Holiday Giving: How to Give Back this Holiday Season
Nina RossielloFood, Booze, Body Art Editor & WriterFounding Member
While our bellies and our hearts are still full from Thanksgiving, we have more holidays quickly approaching: Christmas, Chanukah, Kwanzaa, New Year’s Eve…While this may be a fun, cheerful time for most, there are plenty of people out there who don’t have it so easy around the holidays. These people may have lost their jobs unexpectedly (especially this year), fell into a personal or financial hardship, or just have been down on their luck.In New York City in particular, I recently read a statistic that approximately 1 in every 100 New Yorkers is homeless. That’s upwards of 100,000 homeless New Yorkers who need a helping hand, especially as the winter months carry on.
Clothing/Coat Drives
It’s gift giving season, which means you’re probably about to get a bunch of new things to hang in your closet. Maybe it’s time to go through what you already have and see what you don’t wear, or what you don’t need anymore. Especially your outwear (and scarves, and hats, and gloves) in the winter. Coats are EXPENSIVE and donating to a coat drive could literally save someone’s life. New York City winters can be absolutely brutal, so why not make it a bit easier for someone who needs the warmth and comfort?
Food Banks
My personal favorite idea of giving back this year came from someone posting on social media. If you’re not too sure what you want to do this year, or how you can help those in need, consider participating in a reverse advent calendar for the holiday season. Each day, remove a nonperishable from your pantry and place it into a box. On Christmas Eve (or any day of your choosing) head over to your local food bank and donate the box. With your kindness and your donation, you’ll be filling someone’s stomach and filling their heart with a little bit of hope.On a similar note of food donations: restaurants can donate their leftover food. Many restaurants have information on their websites if they participate in programs like this. So, you can dine at and support restaurants that give back. If you own a restaurant, consider this option since it is a win-win. The food doesn’t get wasted and it goes to someone who needs it.
Suspended Coffees
If this is a term you have never heard of, that’s okay! It’s definitely more popular in Europe, but it is something we should make more popular in the United States. This is especially true in New York City with the high rate of New Yorkers living on the streets. A suspended coffee is a system to have coffee “on deck” for someone who may not be able to afford it. For example, when you go to buy your morning coffee, you would order one coffee for yourself and one suspended coffee. You’d be charged for two coffees, but just receive one. The other would be noted as prepaid and if someone wanders into that same coffee shop later on (or even the next day) they could ask if there are any suspended coffees they could redeem. Especially in the winter months, having a warm cup of coffee could be day changing for someone.If you own a coffee shop or are a regular at one, consider adding suspended coffees or the menu or suggesting the addition of the suspended coffee to the menu! Advertising the availability of suspended coffees is also important, so anyone who may need one knows that they have the option at your café!
Animal Shelters
As much as humans need help during the winter, animals do too.Most animal shelters accept donations of old blankets, towels, sheets, etc. to help keep the animals warm and comfortable during their stay at the shelter. Toys and food are also great additions to add to your donation box this year too! Anything to help the animal shelter helps the animals in the long run.
Mentor Programs
The holidays can be especially rough on the children from families in need. While they’re watching their classmates show off the newest iPad or iPhone they got from Santa, they may be falling into a depression, losing the sense of holiday magic, and maybe even losing faith in the world.My first suggestion before the main point here is this...PARENTS: do NOT make the expensive gifts from Santa! Write love mom or love dad or love us on that one. Why should Santa only give the expensive, fancy gifts to the kids whose families can afford the extravagant spending this time of year?Back to my point… Join a mentor program. Be there for a kid who needs a role model, a confidant, or just a friend. Having someone to just talk to can change SO much for a child. Sometimes they just need someone in their life who won’t judge them or expect anything from them.
Spread the Word
Finally, it is so important to get the word out there. I spoke earlier about how I found a reverse advent calendar on social media. Do not underestimate the power of social media. Do not be afraid to use the power of social media. Share organizations content. Share links of where they can donate virtually. Share information of the different locations of food and clothing drives. Spread love. Spread kindness. Be kind always. xo
