Guidestar

Hi All,

Guidestar is a website to help users find information about nonprofit organizations.  Basically Guidestar gathers and disseminates information about IRS registered nonprofit organizations.

It provides information about each organizations mission, legitimacy, impact, reputation, finance, programs, transparency, governance and more.  To learn even more about Guidestar click on this link with is their 'About Us' page.

Guidestar has a search box at the top of the page - in addition users can click on boxes at the top left side of the page on Geography, Organization and Financials for additional links.  Users can also type in the state, zip code and other geographical information to find a nonprofit organization. 

When a nonprofit organization of interest is found, users can find the organizations' mission statement, ruling year (year the IRS granted the organization tax exempt status), President/CEO, contact information, EIN and keywords related to the nonprofit.

Users are allowed 5 free profiles before they are 'locked' out of the site.  However, by creating yor own free account, users can unlock unlimited profile views!

Links to Programs can be found at the top of the page.  In addition, Financials can be found at the other link at the top of the page as well. Operational information is available as well. However, to find this information (Program, Financial, Operational information) users will need to create a free account on the site....

Once you create the free account users will see the information available to users on Guidestar.  For nonprofit information its a great resource!

Enjoy the site!

Regards,
Stu

Help - Long Island 211

 Hi All,

Long Island 2-1-1 has, as its tagline, 'Get Connected, Get Answers' (Nassau and Suffolk Counties).  Boy does the site do that well - very well indeed. 

Essentially the mission of 2-1-1 Long Island is to provide all Long Islanders a comprehensive internet connection to human services on a day-to-day basis and in time of disaster.  2-1-1 Long Island is a free, non-emergency service that connects Long Island residents to health and human services they may need on a daily basis or during a disaster.

Available online, 2-1-1 Long Island provides users with detailed information on nearly 10,000 community resources for help and assistance in a range of areas.  Examples include:
•    job training opportunities
•    heating emergencies
•    financial or legal counseling
•    mortgage/rent assistance
•    health services
•    food assistance
•    substance abuse
•    education and training
•    child or elderly care 

The 2-1-1 database is managed by Middle Country Public Library and has been serving Long Island for many years, known as the Community Resource Database of Long Island.

Click here for a Directory of Services, here for Popular Searches, here for an FAQ, here to Contact 2-1-1, here for information on the Affordable Care Act, here for Health Emergency, here for Hurricane Sandy, here for Severe Weather and here for Transportation Issues.

Upon drilling down the site and finding a specific resource, users find general information about the service including a description of service, location and geographical area. Client information in the form of eligibility is included.  Contact information is provided in the form of names, addresses, phone numbers, fax numbers, email (where available) and web address (where available).  Information about the time the material was last updated is included as well.

Finally, affiliated agencies, programs and services are listed at the bottom of the page...

Whew - what a comprehensive site for Long Island assistance on variety of topics!

Regards,
Stu

Consumer Action Handbook

Hi All,

The new, 2014 Consumer Action Handbook (CAH hereafter in this blog entry) is now available for download now.  Readers can download the CAH by clicking on this link.

A good summary of the CAH is that, 'Users can use the Consumer Action Handbook (CAH) to get help with consumer purchases, problems and complaints. Find consumer contacts at hundreds of companies and trade associations, local, state, and federal government agencies, national consumer organizations, and more'

The 2014 CAH is 148 pages long and is divided into 4 parts:
Part I - Be a Savvy Consumer
Part II - Filing a Complaint
Part III - Key Information Sources
Part IV - Consumer Assistance Directory

In the 'Be a Savvy Consumer' section alone the reader will learn about 'Service Contracts and Extended Warranties', 'Identifying and Stopping Fraud', 'Shopping From Home', using 'ATM/Debit Cards', using 'Prepaid Cards', 'Buying a New Car', 'Buying a Used Car', 'Financing', 'Leasing', 'Lemon Laws', 'Car Repairs' and much, much more. 

this part on 'Being a Savvy Consumer' has further sections on 'Credit Reports and Credit Scores', 'Dealing with Debt', 'Paying For College 101' and more. 

The book is 148 pages for a reason! It is extensive, comprehensive and chock full of useful information for consumers of all needs and interests. And it is free!  What a helpful resource!!!!

Other sections that are notable in the 'Be a Savvy Consumer' section include: 'Insurance' - which covers Auto Insurance, Health Insurance, Homeowners/Renters Insurance, Life Insurance and more, 'Privacy and Identity Theft', 'Telemarketing and Unwanted Mail' (National Do Not Call Registry', 'Travel' (Resolving Air Travel Problems, Cruises, Travel Safety) and 'Utilities' (Billing questions and starting Utility Service).

There is one section in particular that users should be aware of: Part III - Key Information Resources contains a list of  various federal agencies that deal with various products.

For example,
 - Animal Products safety hazards are dealt with the Food and Drug Administration
 - Automobile safety hazards are dealt with the national Highway Traffic Safety Administration
 - Consumer Household Product hazards are dealt with by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission.

Finally, 'Key Information Resources' has information regarding Drugs, Cosmetics, Medical Devices, Toys, Baby Products and Play Equipment in this section. 

So there you have it.  A blog entry that might be short on additional links, is very, very long on useful, helpful, time-saving and money-saving information!

Enjoy the free download - and remember that you can access the CAH by clicking on this link!

Regards,
Stu

Steps For Applying For FEMA Assistance

Hi All,

More helpful - hopefully at least - links...

How to Apply For FEMA Assistance

Disaster Assistance Online.gov

FEMA Phone Number - Call 800-621-FEMA (3362) or TTY at 800-462-7585.

Hope this helps!
Stu