Yes, its true: Giving offers several benefits:
 

• Results of new study: "It is better to give than to receive:" "Regardless of how much income each person made those who spent money on others reported greater happiness, while those who spent more on themselves did not."  "Money can buy happiness — if you give it away.  Those who spent cash on others felt cheerier than those who didn't.  Read more... 
   

• It is better to give than to keep: There's also a portion of today's givers who see themselves as more aligned with how they give and the face of their giving. "People are starting to define themselves as how they give," he said. "There's a generation that is taking time to stand back and say, `Wow, this is where we are; let's try to change the world again.'"  Read more...

• Charitable Giving Benefits Giver As Much as Receiver: In terms of physical health and happiness, study notes that people who give more charitably are 43 percent more likely to say they are “very happy” than non-givers, while non-givers are three and a half times more likely than givers to report they are “not happy at all.”  Read More..

Other websites on giving, tax refunds etc

http://www.casefoundation.org/spotlight/giving/donating_tax_refund