Charities Blog

Giving Something Back

3 Ways You Can Give Back This Holiday Season

When it comes to the holiday season a lot of people think about what they would like to receive rather than what they can do to give. When you are in that kind of mentality you are failing to see the true spirit of the holidays which is goodwill, cheer, and giving to others.

If you would like to try to focus more on giving back and want some ideas for how you can do it, look no further. Here are some of the best ways that you can do a charitable deed this holiday season, and give back instead of just receiving. [Read more…]

From the Archives: Charity Holiday Challenges

In the UK, a new way to give to charity has been buzzing in the headlines, giving dangerously, that is.

We’re talking about “The Charity Challenge“, which is like a travel/tour operator with a unique twist – it gives people the chance to have a large-scale adventure holiday and at the same time, organizes it so that your holiday raises money for charity. Think of climbing Mount Everest or following an Inca trail in deepest Peru – terribly exciting and death-defying stuff, and you get to help others too along the way.

Actually, the unusual concept has been around for the past 15 years, established in 1991 by Erich Reich, who used to be a Director at Thomas Cook. He first got the idea when he was asked by a friend to help raise funds for a Children‘s Home in London. Reich rode for 400 kilometers in the Middle Easters desert and was inspired ever since.

His company, Classic Tours, has been booming ever since and leads as the world’s largest “Challenge Operator”. Just this year, the company will be taking over 3,000 participants on high-adrenalin challenges all over the world – from Brazil to Mongolia.

“Since 1991 we have helped approximately 120 charities raise something in the order of £32m, and that’s net, not gross.” Reich explains.

So how does it work?

Reich explains further:

“We then organise everything, from flights and accommodation to logistical support on the ground. On charity bike rides, for example, we have our own teams of mechanics. In the developing world, we even supply our own medics.

The nature of the challenge is very individual, some people have never camped before so for them it can be a challenge just to go to the loo behind a rock.”

Even though we’re a tour operator, no money comes directly to us from clients. We give the charity a cost per individual for the services on the ground and they pay us in turn,” says Reich.

[tags]charity challenge,charity event,charity tour,charity travel,charity trek[/tags]

Bob Dylan To Release Christmas Album For Charity

57660717While charity is certainly not only for the rich and famous, they do tend to focus on charitable activities, especially later on in life, don’t they? Take Bob Dylan, for example. He is an icon in the music world and despite the fact that his career has not been that productive in the recent years, he is still widely regarded as one of the best musicians in the world. And of course, his acts of charity are not to be disregarded as well.

His most recently publicized “do good” campaign is the Christmas album that he will be releasing, well, in the Christmas season. Some may scoff at this – we all know how Christmas albums tend to be so so. Then again, this is Bob Dylan we are talking about. More than that, this is the first ever Christmas album for the legendary songwriter.

The album is titled “Christmas in Your Heart,” and according to reports, it will include Christmas classics such as Here Comes Santa Claus, Winter Wonderland, and Little Drummer Boy. To make things a little more interesting, rumors have been going around that there might be a couple of original Christmas songs written by Dylan himself in the album.

All the sales from Christmas in Your Heart will go to charity. Proceeds from the US version of the album will all go to Feeding America. For the international version, Dylan is still holding talks with a charitable organization that also feeds the needy in the UK and another group that operates in developing countries.

So let’s buy a new Christmas album?

Feeding Programs Expected to be Rampant This Season

In exchange for not being able to donate much cash, expect feeding programs for the children in particular to be rampant. A lot of people would prefer to give food over money since as we all know that it is perhaps one, if not, the most important necessity that humans would need today.

Surprisingly, a lot of these people who embark on feeding programs are newly graduated students. For some schools, performing community service seems to rub off on them and is something that they bring even when they start their careers. It doesn’t really take much to organize a feeding program and with the help of some sponsors to whom they solicit in kind, feeding programs for kids can really be something worthwhile.

We all know that today, most charities would prefer cash, but given the situation where everyone is going crazy on where to get some funds, charities are lucky that there are still people who go out of their way to arrange such activities by going out of their usual routine and scheduling them near the holidays.

Sending out some help through solicitation letters is not hard to prepare. It is more of how to get these potential sponsors to help out the worthy cause. But seeing that it is really most of goods and not money, perhaps the whole effort would be worth it especially now that the holidays are here.

Stater Bros. Helps Fights Hunger this Christmas

Talk about the main concern of most people today in the light of the economic catastrophe besetting the world, it is trying to stay alive and fighting hunger. There are a lot of organizations today that are independently trying to do their thing but apparently they cannot do it alone. One can just imagine their setup at the moment, staving off problems by trying to infuse funds as much as they can. But the fact of the matter remains that even the best efforts of these groups cannot really address the problems of hunger this Christmas on their own.

Stater Bros. Charities aims to do just that and give it a go. Stater Bros. Charities has reportedly released checks in the amount of $6,918.31 or more to assist 31 organizations. The move can be seen as minimal but the fact of the matter here is that each penny counts.

