Aid and comfort

American now lead the way in delivering aid to the tsunami victims of the Southeast Asia. That means American donors may also be the most likely to fall victim to disaster-relief scams.

In the wake of tragedy, wellmeaning givers often "react emotionally instead of taking a step back and asking themselves, 'How can I help the most?'" said Rusty Leonard, head of the charity watchdog Wall Watchers.

On its website (ministrywatch.org), Wall Watchers warns would-be donors to steer clear of highly emotional fundraising appeals.

The tsunamis' unprecedented death toll, as well as the grinding, televised suffering of millions of victims makes that difficult, but "think through your decision and do not act by impulse," the group counsels.

Donors should beware of telephone solicitations (sham groups often swindle by phone, using names that closely mimic those of reputable charities), ask for tax-deductible receipts, send checks instead of cash, and send money only to direct-aid groups-not to those that take their own bite from relief money before redistributing it to other charities.

It's not only swindlers who can knock the wind from disaster-relief sails:

"There's sometimes a greater risk from well-meaning folks than from scams," Mr. Leonard said. "People who have supported a ministry in Sri Lanka, for example, may have heard of the great need there and try to do something on their own," such as gathering and sending blankets, food, or other material donations. "The gathering part may be easy," he said. "It's the actual distribution that's difficult in a situation like this." Do-gooders would do better to send donations - better yet, money - to established international relief groups that have distribution infrastructure in place, who speak the languages, and know the local customs, Mr. Leonard said: "That's the most effective way to help right now."

At the same time, longtime local relief and ministry groups with existing networks and good reputations are in position to move aid quickly. For that reason, WORLD includes several local groups among the following list of organizations. Campus Crusade for Christ ccci.org Tidal Wave Relief 100 Lake Hart Dr. Dept. 4200 Orlando, FL 32832 1-714-568-1023 Childcare Int'l childcare-intl.org 715 W. Orchard Dr., Suite 7 Bellingham, WA 98225 1-800-553-2328 Christian Aid Ministries christianaid.org P.O. Box 9037 Charlottesville, VA 22906 1-800-977-5650 Compassion Int'l compassion.com Colorado Springs, CO 80997 1-800-336-7676 Food for the Hungry fh.org 1224 E. Washington St. Phoenix, AZ 85034-1102 1-800-2-HUNGERS Gospel for Asia gfa.org 1800 Golden Trail Ct. Carrollton, TX 75010 1-800-946-2742 Hindustan Bible Inst. hbi.gospelcom.net P.O. Box 584 Forest, VA 24551 1-877-HBI-India Interchurch Medical Assistance interchurch.org P.O. Box 429 New Windsor, MD 21776 1-877-241-7952 International Aid gospelcom.net/ia 17011 W. Hickory Spring Lake, MI 49456 1-800-251-2502 International Mission Board (Southern Baptist) imb.org Asia Earthquake Disaster Relief P.O. Box 6767 Richmond, VA 23230 1-800-999-3113 Jubilee Campaign (supporting aid work for the National Christian Evangelical Alliance of Sri Lanka) jubileecampaign.org 9689-C Main Street Fairfax, VA 22031 1-877-654-4331 Kids for the Kingdom kidsforthekingdom.org P.O. Box 85 Graton, CA 95444 Phone 1-800-214-2005 MAP Int'l map.org P.O. Box 215000 Brunswick, GA 31521-5000 1-800-225-8550 Mission of Mercy missionofmercy.org P.O. Box 62600 Colorado Springs, CO 80962 1-800-864-0200 Mission to the World (PCA) mtw.org P.O. Box 116284 Atlanta, GA 30368-6284 1-866-373-6133 Northwest Medical Teams nwmedicalteams.org P.O. Box 10 Portland, OR 97207-0010 1-800-959-HEAL Operation Blessing Int'l ob.org 977 Centerville Turnpike Virginia Beach, VA 23463 1-800-730-2537 PIONEERS pioneers.org 10123 William Carey Drive Orlando, FL 32832 1-800-755-7284 Salvation Army salvationarmyusa.org 615 Slaters Lane P.O. Box 269 Alexandria, VA 22313 Phone temporarily disconnected Samaritan's Purse samaritanspurse.org P.O. Box 3000 Boone, NC 28607 1-800-567-8183 Shelter for Life shelter.org P.O. Box 1306 Oshkosh, WI 54903-1306 1-888-426-7979 Water Missions Int'l watermissions.org "Challenge Grant" P.O. Box 31258 Charleston, SC 29417 1-843-769-7395 World Emergency Relief wer-us.org P.O. Box 131570 Carlsbad, CA 92013 1-888-HUG-4-KID World Help worldhelp.net P.O. Box 501 Forest, VA 24551 1-800-541-6691 World Relief wr.org 7 E. Baltimore St. Baltimore, MD 21202 1-443-451-1900 World Vision worldvision.org P.O. Box 9716 Federal Way, WA 98063-9716 1-888-511-6598