The National Voluntary Organizations in Disaster website has a list for people interested in supporting disaster relief efforts:

1. Financial contributions are often the best kind of donation to make.
2. Used clothing is rarely a useful item to collect for disaster relief. (mounds of clothing take up valuable warehouse space and frequently end up being discarded)
3. Confirm the need before beginning a collection of donated goods.
4. Transportation must be planned in advance (don’t assume that unsolicited relief supplies will be transported at no charge or at gov’t expense).
5. Donated goods must be well packed and labeled. (put yourself in the shoes of the person on the receiving end)
6. Volunteers are encouraged to affiliate with a voluntary agency involved in disaster response and recovery. (before the next one strikes, get some disaster training)

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