With the theme of ‘December Giving Makes Us Human’, this month is set aside to recognize citizens who go above and beyond to meet the unmet needs of society, in all sectors including human, environmental, educational, health and public.
National Giving Month, also sometimes called Month of Giving, aims to celebrate the fact that people overall are a generous sort, and that those in the nonprofit sector are doing their best to make the world a better place!
How to Celebrate National Giving Month
Be Generous
People often spend a great deal of money buying gifts for the people they love during the holidays that land in December. Christmas, Kwanzaa, Hanukkah and many others events bring people into the spirit of giving!
National Giving Month can be celebrated by taking a look at that gift-giving budget and considering ways to incorporate being generous to charitable organizations and non-profit endeavors. Before giving a financial gift, consider the FTC’s advice for giving to charities.
Gift Through a Charity
Wondering what to give to the person who has everything? Forget giving them another tchotchke that will lie around the house. What about giving a gift to charity in their name instead?
Help a hungry family by donating a holiday meal through Feeding America. Or go international and donate a sustainable means of support to a family through Heifer International. There are tons of ways to get involved and be generous during this month!
Find Creative Ways to Give
While the name might bring to mind the idea of giving money or making a financial donation, National Giving Month can be so much more than that! Get creative with ways to help out a non-profit organization of choice.
Volunteer to help at an event. Host a restaurant fundraising event. Spread the word on social media. Do holiday shopping online through charitable platforms.
Say Thank You
People who work in the nonprofit sector can carve out some extra time and make an extra effort to thank their donors, volunteers, corporate sponsors and communities for the support they give throughout the year – especially during National Giving Month.
Sign the Proclamation
The folks who organize this month are working to get it officially recognized by the US government. Kathleen Robinson, the national director of NANOE, offers an online opportunity for all Americans to sign a proclamation to encourage more people to celebrate and organize events in honor of this month. More than 10,000 people who believe in charity have signed so far!
History of National Giving Month
While December has been a time of giving that spans back hundreds of years, the official work to get it recognized as the National Month of Giving comes through the efforts of NANOE – the National Association of Nonprofit Organizations & Executives.
Located in Washington, DC, this group of folks has been working to get the US government to officially recognize this month as a time dedicated to charitable giving and acts of volunteerism.
While there has yet to be an official presidential or congressional proclamation, that’s no reason to keep from celebrating this all important event!
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