With Before-Thanksgiving deals, Thanksgiving Day offers, Black Friday, Small Business Saturday, and Cyber Monday competing for your attention comes another popular “day:” #GivingTuesday. Begun in 2012, #GivingTuesday a movement that celebrates giving and philanthropy.
According to GivingTuesday.org, 2.5 million gifts were made last year, raising more than $300 million in a single day. Of course, #GivingTuesday isn’t just about money. You can give back through your time and your expertise. GivingTuesday.org has a lot of suggestions for you, and below you’ll find a few ways you can give:
The Jimmie Hale Mission is home to several different ministries, including a homeless shelter for men, a homeless shelter for women and children, after school clubs, and recovery programs. Volunteers to serve meals, organize donations, and lead classes are always needed.
The Ronald McDonald House offers overnight accommodations for families who have children receiving treatment for life-threatening diseases. The Birmingham house offers opportunities in two-hour blocks to help clean up the house and count donated tabs from aluminum cans for recycling. The local house also has a wish list for items the house needs for its kitchen.
Chances are you do at least some of your holiday shopping online. One way to raise money for a favorite charity is Amazon Smile. It’s exactly the same as your regular Amazon account. All of your items on your Wish List and Shopping Cart will remain the same. So what’s the difference? By simply changing the web address to https://smile.amazon.com/, 0.5 % of everything you purchase will be donated to the charity of your choice.
If you want to get involved but don’t know where to start, this helpful search tool at mightycause.com will help you filter nonprofit organizations based on location, cause, and type of need.
So no matter whether you plan to get out into the community and serve a meal, clean a Ronald McDonald house, or give a monetary gift to support an organization that’s near and dear to your heart, we encourage your efforts to make our world a better place for your being in it.
Equal Housing Opportunity Lender