This post was sponsored by Johnson & Johnson as part of an Influencer Activation for Influence Central and all opinions expressed in my post are my own.
While I like to think that our family does a good job at giving back throughout the year, I know that we definitely make it a priority during the holiday season. For us, we truly haven’t experienced the Christmas spirit until we have given back to others. From charitable organizations to personal convictions, here are a few ways that everyone can give back this holiday season.
-Donate Canned Goods to a Food Drive (or organize your own!). I’ve participated in several food drives over the years, but my favorite one is something that we used to do at a medical office where I was employed. We would collect specific foods that one would use to make a holiday meal (think corn, green beans, cranberry sauce, etc. ). Then we made meal boxes with a full holiday meal for those in need.
-Clean out coats and clothes to donate to a local shelter. Kids outgrow clothes so quickly! I can’t believe how fast my kids go through clothes. I try to go through their closet at the beginning of each season, but I always forget the coats!
-Volunteer at a food bank or soup kitchen. This can be a great activity for teenage kids, too. Be sure to check the age requirements on these volunteering opportunities. For instance, my oldest can volunteer at some food banks but not others due to her age.
-Give a charitable donation of money and/or time to a cause in which you believe.
-Make cookies or other goody bags for teachers, etc. Even younger kids can help with this by assisting with baking and writing thank you notes.
-Volunteer babysitting services to a tired mom.
-Assist an elderly person with housework or grocery shopping.
-Participate with brands that give back to charities that you care about. Johnson & Johnson is one such company. With their free Donate a Photo app, users can upload a photo into the app, and, for every photo shared, Johnson & Johnson will donate $1 to the charity of the user’s choice (such as Save the Children, with whom Johnson & Johnson has been a long standing partner). Users may donate one photo a day every day then share on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram to spread the word to their friends! They also give users the opportunity to purchase a gift from the Save the Children “Gifts of Joy” holiday catalog.
Johnson & Johnson has curated a list of trusted causes, and you can donate a photo to one cause, once a day. Each cause will appear in the app until it reaches its goal, or the donation period ends. If the goal isn’t reached, the cause will still get a minimum donation.
Try out the Donate a Photo app for yourself and see how easy it is!
What other things does your family do during the holidays to give back?
This is such a neat idea to make it super easy to give back!