Thanksgiving.
Black Friday. (Now "celebrated" by some on Thanksgiving)
Small Business Saturday.
Cyber Monday.
Three days of shopping immediately following a day of gratitude to celebrate our blessings. And this is how we kick off the Holiday Season.
It just feels a little icky to me.
Rather than hoarding $188 96-inch flat screen TVs, when we've probably got perfectly good working televisions at home, it seems like maybe a better way to kick off the holidays and to honor all that we're grateful for would be to share some of our good fortune with others who may not be as fortunate. That would truly be spreading good cheer and would be honoring what I believe Christ stands for.
What if we had a day that was focussed on giving to the less fortunate and to charities that help? Hmmmmm.
It seems I'm not the only one who thinks that charities could use a day of love.
Giving Tuesday was created this year by the 92nd Street YMCA in New York, along with the United Nations Foundation and a number of other influential businesses and non-profits. The whole idea is to create a national day of giving to charities at the start of the giving season. Whether you give of your treasure or of your time and talent, I hope you'll take some time on Tuesday to give to a charity near and dear to your heart.
What are some ways you could honor Giving Tuesday?
- Take a bag of non-perishable food to a food pantry
- Donate to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital (read the story about the child in the logo and why I love St. Jude's) (or your favorite charity)
- Donate to your alma mater (or mine)
- Become a Big Brother (or Big Sister)
- Find a Giving Tree and adopt a child or family this Christmas (most township offices have them)
- Foster a dog or a cat until a Forever Family can be found
- Become a Forever Family to a dog or cat
- Take some cat or dog food to a non-kill shelter
- Take some school supplies to your local school for a student who needs them
- Volunteer at your alma mater (or mine)
- Make an extra donation to your church or synagogue
- Participate in Operation Santa Claus with your local post office
The list of things you can do is endless. All it requires is a little creativity.
You can even share your giving through social media. Use the Twitter hashtag #GivingTuesday, follow @GivingTues on Twitter, or like it on Facebook.
This year, let's bring the Season of Giving back into the holidays by generously giving to charities on Giving Tuesday.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Thank you for leaving a comment on Little Merry Sunshine. Due to the volume of spam comments, all comments must be approved to ensure they are not spam or spambots. Thank you for understanding.