Oprah’s Angel Network

After hearing about an issue, crisis, or natural disaster, people are moved to help and want to do more than write a check. In response, people start collections of items that may provide aid—clothes, food, school supplies, etc. These are “donations of goods” or “in-kind” donations.

These are always sent with the very best intentions. However, organizations have to be set up to handle incoming donations of goods, and the goods need to fit into its activities. Otherwise, unsolicited donations of goods hinder an organization’s operations or response.

Oprah’s Angel Network does not accept unsolicited donations of goods. We generally return any donations of goods received, as we aren’t staffed to handle or distribute them. And, we cannot act as a go-between to get donations of any kind (including money, supplies, and gifts) to other organizations or people, including those seen on The Oprah Winfrey Show.

There are many reasons we don’t accept unsolicited donations of goods:

• Shipping costs, especially internationally, can be more than the value of the donated materials.
• Often, materials should be purchased locally to promote the area’s economy and get to the recipients as quickly as possible.
• Material donations can be culturally, dietary, and environmentally inappropriate.
• Material donations require staff time and storage space. We don’t have these resources to dedicate.
• If you already collected goods, give them to a local charity that will accept your donation.

Financial donations are the best way to support Oprah’s Angel Network. This allows us to fund grants and purchase supplies for our projects quickly and locally.