20 Easy Ways to Give Back this Holiday Season
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20 Easy Ways to Give Back this Holiday Season
20 Easy Ways to Give Back this Holiday Season
Do you love giving back? Finding that perfect easy gift, or Random Act of Kindness to do at just the right moment? Do find yourself unprepared for giving as the Fall season runs into winter, and opportunities to give back are missed? If you do find yourself in this situation, then you are not alone. Because this is so common for everyone, I thought I would share 20 Easy Ways to Give Back this Holiday Season. I hope that you will be inspired, write a few on your calendar and make this your most giving year yet!
Personally, I know how you feel. I love giving, I even write out giving plans. But then sometimes, the best laid plans fall by the wayside. Or, I find that I didn’t think things through enough to give in the way that I wanted to. I recently went to a free dinner and live music event that our church had.
It was a great night for the community
I volunteered at the event and loved doing what I could to make it a great night for the community, many of which are in difficult times. As the dinner progressed, I was surprised that one of the ladies in the church used her incredible baking skills to make a up little gift bags of home baked banana bread for everyone that attended. Seriously!!!! They were a small loaf, about the size of 4 muffins. Put into a cello package, with a fall colored ribbon tied around it. WOW!
I thought this was such a generous gift of time and money, and everyone loved them. In fact, as we were leaving the church and I was locking the door, a lady ran up and said she had put her bag of baked bread down on the table and forgotten it. By that time all of the tables had been taken down and the room cleared. She looked so sad that she had not been able to take this gift home.
I Gave Her My Bread
I pulled mine out of my bag said I would be glad for her to have it. She was joyful and left. Now, that might seem super altruistic and awesome of me to give away my bread. But in truthfulness, this church lady bakes bread and cookies, and taquitos, and lots of other wonderful treats for our family on a regular basis so I was pretty certain I would never go without. But I was glad to bless her, and ensure she left the night with bread.
It was such a thoughtful gift from the church lady that I asked her how she was able to make bread for 50 + people. She just said, she had some bananas, made three triple batches a morning for 3 days, wrapped it up, and gave it away. It sounded so simple, yet so well thought out, and so well planned. It really made me rethink my Giving, and to be more intentional about it. You see, the Church lady had a thought, “make the bread”, and didn’t leave it there. She made a plan, then executed the plan. And then, people were blessed. It reminded me that having good intentions is limited, but executing good intentions is what blesses people.
20 Easy Ways to Give Back this Holiday Season
20 Easy ways to give back this Fall
1 Declutter Your Coats and Jackets for a Good Cause.
So many times, we end up with many coats and sweaters, jackets, boots, scarves, and gloves. It makes it hard to get in and out of the closet and find what we need. At the same time, there are people who are in need of warm clothing for the coming winter. I recently had my family collect their old winter clothing items. It was a win-win situation. We donated sweatshirts to the church, and other winter items to the local thrift store, and our closets are so much easier to find items in!
You could also give them to a homeless shelter or carry them in your car for when you see a homeless person in need. Many times, during the rainy season, homeless people have to shed their wet clothing. They might go through many coats in a season. Although it is not an optimal situation, if someone has no coat, and we have 5, then really, we should give at least one away. Right?
2 Cook a Hot Meal for Someone in Need.
You can read more about how to start a Meal Train and get started helping out today. We often have meal trains to help out a family with an ill member, or someone having surgery, or even helping a new mom out after she has a baby. Our church offers a Free Dinner Weekly to anyone who wants to come. It is a great place to have a good meal and sit down and chat with someone. If you are not wanting to cook, you could always find a church or shelter that needs help from volunteers serving or cleaning up meals.
3 Clean a Friend or Family Members House.
I remember back when I was much younger, my Dad had been ill for a long time. My Mom was exhausted, and the house had gotten out of hand. She called and asked if I could come help out before my Dad was to come home from the hospital. A group of ladies at my Mom’s church called and said they were on their way over to clean the house. My Mom was truthfully a little embarrassed that her ladies’ group would see her house in such an awful state.
I remember very clearly telling my Mom that if she didn’t let the ladies come to clean, she was robbing them of a blessing, and herself of a blessed home. She relented and they came. About 7 of us worked diligently for about 6 hours. When they left the house was orderly, clean, and smelled of lemons. It was such a blessing for my parents, myself, the ladies, and their home. Since that time, I have been able to be a part of a group of ladies blessing many other homes over the years. Simply walk in with no judgement, no expectations, and do your best to bless the home. It is wonderful to be on both sides of this gift.
