With the earthquake in central China this week and the number of our community members who have been affected by the disaster, plus the recent cyclone in Myanmar, we've been asked by several folks about doing something in the way of donations or aid, as a community, to help out the victims of the recent disasters. 

While we've done our own charity drives in the past, such as the Childs Play drive last year, because of the immediacy of the need for relief in these regions, we wanted to step aside and encourage people to donate directly so the money gets where it's needed faster.

One organization through which you can donate money is the International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, the world's largest humanitarian organization.  It is an aid organization with no ties to nationality, race, religion of political platform.  Their goal is to get aid to those who need it around the globe, no matter their situation.

The IFRC has a donation page on their website that will allow you to specify exactly which disaster you want to donate money to.  It defaults to the China Earthquake fund on the form, but you can select any of the 9 listed options when donating.

If you're able, please do what you can to help.  With the death toll in China already at 22,000 and climbing, and in Myanmar estimated as high as 128,000, the need for aid is enormous.

If you do not want to donate through the IFRC, but have another charity you prefer to donate to that is providing aid to these disasters, please feel free to share a link and description in the comments below.  It doesn't matter how the help gets there, so long as it does.