07 April 2025

5 reasons why it’s good to give to charity

Supporting a charity brings you some brilliant personal benefits as well as helps do more for the causes you care about. Here are five reasons why it’s good to give.

Why you should support the Commonwealth War Graves Foundation & give to charity

Why do people give to charity?

A group of yellow-shirted CWGF guides sit on a wooden bench with two WW2 veterans in a war cemetery. A third veteran sits in a wheelchair sits next to the group on the bench. Behind them are rows of white stone CWGC headstones.

Ever wondered why so many people around the world give to charity? According to the Charities Aid Foundation, 75% of UK adults performed at least one charitable activity in 2024, while a further six in ten made a donation or sponsored in aid of their favourite good cause.

An estimated £13.9 billion was given to charitable causes in 2023. So, what motivates people to give?

Why give to the CWGF

You’re supporting our important education and outreach work

Our core mission at the Commonwealth War Graves Foundation is to educate the public on the work of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission and share the stories of those in our care.

There are 1.7 million men and women of the Commonwealth commemorated by our war memorials or resting in our war cemeteries. Each and every one was a more than just a name on a headstone or a memorial panel; they were a son, a daughter, a loved one, with their own story.

When you donate to the CWGF, you’re supporting our projects. With those, we engage with the UK public to educate and inspire them on our work to ensure the sacrifice of so many worldwide are never forgotten.

From our flagship Eyes On, Hands On volunteers programme to our on-the-ground Guides and much more, we’re working hard to make sure we keep their memories alive. Your generosity and support help us do exactly that.

Giving to charity feels good

Donating to a charity that supports your interests and causes you care about is a major mood-booster.

The knowledge that you’re helping support a cause dear to your heart can make you feel happy and more fulfilled. 

According to the Charities Aid Foundation, research has identified a link between making a donation to charity and increased activity in the area of the brain that registers pleasure. As they say, it is better to give than to receive!

Your donations make an impact

Our programmes and outreach efforts only happen through the generosity of our supporters large and small. From corporate fundraising to individual givers, we rely on supporters to do what we do.

But your donations make a real impact. Take the Eyes On, Hands On programme for example. Through your support, we’ve been able to train thousands of volunteers to help CWGC horticulture and maintenance teams care for graves across the UK.

In 2024, the EOHO teams completed:

In doing so, they were able to help us care for the final resting places of those service men and women buried in local sites and isolated war graves throughout the country.

This is just one example, but through your support, you are helping us achieve our main goal: keeping the memories of the 1.7 million Commonwealth service personnel who died in the World Wars alive.

With the 80th anniversary of VE and VJ Day approaching fast, it’s more important than ever to remember and preserve the legacies of so many who gave their lives for our futures.

It reinforces your beliefs

There are hundreds of thousands of charities out there doing incredible work in a myriad of sectors. We all have different causes that we believe in, and donating to a charity that aligns with your interests and goals helps reinforce that.

Maybe your support is drawn from your personal experiences; perhaps you just feel particularly strongly about one or two issues and want to do your best to support that. In a world where so many differing opinions clash, it’s important to stand up for what you believe in.

Certainly, many of the millions who served and fell in the World Wars did so doing their bit to support their beliefs and stand up against tyranny. We know it’s more complicated than that, but personal beliefs were a huge motivating factor for many who fought.

At their most basic level, charitable donations are a simple, effective way to reinforce your beliefs and make a real impact. If yours aligns with our core mission at the Commonwealth War Graves Foundation, please consider making a donation today.

You can become part of a community

As a CWGF supporter, you’d be part of a community of like-minded individuals who want to preserve and share the stories of the Commonwealth’s war dead.

You don’t have to donate your money either. Time is just as valuable. Commonwealth War Graves volunteers are a tight knit bunch, whether that’s working as speakers and tour guides in their local cemeteries, or EOHO volunteers.

Our Members and supporters all congregate to help us reach our goals. Will you be among them?

Help us keep telling the stories of the Commonwealth’s war dead

Keeping the memories of our war dead alive and spreading our shared is history is at the core of what we do at the Commonwealth War Graves Foundation.

Why not become a CWGF member? For just £36 a year, you can help us tell their stories while enjoying some big benefits:

Thank you from everyone here at the Commonwealth War Graves Foundation.

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