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5 Ideas To Make The Season Brighter With Your Family

November 13, 2019

Bring your family closer together this holiday season with these do-good ideas!

Although the holiday season is referred to as the "season of giving" it can sometimes feel like the "season of rushing around." This year, why not do a project to help others as a family. Here are a few ideas to help you get started in giving back as a family this holiday season.

Volunteer at a food bank
Local food banks need help with everything from managing food drives and pick-up and delivery of donations to serving food during the busy holiday season. Visit the Feeding America website to find out how you can volunteer at a food bank in your local area.

Adopt another family for the holidays
Help support a local family or some children in need this holiday season by providing gifts, food and other needs. Decide with your family the gifts to purchase and things you can do to make the family's holiday extra-special this year. Visit www.doinggoodtogether.org for a list of organizations that can help match you up with a family in need.

Log your miles into Charity Miles
If your family likes to stay fit together, download the Charity Miles App. For each mile you walk, run or bike, Charity Miles will make donations to a charitable organization that you choose. You and your family can stay fit together this winter and help out some local organizations with extra donations!

Pack some care packages
If you have very young children at home, help them to start thinking about others by packing a shoe box to send to children in other parts of the world. Projects such as Operation Christmas Child facilitate the sending of care packages to children in need around the world. Visit www.samaritanspurse.org for information on package sizes and where to drop off your package so that it can be sent to another child.

Choose your own adventure
Get creative with your family and decide on some random acts of kindness to do in your community. Set a budget and have each member of your family do something that is special to them, or decide on one larger project as a family. Offer coffee on a cold day at a crowded bus stop, adopt a pet who has been at the animal shelter a little too long or brighten up the holiday for your neighbors with some caroling.

If you are a GBU member, be sure to turn any volunteer hours in for the One Hour at a Time program. GBU will donate $15 to your chosen organization for each hour that you volunteered (up to $150).

Find out more about GBU member benefits

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