Fun Monday # 145 The season for giving
How will you express your inner-Giver this season? Do you donate to a major charity? Do you serve food in a soup kitchen? Is your generosity something private that you do without recognition or do you hand the guy on the corner a dollar whenever you drive by?
Not only do I want to know what you do, but how you do it, why you do it, and a story about your activity and how it made you feel.
I have always thought that charitable acts are not really something I would talk about. Then I realised that I have blogged about 'Race for Life" which I participated in for the past three years year. This is to fund raise for cancer research.
For a couple of years now I have been supporting 'Operation Christmas Child' which is an initiative of Samaritan's Purse. It's all about packing shoe boxes with gifts for a child. I collect items all the year round, it's very easy to go down the aisles in the supermarket and pop something into the trolley each week. It's amazing how quickly you gather up the small toys and craft items. For example, soft toys, crayons, paper, pencil cases, that will make a child happy; as well as much needed things like toiletries. It's often more difficult to get the actual shoe boxes! I probably get as much fun collecting things as the children do opening their presents.
Every Christmas we give a couple of sort toys to a charity Embee supports providing gifts for children who, with their mothers, are in refuges after suffering domestic violence.
I have a small box that I use to collect coppers and when it's full I send it off to the Life Boat Association. It's not much in monetary terms but every little helps.
I always sponsor my three grandchildren when they are raising funds for different charities.
Then I tend to give to all the local collections often outside the supermarket or the ones that come knocking at the door. Having been a volunteer collector in the past I know it's not an easy task.
I'm very late getting this post published, even though I started it on Monday, so as I'm not on the FM list I realise none of the regulars are likely to read it. I'll try and do better next week!
Archives:
2008: Corfu-6 Vidos Island Part 1
2007: Twin Peaks at Sunset
2006: None
Labels: charity, Fun Monday
posted by ChrisB @ 5:13 pm
8 comments
8 Comments:
You do a lot! That is a fantastic list of charities. And if Irish schools are anything like Canadian ones then I imagine you do a lot of supporting there too!
collecting through the year is very smart!
You really do a lot --
I should get involved in that "shoebox" program.
I remember doing similar as a child. We'd save shoeboxes and fill them with necessities for the Junior Red Cross to give to poor children both in the US and other countries. I don't know if that's still done here or not. Good post.
I always try to donate winter coats. The winters here can be brutal. I bet all the children who receives your shoe boxes loved every item.
Woow how many great things You do!!
I never pass the little red kettle they have around without dropping it in..and I always say a prayer that it helps someone out!! We donate to the food shelf and I know that helps as the week of Thanksgiving when we were on ur way outta town the cars were quite alot at that place!
I'm a late Fun Monday poster as well Chris. More like Fun Friday.
I appreciate your approach to giving--ongoing and a part of your routine. It's the little bits that add up to something significant. I've read about the shoebox project and thought of getting my friends to join me in making up a collection. Also, I read about the same idea for elderly women--Grey Doves or something like that--the boxes went to women in underdeveloped countries.
Great ways to give there Chris, the race sounds great and I know I've seen you mention it and seen you coming back from it in your blog. I like the shoeboxes too, what a great idea.
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