November Giving & Gratefulness
The holiday season is a great time to reflect on life, what you've done and what you still want to improve upon. Another important piece is that it is a time of giving. I know this post comes the midst of gift guides and materialist things, but the core of the season is togetherness, helpfulness and making spirits bright. While it's different for everyone, here are some ways to give back this year and things I do!
Animal Shelter - This one is really important to me. Animals are the key to my heart and if I could adopt every single sad puppy dog, I would. The shelter Rudy came from will always be near to my heart because they kept my little babe until we found each other. They have a stocking stuffer event where each animal has a stocking outside their area for guests to stuff! I go to the dollar tree and basically buy all the dog items they have and some cat items, too! Toys, treats, food - everything they'd love. I also try to bring some cleaning supplies like bleach and paper towels and old towels.
Women's Shelter - I really want to bring feminine products and beauty products to a shelter this year. I get a lot of samples and beauty items and would love to be able to donate some to those who may have had to leave their belongings behind to get out of a situation. There are different rules for each place, I believe - I need to do more research and clean out my beauty pantry - yes, that's what I call it!
Children's Hospital - Each Christmas season, my company works with charities (throughout the year as well) and one is a toy drive for children. We gather things like toys and games and items to keep them entertained while there and to hopefully brighten their day a little bit.
Adopt-A-Family - I haven't done this in a while, but I love the idea and would like to again in the future. Through various churches and charities, families can be "adopted" for the holiday season where you can provide some gifts and even holiday meals for those in need.
There are SO many causes you can donate your time or resources to and they are all fantastic - soup kitchens, homeless shelters, veterans organizations...whether it's time, money, items you no longer love - anything you can do helps! And of course, there are plenty of other worthy causes; I donate to Planned Parenthood and the ACLU in addition to local animal shelter medical funds or disaster relief efforts during non-holiday seasons but there is no bad time!
XO