Every day, Zamzar ticks away doing what it’s best at: converting and processing files. A PDF becomes a Word document. A presentation finally opens on your not-quite-ready-for-retirement laptop. A photo is resized so it can be emailed to your mum (who absolutely refuses to install another app).
From our side, we see all sorts of file formats, and progress bars keep zipping along. The files themselves, though, aren’t really the point. Those files belong to real lives. They’re part of real people’s work projects, real people’s creative quests, real people’s everyday tasks, real people’s stories to share. Behind every file upload is a real person trying to get something important done. And outside their browser page or app window, life continues for them in all its forms.
For some people, life outside file processing has more than its fair share of challenges: recoveries beginning, carers managing daily responsibilities, and people walking through new or ongoing difficult situations. So over the years, that’s led to a simple habit for us. Each month, we gift a percentage of our profits to financially support organisations that help people who are going through difficult times.
We don’t run a formal fundraising campaign, and we don’t pick causes for marketing reasons – we’re simply a team of people who care about people. Sometimes we discover a cause because someone connected to us encounters a charity at exactly the right moment they need one. Sometimes, we choose a local charity we know is doing great work. As a team, we take turns selecting causes that are meaningful to us.
This post is simply a thank you: both to the charitable organisations doing the work, and to the people who use Zamzar around the world. Every customer helps keep this service running and, in a small way, allows us to support causes like these.
The moments nobody plans for
It probably isn’t surprising that several of the charities we supported in 2025 were connected to healthcare. Often illness has a way of creating unplanned moments that introduce people to hospital corridors, wards, and waiting rooms. In those moments, when people think about healthcare, they understandably think of doctors and nurses. But around them is a wider support network encompassing charities funding equipment, improving spaces, supporting families, and helping people understand what’s happening to them.
Among the charities we donated to over the last year were groups helping patients and families through very specific illnesses and situations. Here are some of the charities carrying out that kind of work every day:
We supported the Aortic Centre Trust, a charity set up by aortic surgeons to help raise awareness of aortic disease, a cardiovascular condition where early diagnosis can genuinely change outcomes. This organisation also supports research into ways to improve early detection of the disease, and advocates for the training of specialists to help with disease management.
We also donated to the Royal Free Charity and Southampton Hospital Charity. Their work is often quiet and unnoticed, but it is deeply practical. They fund equipment, improve hospital environments, and provide support services that public healthcare budgets often can’t stretch to. Sometimes the difference isn’t dramatic. It might be a calmer waiting room, somewhere for families to rest, or guidance that makes an already stressful experience a little easier.
Another organisation we supported was Medical Detection Dogs, which trains dogs to detect serious medical conditions and assist people in living more independently. It’s a good reminder that care isn’t always about high-tech machines or medication; sometimes, creative solutions, reassurance, and companionship can have just as much impact.
We also supported Epilepsy Action, which provides information, advocacy, and day-to-day help for people living with epilepsy, and for their families. Access to up-to-date facts and easy-to-understand content can make a big difference in the face of a new diagnosis. Increased understanding can reduce fear, and community support can go a long way to making people feel less alone.
Support that continues at home
For many people, leaving hospital isn’t the end of the story. Often it’s the start of what might be a long period of adjustment, learning new routines, navigating unfamiliar challenges, and helping carers adapt as well.
We donated to the Stroke Association, which offers trusted information and practical lifelong help to those affected by stroke, supporting people as they recover, grow in confidence, and adjust to life after hospital. The organisation also pioneers vital research into the prevention and treatment of stroke, and campaigns for improvements in care.
We also gave to Alzheimer’s Society, which works with people living with dementia and their loved ones, providing advice and specialist guidance, running local support groups, and helping families navigate memory loss and the realities of long-term care. This charity also campaigns for evidence-based policy changes, and invests in research to improve the diagnosis and treatment of dementia.
Both organisations are there not only for patients but also for families who suddenly find themselves stepping into caring roles almost overnight, often for months or years. And while the organisations’ work might not be glamorous, and rarely makes headlines, it helps make everyday life more manageable for individuals and families, reminding people they’re not facing things alone.
Not every crisis is medical
Not every difficult moment involves a hospital. Sometimes the most urgent need is simply stability. A safe place to sleep, an address to write on a form, or a new starting point with a chance to rebuild.
We supported Shelter, which offers housing advice for people experiencing homelessness, and the Society of St James (SSJ), which works directly with vulnerable individuals through accommodation, rehabilitation support, and pathways back into independence.
Results aren’t always immediate or attention-grabbing. Often, they show up slowly, in someone regaining their confidence, securing work, or rebuilding a sense of direction.
Sometimes it’s someone you know
Some of the causes we supported this year were closer to home.
We donated to Naomi House Children’s Hospice, a local hospice that supports seriously ill children and their families. Alongside medical care, they provide respite, comfort and, perhaps most importantly, moments where families can briefly feel like families again.
We also supported an individual fundraiser for Jacob Newson, who was raising money for the RAF Benevolent Fund. Jacob has been a longtime supporter of the RAF and pledged to raise £100,000 for the charity, which exists to make sure that no member of the RAF, their partner or children faces hardship alone, during service or long after it ends.
Sometimes a cause reaches us through a person rather than an organisation; perhaps a friend of a friend, a local connection, a story that simply stays with us. Helping individuals and local groups directly can feel just as important as supporting larger charities, and we always try to leave space for that.
What your conversions help make possible
Zamzar isn’t a huge company, and our donations won’t change the world on their own. But we believe that giving matters. Even a little can make a big difference for charities that rely on voluntary donations. And if you’ve been a Zamzar customer in 2025, even for just a week or a month, then you played a part in this too, and we appreciate it more than you probably realise.
We’re continuing our tradition into 2026, so if there’s a charity you think we should be aware of, you’re always welcome to drop us an email and let us know. And in the meantime, while we see the file uploads, downloads, and formats of all sorts, we’ll keep remembering the people behind the files.
So, from all of us at Zamzar, a big thank you to you and to these fantastic charities that keep on keeping on.
