‘Tis the season for giving back! It has been said before that people give with their treasure (money), their talents, and their time. Below are seven ways to give back as a family this year.
Give Your Treasures
- Looking to do something meaningful with that stimulus check you stuffed away back in March? Have a year-end bonus or needing a tax write off? Consider making a monetary donation to any number of vetted highly-rated military and veteran organizations affiliated organizations or charities by looking at this list.
- Does your local military installation have a thrift store or lending closet that might be able to put your gently used, but no longer needed household items to good use? Consider cleaning out your closets, garage, or storage spaces and gathering up a donation box. Many on-post thrift stores use their profits and proceeds to give back to the local military community through programming and scholarships.
If making a charitable monetary donation isn’t in the cards for you this year due to the economic uncertainty that 2020 has brought, consider giving back in the form of your time or talents.
Time is Often the Greatest Gift of All
- Are there any organizations nearby that host a holiday meal and are looking for help to serve food? Or need a team of volunteers to stock or organize a food pantry leading up to the colder, winter months.
- There might be a school or church in your area that has an existing framework for a service project or charity event that you can partner with. Scope out news sources or ask around. There’s no need to reinvent the wheel when it comes to donating your time. By joining with a larger group you might find a sense of esprit de corps that fuels your efforts.
- Know any families with a deployed service member? One small, but meaningful way to serve a fellow military family could be to offer to rake leaves or share a holiday meal while they are on their own.
Got Talent?
- Do you have a hidden athletic talent that might be brought back to life in the form of coaching or mentoring a youth sports team? You might not be able to commit to being the head coach of a sport, but perhaps you could offer your expertise in the form of a clinic or even as an assistant.
- It is likely that whatever your vocational path, you have amassed many hours and logged much experience making you a subject matter expert in your field. Consider volunteering or serving on a board of directors or offering your services pro bono to someone who is looking to expand their interest or skillset in your specific industry.
The beauty of giving is whether you are making a monetary donation, sharing your talents, or your time, any gift or act of service to another can be a huge help. However, often the biggest payoff of the act benefits the giver.
Giving is far less about an amount of money or hours logged in offering help. At the heart of giving is a spirit of generosity, which is defined as being kind or generous, or the quality of being plentiful or large. Giving costs the giver something of value, but what he or she receives in return is often the greater blessing.