4 Reconnect with a Friend from the past.
My friend Karen and I were inseparable during the 9th and 10th grades. We did everything together and had a blast doing it! From Movie Nights, to Football Games, to Sleepovers and Mall visits, we had an awesome time together. But, life led us in separate ways as it sometimes does, and we lost touch. I was so thankful last year when she included her phone number in a Christmas Card.
You see, I had been trying to reach her for several years, but she was not on social media. I immediately called her, and we were able to meet up, meet some of our children, and have a good dinner and movie together. Since then, we have been in contact every week. We have prayed for each other, updated each other on our family’s comings and goings, and are hoping to get together again soon. We live on opposite sides of the country, but it is awesome to know that after 30 years we are connected again.
5 Donate Blood
I truly think that anyone who donates blood is a true hero, and have shared about it in this post, Be a Hero, Donate Blood. It is a great way to give to those in need, and truly save lives. Our blood bank actually keeps donors updated on how many lives their gift of blood has saved. Pretty cool!
Be a Hero- Donate Blood
6 Grow Plants or Vegetables to Give Away
Since early summer we have been blessed with so many vegetables from a lady at our church. She has brought baskets and baskets of veggies all summer that she grew in her garden, and everyone has been enjoying them so much. There is something so wonderful about a person giving you the bounty of their garden. It seems to all taste better somehow. And we have tried some new varieties of squash and cucumber because of it. So, grow some plants and give away the clippings or plants, or plant a full garden and give away produce to someone in need, or just in need of a blessing.
20 Easy Ways to Give Back this Holiday Season
7 Spend Time with an Elderly Person
So many Elderly people are facing loneliness. We often look at what a person needs done at their house, but we forget to think about their emotional needs. Sometimes we can make a huge difference in the life of someone simply by taking the time to talk with them on the phone or visit for a few hours. Elderly people have so many stories to tell, and we have so much to learn.
8 Host a Friendsgiving
Plan to open your home for Thanksgiving or host a Friendsgiving. I remember when I was living in another state going to college, I was fairly lonely. A family invited me to their Thanksgiving, and it was wonderful. It was very different than our families Thanksgiving, but it was so nice to not be alone on that special day. Since then, we have always opened our home to friends or friends of friends who needed a place for Easter, Thanksgiving, or Christmas. It has been a little more work, but a great experience and well worth it.
9 Sell Things and Give the Money to Charity
If you are like I was, then you have too much in your house! You can read more about my decluttering in this post, but we have gotten rid of about ½ of everything we owned this year. And, we still have more to get rid of. Some of it we donated to thrift stores or gave to the church to give to those in need. Some of it we had yard sales with to help my daughter go on a Missions Trip, and some to donate. Our house is so much easier to manage now, and we don’t miss a thing.
11 Buy a Flock of Chickens…
This might seem a little strange. Heifer.org has been helping families around the world to have sustainable micro farms and build their way out of poverty. You can read more in my post, I Really Love Eggs.
11 Pick Up Neighborhood Kids for Church
How simple is that! No additional cost, and very little additional time. If you are headed to church, anyway, offer the neighbor kids a ride as well.
12 Give A Family in Need Christmas
You can read about a Christmas that I had the opportunity to do this in my post, The Best Christmas Ever. It has been years since we were able to do this, but I still get teary just thinking about it. It truly is one of the best gifts you can ever give yourself.
13 Volunteer at a Homeless Shelter or Food Bank
Have you ever wanted to give back, but were not sure where to start? Call up a Homeless Shelter or Food Bank and offer your talents. I think we all sometimes forget how we can give back using our own talents and giftings. We often think of helping as standing in a serving line and putting mashed potatoes on a plate. And of course, that is important. But you might have additional skills that you could offer to a financially strapped program.
For instance, are you great with social media? Maybe offer to help revamp their Facebook page or schedule a months of donor posts. Do you have special carpentry or electrical skills? Maybe you could do some much needed updates on the building? Or, possibly you are an organizational expert? You could offer to help revamp the storage system. All of these programs need help, so write out your talents and then offer them to the programs that touch your heart.
