specialties CEO Joe Carlon. “It’s about the Arizona Pain Foundation, where the success of Arizona Pain and the quality of the services we provide for Arizona Pain will allow the foundation the ability to then support activities in the community locally, activities nationally [and] also organizations all over the world that are trying to do good work.”

There’s another event that the Foundation does regularly, and that directly affects people in the Valley.
As it turns out, there are quite a few people from other countries — often political refugees — that live in the Phoenix area, and often they go through the holidays without any food to eat or reason to celebrate. The Arizona Pain Foundation wanted to change that by hosting an event and providing food and the Christmas story to a huge crowd. “To give Christmas to 1,000 people that otherwise wouldn’t have it is a very fun and gratifying opportunity for us,” Carlon says.

As the company grows, so will the Foundation. Recently, Arizona Pain expanded from the seven locations they hold in the Phoenix-Metro area, and added two more in Nevada: Henderson and Las Vegas. Whether or not the name will adapt to the location is still to be decided, but their commitment to the cause is as strong as ever. “At least right now, the branding will stay the same, but the Arizona Pain Foundation will support cities all over the country,” Carlon says.

What does the future hold for the Arizona Pain Foundation? As it expands from the Southwest out, there are limitless possibilities, which is exactly how the group wants it to stay. Whether it’s a local or national charity, if the Arizona Pain Foundation can help out, it wants to do its part. To find out more about the Foundation or to make a donation, visit Arizonapain.com/about/foundation.

By Kevin Whipps
It’s the holiday season, and of course we’re all looking forward to hanging out with our friends and family, and maybe taking in a drumstick or two. But some people aren’t so lucky and don’t get the chance to see their families during December. Sometimes, not at all.

That’s why it’s important to remember to help those less fortunate than us. Often we say to ourselves that someday we’ll do that, but just not right now, we’re too “busy.” But it’s the holidays season now, and it’s time to put up or shut up. So how do you find a charity that works for you and will help people out? Let’s give you a few tips.

Look Inside

When it comes with finding a charity to work with, you have to first start with what you want to support. To do that, take a look inside and see what works for you.

Maybe you have a mother who was a victim of breast cancer, or a friend who lived on the streets at one point in their life. Point is, we’ve all known or been someone who needs some kind of assistance, and if we have the ability to help someone in a similar situation, this is a great time to do so.

Find a charity that relates to your personal experiences. Then narrow it down even further if possible. For example, maybe that friend who lived on the streets did so in your hometown. Look for a charity that helps people in that specific region, that way you’re directly affecting change. You can also go the other direction and expand your search. If your mother had breast cancer but you want to support cancer survivors at large, look at that as a charity option. Either way, you’ve started with a focus, and picked a charity based on that.

Find the Givers

Some people don’t donate to charity because they’re concerned about where their money goes. In some scenarios, a charity may be founded towards one specific cause, but the problem is that they don’t donate 100% of the proceeds towards said goal. That’s fine, charities need to raise operational costs too, but it’s when the percentage rates start getting lower and lower that some start to get concerned.

Do some research online to determine what charities in your focus exist, then narrow it down based on some of their specifics. For example, make sure the charity is a registered public charity, meaning it has 501(c)(3) status. Without it, you could be giving money to a scam. Make sure the organization has a history of doing good deeds and actually giving their money away. And whatever you do, don’t just give money to someone who calls you up on the phone and asks for it in the name of someone, who knows who they actually are.

This all comes down to properly researching your charity of choice. As long as you’re comfortable with giving your money to them after doing your homework, you’ll be alright.

Consider Alternatives

At the end of the day, cash is king with most charities. By giving them your money, they can designate where it goes and how it gets spent — it’s their job, so they’re good at it.

But there are other options for specific organizations. Goodwill takes all sorts of stuff, particularly clothes and other household items. Some groups take old automobiles as credit, which comes in handy if you find yourself with a vehicle that you can’t trade in or inherited from a friend or family member. Canned goods also work with the right charity, so stock up if that’s your goal.

Stay Local or Go National

Think about who lives in your area. Maybe you’re in a rural community with a volunteer fire department and a local sheriff who watches the town. Or say you live in a huge city with millions of people, where you pass the less fortunate on your way to work. Think locally, then start to look at a local charity that can help people near you.

Or, consider the opposite direction. Larger problems — cancer, AIDS, multiple sclerosis — are nationwide issues, and therefore need nationwide help. Look outside of your comfort zone to see what you can find.

Whatever You Do, Give

After doing your homework, determining your cause and going through everything else, the important thing to do is give. Who knows, someday you may be on the receiving end  and need some help yourself, so give now while you can.