With the holidays being in full swing, there’s a major push to give back. And that’s not a bad thing at all. Giving back, being charitable, helping those who are less fortunate is always good and keeps with the spirit of the season. Doing so at the end of the year means that those organizations can start the new year with (hopefully) all they need. If you’re unsure of what you can do or if you need ideas, Lynsey over at Eternally Wanderlyn listed 10 ways you can give back. But if nothing on her list seems like something you can or want to do, here’s a few alternatives, not just around the holidays but throughout the year:
Workplace donations
This is one of the easiest ways to give back throughout the year. If your workplace participates in a United Way campaign, consider having money pulled from your paycheck each payday and have it sent directly to an organization of your choosing. I did this when I worked and I truly didn’t miss the $10 per pay. Sure, it wasn’t a huge amount, but it was something and it was literally the easiest way to help an agency whose mission I believed in throughout the year.
If your job hosts a food drive or coat drive or something similar, consider bringing in a donation. You have to show up to work anyway. Taking along a can or two of food or an extra coat to drop off isn’t a big inconvenience.
Use your skills
Everyone is good at something and every organization can use someone who has a specific skill set. For instance, if you can sew, consider sewing pillowcases for the 1 Million Pillowcase Challenge. If you’re good with money, consider working with an agency that helps people learn to budget. Maybe social media is your thing. Find out if a local organization needs help managing their Facebook or Twitter. If you blog, use your platform to bring attention to a disease or cause. There are dozens of ways to use what you’re good at to help.
Mentor
This can fall under the scope of volunteering but rather than just showing up somewhere and helping wherever you’re needed, you’ll work directly with a person or a small group of people. You can do this anywhere–at work, in a school, at your place of worship, at a shelter for pregnant teens, or any number of places where there might be others who can benefit from your guidance. If you think you don’t have any special insight to offer, trust me when I say that you do. There are plenty of people who can learn from what you know. And sometimes, they just want someone who won’t judge them to talk to and spend time with. You can do that.
Event based volunteering
I think many people are put off by the idea of volunteering because of the time commitment. And they have a point. But what if you gave your time every now and then, and you gave your time to causes that have a special meaning to you? For instance, you can offer your time at a Meals on Wheels event, taking tickets or staffing an auction table. Or you can organize a Relay for Life team or spend some time helping at Habitat for Humanity or find something in your area that gives back to local organizations. Where I live, we have something called Big Ball. It’s a 24 hour softball/kickball marathon and all the money raised goes towards helping people in our area. It’s only once a year and from what I hear, it’s crazy fun, too. Consider something like that.
Be creative
My girl Kerry has lots of ideas for how you can give back creatively; you can check out her ideas for inspiration. But really, when it comes to giving back and helping, it’s all about what you can do. And if you can’t do much, well, that’s okay, too. Maybe funds are tight and you don’t have a ton of discretionary money but you find a few dollars and use them to buy a bag of food for the local animal shelter. While you’re at it, why not go through your towels and sheets. If you’ve got any you want to get rid of, bring those to the shelter along with the food. It might not seem like much to you but to them, it’s a lot.
It’s the little things that make the biggest difference.
Whatever you decide to do, make sure you keep the giving spirit you have now throughout the year. Because it’s the middle of the year when nonprofits and charities need it the most.
What do you guys do to give back?
Love this, these are great ideas! There are so many ways to give back, and it doesn’t have to be a huge thing or a ton of money, every little bit helps!
Julia recently posted…Confessions
Giving back does not have to be a grand gesture. Lots of small things add up to one big difference!
All great ideas. I feel good myself when we give to others. I want to give throughout the year! That will be my goal for 2015!
Love, SMD’s Momma
That’s a great goal! I know you can do it!
Such great ideas! Thanks for the shout out! Toys for Tots is big right now so I will be donating to them but I do like to spread it out throughout the year. Cancer and animals tend to get the most support from me, but really any act of kindness can really brighten someone’s day. I once decided to hold the door open for 100 people in a day, it’s free and can really bring a smile.
Kerry recently posted…November Books I’ve Read
This is why you won that award! Cancer and animals get my support, as do kids. One thing we’re planning on doing next year is the fill a backpack drive for school supplies. Kids shouldn’t be unprepared for school because their parents are struggling. And we have to buy supplies anyway. A few extra pencils and crayons are easy to pick up!
We (me and Hawkeye) always do the food and towels to the shelter she was adopted from. They like to see her each year and it feels good to give something to the other pups I can’t save.
Stephanie recently posted…A Little Whine With My Cheese
I love that you guys do that! At our local SPCA, they recognize their “alumni” each year at their annual walkathon. It’s so sweet.
Good reminder to give throughout the year because organizations definitely see a spike around holidays and then a drop several times a year.
lisacng @ expandng.com recently posted…Tweetviews – book reviews in 140 characters
Yes. The middle of the year is especially difficult for nonprofits and charitable organizations. It’s like we all forget they need our help then, too.
one of my goals next year is to do something ‘giving’ each month so i love all of these ideas 🙂
kristen recently posted…More about me
I’d love to see what ideas you come up with for each month! That’s a great goal, too.
Such great ideas! I think of myself as less than creative but I can and definitely do donate at work and for events. These are great reminders!
Tricia’s Mostly Healthy Life recently posted…Crunchy Peanut Butter Cream Pie
Work is the easiest place to do it. When I worked for the state, they had something every October where you could pay like $20 and wear jeans to work for the month. The money went to the state employee charitable campaign. Look for stuff like that!
I love these ideas! It is so important to give back all year, but especially around this time of year. I am hosting a food drive next week to benefit one of our shelters here in town for the blogging group that I run. I am really hoping we have a good turn out.
Nadine recently posted…Christmas Confessions
I’m sure you will! If you had an online donation system, I’d totally give!
I was thinking of volunteering for some of the local marathons next year, running is against all of my beliefs but I’ll give water to people who like running!
My new job has Jeans Week once a month… for $5 you get to wear jeans every day that week, and the proceeds go to charity! 🙂
Amanda recently posted…My Favorite Christmas Jams
Great post!
I do food donations monthly, not just at the holidays. If there’s a sale on canned veggies, I just buy a few extra.
We also donate goods to pet shelters and the homeless MFD works with frequently.
Toys for Tots always at Christmas. Next year I’m considering adopting a family instead.
SMD @ Life According to Steph recently posted…Christmas Cruisin’
We’re doing both Toys for Tots and Adopt a Family next year. I need to step up the food and pet shelter donations.