You have either one or more of these: a computer, smartphone, or tablet. More than likely it also means that you are in better situation than more than the 600,000 plus homeless people in the United States.

A) You have enough money to donate a few dollars to someone in need.

B) You can donate right now, where ever you are from your device.

Meet HandUp, the startup that has created an app that makes giving to the less fortunate simple. Currently operating mainly in the San Francisco area, but also in Oregon and Michigan allows donors to donate a selected amount of funds directly (100% of it) to a HandUp member via web donations. That’s right, everything you donate is transferred directly to the person’s HandUp account. HandUp covers its operations expenses separately, and cover the credit card processing fees so that every cent of the donation is used for the member’s basic needs.

How does it work?

You browse through members by either selecting or searching various keywords. You will then see the profiles of HandUp members that match your search criteria. You will see what the person needs money for, and how far in the funding process they are.

Donations are transferred directly to HandUp’s partner organizations for the purpose of covering the cost of the chosen member’s stated basic needs. Members with a feature phone or email access will receive a text and/or email notification of the donation (along with any words of support that a person might send). The member then works with the partner organization’s staff to redeem donations for the specific item or service that they need.

Who’s behind HandUp and how did they think of this?

HandUp was created by Rose Broome and Zac Witte. The two came up with the mobile donation system back in 2012, as both knew there must be a more effective way to help those with almost nothing left. Rose’s inspiration to get started came just by passing a homeless woman sleeping on the street on a cold night – she knew more could be done. After opening HandUp PBC in August 2013 the HandUp pilot was launched on August 14th at Project Homeless Connect’s 50th anniversary event.

How does HandUp fund its day-to-day operations?

HandUp lets donors opt-in a support fee to contribute to the company’s operations and growth, and over 80% of donors choose to do so. HandUp also gets support from corporate partners and investors.

At this point in time, donations are not tax deductible, but hopefully that will change soon, and when it does we will let you know. In the meantime consider checking them out and sharing this with others. You don’t have to live in the area of the member to donate. We are one society, with one goal.

Give back with HandUp