“It’s our hope that every person living in our community will be cared for this holiday season,” said Jack H. Brown, Chairman and CEO of Stater Bros. Markets. “Because of this, Stater Bros. Charities is honored to help in a larger way this year by making substantial contributions to the organizations that serve on the frontlines.”

So while people are worried of the outcome of the charity works this Christmas, perhaps it all starts from actual needs. For sure, other charity organization could do well to follow the lead of Stater Bros. Charity groups. It all depends on how they understand and assess the real needs of charities at least for the coming holidays.

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More “In Kind” Donations to Charities this Year

While the finance side of most donors this year has been severely affected, there are other ways that they will be shelling out a good cause when the holidays start rushing in. Sure there will be not much cash donations this year but old clothes, food and perhaps some books will take the place of the usual generous donors just to keep the spirit of giving alive.

As far as the various institutions are concerned, the best they can do is say “Thank You”. It is apparent that most of the cash donations comprise the majority of their operations expenses such as light and water expenses but as far as this season of giving is concerned, it certainly doesn’t look bright. People are having a hard time and the next best thing is to try and help out the people in need with alternative basic necessities which are sure to be appreciated.

Big companies are doing the same thing. Although some of them have still pledged giving various contribution based on their actual sales made from operations, the hard times that they are also experiencing is expected to take its toll. The collections they may get from pledged donations to the needy may not be as large as before but for sure, there will still be inflows as far as cash needs are concerned.

This is only temporary. Who knows if next year will tell a different story? All of us just have to bear with the hard times we are facing and no one is spared, not even the charitable organizations in need today.

Buy Christmas Cards for a Cause

Each year, there has to be something, a product to which can be associated with groups for a worthy cause. Normally we would see orphanages or housed disabled people trying to produce something useful for the normal person. Aside from the produced bags and consumer goods, one thing that they would familiarly offer are personally made Christmas cards to which each card bought would mean helping out their cause.

There are also some groups that produce seasonal cards to which each card sold would be given to charity. Other than a good cause, one may be surprised at the quality of these cards or the messages that come with them. Christmas is all about giving but it is also about remembering. Certainly, a Christmas card may seem to be cheaper to give but like everything else in acts of generosity, it is really the thought that counts.

Word of this spread and some parents decided that they would do the same. Instead of spending a fortune on cards that would end up in the bin, we sent an email with Christmas greetings and news to friends and family and gave the cash to the same charity.

This year staff have suggested that the children do not give their friends individual Christmas cards, but that each class makes a large card that they all agree on a message for, sign and read out in assembly. Parents are then asked to donate the money they have saved by not buying the cards.

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So if you are thinking of a good gift to give this holiday season, consider these products for a good cause. They may not seem much as far as cost is concerned, but it is really about making a person happy and the cause to which it was meant to help.

Charitable Contributions for this Coming Christmas

Christmas season is about 3 months away and while many of us are making our Christmas shopping list and people to give things to, some are thinking of what charitable act to do. Some have already made efforts in giving to the poor, particularly the children who cannot spend a memorable Christmas due to their status but that doesn’t mean people could care less on what to give them.

Much of these kids are street children who have been abandoned or left for granted by their supposed parents. Most of them aren’t left with much choice as they are living in orphanages with the hope that one good Samaritan would come their way and perhaps give them a home. While many are wondering how to runaway from home, there are children looking for one. If only it was that simple to trade places then perhaps kids of today will realize the value of having a family and a home.

Anyway, for Christmas, you have to wonder what good deed to do. Some are constrained in the orphanages while others are wandering in the streets. For sure, it is not wise to give money as they may not even know how to spend and use it wisely. Why not food or even hold charitable events such as feeding and gift giving? For sure this would make the kids happy since all they are really looking for is to belong and live like a normal child. Have you ever given it any thought?

War Heroes Who Lose Hope

Military personnel and servicemen who put their lives on the line for country and fellowmen may not always have something to look forward to when they get home. Loss of opportunity to perhaps get a decent education for their own future would often relegate them to foster homes since immediate family members may not appreciate the career path that such people would have, notably the ones who have suffered injuries and disabilities in the course of their tenure.

War Heroes of the World

Upon reaching the retiring age, it has been common practice for such people to seek shelter from government run homes for relief. Some may not even have anyone to lean on, hence the reason why programs to show just appreciation through comfort and gifts for chosen periods in a year are given. Attention and company alone are big factors to help the psychological needs of such people, supposedly heroes who have risked lives in protecting the honor of their nation and families.

[tags]war veterans, war heroes, elderly[/tags]

Sharing Your Heart on Valentines Day

There are people who spend special events such as Valentines by sharing to the less fortunate. The immediate thinking of most people is that their partners deserve the due attention. But the truth of the matter is that Valentines can also be celebrated with their parents or people who have no one else to turn to.

For people who happen to live in the shabby places such as dumps and lesser presentable places of the world, sharing something in the form of clothes, goods or throwing a small pot luck type of party for them more than fattens the human heart.

Valentines Day Special

Valentines Day is indeed the day of the hearts. But people should note that hearts day is not limited to couples who love one another. Love can be approached in different aspects but it is more on giving attention on what a person is able to share that is important in most cases.