Not Your Father's Lodge: 5 Charities That Make Giving Fun

We're all looking for connections to our communities—and to each other. One way to find that attachment is to join a civic group or charity organization. But not everyone can fit a weekly lodge meeting into their busy schedule, and others find that these institutions simply aren't what they're looking for. Thankfully there's a new generation of philanthropic groups that don't require a lot of your time, allow you to have a lot of fun, and still do a lot of good in your community.

1. Child's Play: Mashing Buttons for a Good Cause

Video gamers often get a bad rap. They're accused of wasting their time, some studies show they have violent tendencies, and if you ever log onto Xbox Live, one of them will probably call you an unsavory name within the first few minutes. The guys behind the popular gaming website Penny Arcade felt like something had to be done to refute this bad reputation. So, in 2003, they created Child's Play, an organization that donates money, books, DVDs, and, of course, video games, to children's hospitals around the world.

Aside from donating on PayPal or buying items from a hospital's Amazon Wish List, gamers can also raise raise money through gaming marathons. Two of the biggest of these fundraisers are "Mario Marathon" and "Desert Bus for Hope." The Mario Marathon is a team of four guys who play every Super Mario Brothers Nintendo game (currently there are 15 in the series) in one long gaming session broadcast live over the internet. In 2009, they played for 96 hours straight and brought in over $29,000. There's also the "Desert Bus for Hope" marathon put on by the comedy group LoadingReadyRun. These guys play Desert Bus, a spoof video game where players drive a rickety old bus that pulls to the right, on an 8-hour, one-way trip from Tuscon to Las Vegas. Needless to say, it's not a game you'd want to play unless it was for a good cause. In 2009, these lunatics played for five days and 16 hours, while raising nearly $150,000. If you want to get involved in the 2010 marathons, check out their websites, mariomarathon.com and desertbus.org, for more information.

Thanks to efforts like these, as well as the thousands of everyday gamers who donated or purchased items, Child's Play was able to raise over $1.7 million in 2009 alone. Not bad for a bunch of slackers.

2. The 501st Legion: Bad Guys Who Do Good

Just because you're bad doesn't mean you can't do good. The 501st Legion is a group of hundreds of obsessed fans who don custom, homemade uniforms modeled after the villains of the Star Wars universe, including Imperial Stormtroopers, Clone Troopers, and, of course, the big bad guy himself, Darth Vader. Often you'll see them marching in parades or at promotional events that could use a bit of the Star Wars touch, but one of their most important functions is to raise money for charities.

If you'd like to join these bad guys who do so much good, head over to their official website and contact your local garrison today. And May the Force Be With You (C'mon...I had to say it!)

3. ZombieSquad: Protecting You From the Zombie Apocalypse

When the zombie apocalypse comes, will you be ready? With the help of Zombie Squad (ZS), you can be. ZombieSquad is an emergency preparedness organization that uses the fictional scenario of a zombie infestation as a metaphor to help people get ready for a real-life emergency, such as an earthquake, tornado, or other natural disaster.

Aside from promising to keep the streets clean of the living dead, they offer seminars on living off the land, first aid, and are proponents of "bug out bags," a duffel bag you keep packed with water, food, medical supplies, and other necessities so you can survive if you and your family need to evacuate your home. While they can prepare you for a "zompocalypse," they don't wait for the undead to rise before helping their communities. Every year, ZS raises thousands of dollars by selling tickets to zombie film festivals, spearheads canned food drives for local pantries, and holds blood drives for The American Red Cross. To promote these events, the members of ZS will often set up zombie flash mobs, where dozens of people dressed as zombies will slowly shamble down the street and converge on the event location. Suddenly, the ZS will appear, dressed in their paramilitary gear, and help quell the zombie uprising. Nothing like a little shock and awe to get people's attention.

The group has 15 chapters across the U.S., Canada, and the U.K., so if you're interested in learning what it takes to be a survivor of World War Z, check out their website to see if there's a local Squad in your area.

4. Keep A Breast Foundation: I

The group's biggest fundraising project is the cast program, where famous and not-so-famous women volunteer to have their busts cast in plaster. Afterwards, an artist or entertainer paints the bust and it's sold on eBay to the highest bidder. Past casts have included Burlesque star Dita Von Teese, actress Kelly Hu (X-Men 2), Suicide Girls models, musician Katy Perry, Tila Tequila, and quite a few professional female surfers. Painters have included Shepard Fairey (of the Obama campaign HOPE poster), The Foo Fighters, Iggy Pop, and the bands Alkaline Trio and Newfound Glory.

If you're interested in helping KAB, head over to their website and become a member for $25, which gets you all kinds of swag, as well as advanced news on upcoming events, and alerts you to volunteer opportunities. They also have their infamous "I Heart Boobies" t-shirts, tote bags, and bracelets for sale, with the proceeds going directly to their educational programs.

5. American Mustache Institute: A Celebration of Facial Hair and Humanity

Most of these charities, like the nationwide Mustaches For Kids, involve men getting sponsors for walk-a-thons or marathons. But instead of running 26.2 miles, they grow their mustaches out for a few months around Christmas before competing at a special 'Stache Bash party to see whose mustache is the "sweetest." Since Mustaches For Kids was founded in 1999, local chapters have helped raise over $1 million for children's hospitals and other kids' organizations.

While it's fun for the people who attend the AMI 'Stache Bash, the real winner of the night is the Challenger's Baseball Team, a local league for kids and adults with disabilities. Ticket sales to the event go towards buying equipment, uniforms, and trophies for all the players. A good cause, a good time, and mustaches for all. You can't go wrong with that.

If you'd like to setup your own chapter of Mustaches For Kids, head over to mustachesforkids.org. And if you'd like the AMI to help you with your own mustache-based charity event, visit their website or call 877-STACHE-1.
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Ever been to a charity event that's a bit outside the norm? Maybe you're a member of one of the groups we mentioned? Or maybe you're part of another not-so-serious group we should all know. Tell us about it in the comments below!