As we celebrate our nation this week with the 4th of July, the color palette of red, white and blue can conjour up a lot of different emotions for many of us. Most of us associate it immediately with our flag and others as a classic, maybe even a country (as in rural) association. Others may associate it with our military. Charity Navigator guides you through the best charities for our heroes. So if you have been meaning to support your police, firemen or veterans this may be the week to search out either a local or national charity. Charity Navigator looks into what charities spend on fundraising and where your monetary donation actually goes. Surprisingly some charities spend over 90% on fundraising! That would not be a charity you would want to donate your hard earned dollar to as I think we all want our money to help as many people as possible.

I’m honored to be a member of the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) and my husband is an SAR. My 7x grandfather, William Butler, actually was with George Washington at Valley Forge and the crossing of the Delaware River. The DAR’s do a lot of charity work for our veterans as well as many other projects like to preserve historical archives, landmarks and historical structures. I linked you to the site above so you can see what the organization is involved in. You do not have to be a member to donate.

4th of July is also a time when most of us get to spend time with friends, family, neighbors and our community. (Speaking of…Do you know how to correctly display the American flag? Here’s a link!) So we’ll have some fun this week with red, white and blue recipes and decorations. We post Monday through Friday, so we’d love it if you’d follow along! You can receive our posts via your e-mail by signing up above in the right-hand column.

Lynn Butler Beling