15 Donate to Angel Tree
Angel Tree is an organization that specifically helps to provide Christmas gifts to the children of prisoners. It is a wonderful organization that I have partnered with in one way or another for years.
15 Rake Leaves or Shovel Snow for a Neighbor
I remember my Aunt calling from out of state in tears one year. She lived alone in snowy Nevada and had not been out of her house in over a week. They had a storm with heavy snow, and she had not even been able to get to her mailbox, let alone the store. The streets had been plowed, but that only made her plight all the more difficult, because snow plows leave a berm of snow across the driveways.
One morning she woke up to find that a man from one street over, and his two young sons were out shoveling her driveway. He had driven by the night before and saw that after all those days her driveway was still covered in snow. He didn’t ask if he could, he didn’t ask why it was not cleared, he just shoveled it with his boys. She went to the door to ask if she could give him and the boys a little money, and he said no. He shared with my Aunt that he wanted his boys to not only know the value of hard work, but to know that neighbors take care of each other, even if they don’t know each other. I agree, that is what neighbors do.
16 Buy a Bag, Feed a Family
Have you ever wondered which charities are making a huge difference, and who to give to? RiceLove.org is a great buy to give company. Every time you purchase one of their backpacks, bags, or shirts, they donate rice to a family in India. They combine the rice from several peoples purchases and give a family enough rice to last a full month. Can you imagine being a Mom in India, not knowing where you next meal will come from, and then suddenly knowing that for the next month, your entire family has enough rice? I can’t imagine it either because we are so fortunate.
An additional thing that I really love about RiceLove.org is that once your purchase your bag, you receive a tag that has a number you can type into their website. You can then see a picture and learn the story of the specific family that your rice was given to. How awesome. And, you can use my coupon code WHYGIVEONLINE to receive a 20% discount on your purchase. You can read more their program here.
17 Donate Shoes to Kids in Need
Have you ever looked at a kid and thought, “Wow, they need new shoes”? I have. I know having 4 kids of my own I am always thinking about shoes and jackets. Somethings can get passed down, but often kids are hard on their shoes and jackets. For 20 years my Brother’s Church has blessed a local school with shoes for kids in need. The congregants raise money and ask others for money to buy the shoes, and then they go buy hundreds of pairs of brand-new shoes and donate them to the school. It is a hugely important program, as some kids are wearing sandals or slippers in the middle of winter at that school.
18 Bake Bread to Say Thank You to Your Neighbors
Are you the type of person that drives by your neighbors and thinks, “I should do something for them this year”….but then never do? Um, been there done that, embarrassed to admit it! A few years ago, I decided I didn’t want to have regret in this area again. So, I scheduled time on my Calendar to bake some sweet holiday breads, package them and deliver them to the neighbors. It was wonderful, I love baking, and enjoyed that process. My kids then delivered them to everyone on our street, and truthfully, many of the neighbors were a little bewildered.
I remember we always did this when I was growing up, but when I moved, I never took up the practice. I received some wonderful Thank You notes from neighbors who now felt a little more connected and a little blessed. You can read more in this post about our neighborhood, and ideas for giving back.
19 Really Spend Time with People You Love
This might seem like a no brainer, but truthfully, if you are like me it can be hard. There are so many pulls and constraints on our time is this modern world we live in. And it can be hard to take time to unplug, put away our devices, and spend time with each other. But it is often the most valuable and worthwhile time we spend.
Recently my kids were talking about their favorite times when they were growing up. They all shared that they loved during the summer fires, or winter storms we would have days without electricity. We would light candles and play games. Sometimes they were board games, but more often than not, they were made up games. We would playthings like, “If you could meet anyone who has ever lived who would it be and why?” Or, “If you could only eat one food for the rest of your life, what would it be and why?” We would also share our favorite memories, and our greatest hopes for the future. It might seem simple. And it is. But it also is time so very well spent.
So, schedule in some time, put everything else aside, and spend time loving your family and friends, wholly, fully, completely.
20 Smile at a Stranger
Okay, this might be the simplest way to give back on this entire list, but it makes a world of difference. It’s so easy and can be regifted over and over and over. Next time you pass a stranger, or rather every time you pass a stranger smile.
So, which on of these 20 Easy Ways to Give Back this Holiday Season are you planning on doing this year? Write it on your calendar, get others involved and share your ideas in the comments below.
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