What if there was a way to give gifts that give back? We talked with Dave Turner, founder of Gifting to Gain, to discover how his organization is helping more people access clean water – and make a profit, too.
Gifting to Gain helps everyday consumers make donations a part of their budgets. For Dave, giving back doesn’t mean donating beyond your means, and it doesn’t require you to make millions of dollars.
Instead, by understanding tax laws in individual countries, it’s possible to supply life-changing products to people who need them most while breaking even on your budget – and even making a profit.
It depends on something called “gifts-in-kind.” These are “non-cash gifts made to a nonprofit organization, including goods, services, time, and expertise.” Many charities and nonprofits accept gifts-in-kind and even rely on them to complete projects where items might have been too expensive to buy outright.
Businesses often make these kinds of donations when they don’t sell much of a product and have a surplus that is depreciating in value. For these businesses, gifting-in-kind is a straightforward and inexpensive way to give back.
Straightforward makes sense – but inexpensive? Here is where things get interesting. By donating this way, these businesses can qualify for certain tax breaks that lessen the cost of not being able to sell their surplus goods.
To use Dave’s example, if Home Depot donates timber that cost $.20 per item, but they save $.37 on tax reduction, they have not only made up their loss but even gotten into the black.
This kind of donating is not reserved only for businesses. Individuals and everyday consumers can also “gift to gain.”
“People are familiar with giving money,” Dave says, “but not donating items that a charity already budgets for and is purchasing. [This] has been done for decades by accountants at the end of the year.”
Gifting to Gain helps to demystify this process. “All I’ve done is put together a turnkey program where individuals instead of businesses can acquire goods and donate them to charities. If the cost of the goods as they are is less than the tax liability, they save on taxes, or alternatively–they make a profit on the donation.”
This type of giving is helpful for two reasons: it supplies nonprofits with the products they need and puts the donator in a position to keep giving back.
“It’s a win win win,” Dave explains. “The charity wins, the donor saves, and there’s no shortage of need for clean water.”
And that’s the bottom line – more people receive the items they need.
The idea for Gifting to Gain came out of Dave’s 30 years in tax reduction programs. It started as providing advice and guidance to acquaintances, but quickly grew into a label of its own.
The real catalyst, Dave recalls, was the incubation of his son in rehab. “It was really God changing my heart for him that enlivened me back into the battle to fight.” Using gifting-in-kind, he was able to supplement the costs for his son’s care. It was then that he realized, ‘Wow, we can do Gifting to Gain a lot more and help a lot more people’.”
Since then, he has been at work in many different spheres, including WASH.
He first encountered Business Connect by chance during the 2023 cholera outbreak in Malawi, and has had experiences providing water purification products like P&G and Aquatabs to countries all over Africa.
In this way, he has been able to see how his brand is making a difference firsthand. Recently, he’s been working with a pastor in Nigeria who is working to receive purification products by the end of the year.
“You’re either defeated by the circumstances,” Dave says, “Or they inspire you.”
This style of donating can apply to a variety of products, but has particular implications for water filters and purifiers.
With 2.7 billion people experiencing water scarcity for at least one month out of the year, access to efficient and safe water products has never been more important.
According to Water.org, completely ending the water crisis would require donations of $200 billion a year . . . for over five years.
That’s a lot of money. But that’s why organizations like Gifting to Gain are so important. Reaching this goal will take creative and sustainable approaches to charity. Providing water products and spreading outreach is essential, and every contribution counts.
Not everyone has a million dollars on hand to contribute to charity. Confronted with huge price tags and numbers of affected populations in the billions, it can be easy to get discouraged about the state of water accessibility.
It can be even easier to forget that most donations in the U.S. come from individuals, not corporations. According to this survey by Philanthropy Roundtable, 71% of charitable giving comes from individuals not affiliated with other organizations.
Gifting to Gain and gifting-in-kind are just one way to approach charity in a rapidly changing economy. Whatever avenue you choose, your attention, care, and donations make a difference.
If you’re interested in learning more about Gifting to Gain, check out Dave’s website here.
This kind of donating is available to everyone, but your returns depend on other factors like your tax bracket, what and how much you donate, and your country.
It’s also important to note that there’s not one way to approach donating. Real change comes from a variety of solutions and efforts. Even reading this article and staying informed and vocal about the water crisis are valuable forms of activism.
If you’re curious about the products that Dave and hundreds of others have used for their outreach goals, check out Aquatabs, P&G Purifier of Water, and more on our website. Alternatively, consider becoming an affiliate here. Wherever you are on your water journey, let’s work together and start making a difference today.
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