Giving for the Holidays

Last week I shared several posts with gift ideas and suggestions of foods that we can make to give as gifts. This week I would like to focus on charitable gift ideas.

It’s nice to find ways to help others. We like to make food for a local homeless shelter and deliver it on Thanksgiving and Christmas day. Over the years, we’ve gotten to know Chuck Bennett, a chef extraordinaire, making dinners at the shelter on holidays. I wrote a post about Chuck if you’d like to read it.

My cousin Diana is part of a group of people who knit blankets, hats, and sweaters for hospital patients. You can find my post about Diana and her friends here.

Every year we purchase children’s bicycles and donate them to Toys for Tots. I still smile when I remember the Christmas when I was given a bicycle. It gives us so much pleasure to think about children discovering their bicycle on Christmas morning.

You probably have your favorite ways to help others and organizations that you like to donate to. Please share them in a comment. I’d love to hear about them.

If you want to research an organization before donating, one tool you can use is Charity Navigator.

If you are looking for ideas, here are some options.

• Your local food pantry, Feeding America, or the World Central Kitchen
• Habitat for Humanity
• A local women’s shelter, such as Rosie’s Place here in Boston, the Domestic Violence Hotline, or Prevent Child Abuse America
• Disabled American Veterans, Wounded Warriers, or Homes for Our Troops
• Your local pet shelter or the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA)

If you want to give a gift made by a company that gives back, here are a few ideas.

• State Bags sells backpacks, fanny packs, totes, and more. For every bag purchased, State donates a backpack loaded with school supplies for a child. I’ve had one of their totes for years. It is durable and has lots of useful features.
• Lush donates 100% of its profits from sales of its Charity Pot to grassroots groups. The Charity Pot comes in two sizes and is filled with creamy lotion with ylang ylang and rosewood oils in a hydrating cocoa butter base.
• Bombas sells socks, underwear, shirts, and slippers. When you purchase an item, an item is donated to a homeless shelter.
• Soapbox makes soaps, shampoos, and other bath and body care items. With every purchase, Soapbox donates a bar of soap to someone in need.
• Twice as Warm sells scarves, hats, and tops. When you purchase an item, a winter clothing item is donated to someone in need.
• Who Gives a Crap sells toilet paper (made from recycled paper or bamboo) and paper towels. Toilet paper may seem like a strange gift, but their recycled paper wrapping has great designs and a subscription comes in very handy. The company donates 50% of its profits to building toilets in places where they are needed. They also donate toilet paper.

Related Posts

Here are some other posts that might interest you.

• Gifts that Give to Others, 2018
• Gifts that Give to Others, 2018