Ways to Donate

There are many ways you can give that will help us save the sight and lives of millions of deeply vulnerable people around the world:

Join the Helen Keller Centennial Society, a prestigious group of donors who contribute gifts of $1,000 or more to our Annual Campaign. Read More
Donate Stock and Other Securities. If you are holding appreciated securities (stocks, mutual funds, etc.), you can make a gift that is worth more than you paid for it, avoid paying related capital gains taxes and receive a tax deduction for the full market value of the securities at the time of making the gift. Read More
Give through the Workplace. Many employers sponsor workplace giving campaigns that allow employees to support their favorite charities through payroll deductions. Ask your human resources manager if your company participates or would allow you to enroll. Read More
Give in Memory or in Honor of a Loved One. HKI welcomes gifts made in honor of family and friends for notable events or in memory of a deceased family member or friend. For more information, please email us or contact us at:

Helen Keller International
352 Park Avenue South, 12th Floor
New York, NY 10010
Telephone: + 212-532-0544
Toll-free: 1-877/KELLER4 (1-877-535-5374)

Consider Planned Giving. Planned giving can significantly reduce estate, income and gift taxes, allowing you to provide benefits to your chosen charities while helping your estate realize significant tax advantages. There are several giving vehicles available, including giving through your estate with a charitable bequest or a making a gift from retirement plan assets. Read More

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Helen Keller Centennial Society

To recognize the visionary and generous individuals who give the most to support our efforts, HKI has created the Helen Keller Centennial Society. Members of the Centennial Society are individuals who make unrestricted charitable gifts of $1,000 or more through HKI’s Annual Campaign.

Helen Keller Centennial Society members have a very special relationship with HKI. For example:

All Centennial Society Members are invited to attend HKI’s Annual Leadership Reception where they will meet members of the international community. In addition, members receive special recognition in HKI’s World View Newsletter and annual report, and receive special reports and publications about HKI’s progress in preventing blindness and reducing malnutrition.
Advocate-level members donate between $2,500 and $4,999 and receive invitations to attend special meetings with HKI program experts.
At higher donation levels, members receive invitations to have breakfast with President and CEO Kathy Spahn, to attend a HKI Europe’s special event in Paris, and to design their own trips to visit HKI programs in Asia and Africa.

We invite you to join the Helen Keller Centennial Society now and make an immediate donation by credit card through our secure Express Donation page.

In addition, you can:

Donate by phone. Call us at +212-532-0544 or toll-free at 1-877-KELLER4 (1-877-535-5374); or
Donate by mail. Send your check or money order to: Emily Chau, Development Office, Helen Keller International, 352 Park Avenue South, 12th Floor, New York, NY 10010.

Donate Stock and Other Securities

If you are holding appreciated securities (stocks, mutual funds, etc.), you can make a gift that is worth more than you paid for it, avoid paying related capital gains taxes and receive a tax deduction for the full market value of the securities at the time of making your gift. For example:

If you own securities valued at $5,000 for which you paid $2,000, you will have a $3,000 capital gain upon sale of the securities, resulting in approximately $600 in taxes.
On the other hand, if you have held the securities for over one year and donate them to Helen Keller International, you avoid the $600 capital gains tax and also receive a charitable deduction for the full $5,000.
Your donation to HKI could save you as much as $1,750 in income taxes, assuming a tax bracket of 35%.

You can donate stock and other securities via:

Direct wire transfers:

Electronic transfer of securities is easy and prompt, with no need for reissued certificates and registered mail. Included below is all of the necessary information for your broker to initiate an electronic transfer of securities to Helen Keller International:

Merrill Lynch DTC: 5198 
Merrill Lynch Agent: 27790 
Account Name: Helen Keller International, Inc.
Merrill Lynch WCMA Account
Account: 5AV-04A34

Unless you choose to give anonymously, please be sure to either notify us that a transfer is pending or have your broker include your name and acknowledgment information in the transfer documents.

Paper transfers:
Please sign the back of the original stock certificates, include any pertinent acknowledgment information and other instructions, and mail them to:

Helen Keller International 
352 Park Avenue South, 12th Floor
New York, NY 10010
ATTN: Major Gifts Department

For more information, please email us or call us toll free at: 1-877/KELLER-4 (1-877-535-5374).

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Give through the Workplace.

Many employers sponsor workplace giving campaigns that allow employees to support their favorite charities through payroll deductions. Ask your human resources manager if your company participates or would allow you to enroll.

Helen Keller International works in conjunction with Global Impact, an umbrella organization that allows international relief and development charities based in the United States to participate in combined federal, state government, county government, city government and public school district employee campaigns.

For example, if you are an employee of the government or military, you are eligible to participate in the Combined Federal Campaign (CFC). The number assigned to HKI is 10732.

We also participate in United Way, private sector and other campaigns.

If you would like to make a donation to HKI through payroll deduction, you can obtain a short pledge card from your human resources manager. You may also email us or contact us at:

Helen Keller International
352 Park Avenue South, 12th Floor
New York, NY 10010
Telephone: + 212-532-0544 
Toll-free: 1-877/KELLER4 (1-877-535-5374)

Consider Planned Giving.

Planned giving can significantly reduce estate, income and gift taxes, allowing you to benefit your chosen charities while helping your estate realize significant tax advantages. There are several giving vehicles available, including giving through your estate with a charitable bequest or a making a gift from retirement plan assets.

Making a Charitable Bequest. The simplest method of planned giving is making a charitable bequest. You can name Helen Keller International in your will, specifying the kind of gift you wish to give (cash or securities, for example). Bequests should be stated in clear, simple language such as: "I give, devise and bequeath to Helen Keller International, a nonprofit organization, the sum of $ _____________ (or specific asset) for its general purposes."
Gifts from Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs). Tax-favored retirement plans such as 401(k) and 403(b) plans allow you to put money aside on a tax-free basis for retirement. When these monies become part of your estate, however, they are often subject to extraordinary, multiple-tax liability, including both estate and income taxes. At the top of the federal and state tax scale, the rate of taxation on IRA monies can be a staggering 70% to 80%. One way to lower your potential tax burden is to make a tax-deductible, outright bequest of remaining IRA monies by simply naming Helen Keller International in your will and specifying the kind of gift you wish to give (for example, donation from an IRA).

For more information about any of these planned giving vehicles, please email us or contact us at:

Helen Keller International
352 Park Avenue South, 12th Floor
New York, NY 10010
Telephone: + 212-532-0544 
Toll-free: 1-877/KELLER4 (1-877-535-5374)

IMPORTANT NOTE: This website provides general information on gift, estate and financial planning. It is not intended to constitute legal, tax, accounting or other professional advice. For assistance with planned giving options, the services of qualified professionals should be obtained.