10 Ways Give Back During the Holidays

I’ve always made it a point to give back during the holidays. Everyone likes to open gifts of course, but it feels even better to make someone else happy and know that you are making a difference.

This year is my first Christmas season with the blog, and this platform gave me the perfect opportunity to give back. A little over a month ago I had the idea to do an online toy drive, with the proceeds benefitting Toys for Tots, a wonderful organization I have supported over the years.

My good friend Kristina is the GM of Mo’s a Place for Steaks in Houston, which is known for their amazing yearly Toys for Tots event. Every year they collect hundreds of gifts to bring holiday cheer to area children in need.

(Image from Mo’s a Place for Steaks on Facebook)

Last Wednesday, Matt and I bagged up the toys donated by our generous sponsors in a large Santa sack (I had to carry it with two hands!) and headed over to Mo’s to join the festivities. We had a wonderful evening celebrating the season and supporting a good cause.

A BIG THANK YOU to our sponsors for the First Annual Soccer Mom Blog Toy Drive:The Pencil Grip Inc., Magformers, VTech Kids, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, Parragon Books, Hasbro,Jonas Sickler Illustration

Ways YOU Can Give Back During the Holidays:

Donate to a cause that you love, like Toys for Tots — you can find a local branch or donate online. Other organizations I support are the CHARGE Syndrome Foundation and Project Linus.

Check with your church or school to see if they sponsor a local family or organization and ask what they need. This is something I did often growing up, on my own or with my family.

Create a “Reverse Advent Calendar,” a box that you add something to each day leading up to Christmas (clothing, food item, toy, etc.) and at the end you donate what you collected.

Instead of decorating the tree at your office, church, school with traditional ornaments, put the call out for useful “decorations.” Ask friends, family, customers, etc. to bring winter clothing items to hang on the tree instead! I got this idea from the lovely Evelyn at Nemcsok Farms.

Get the kids involved with these 50 Acts of Kindness Ideas from Mum in the Madhouse!

Make sure you’ve got some extra cash or change on hand when Christmas shopping to drop in the Salvation Army buckets.

Look for an Angel Tree at your local mall or shopping center.

Send care packages to service members overseas.

Volunteer at a local food bank or shelter.

Don’t forget about the animals! Volunteer at a local shelter or rescue agency.

How do you give back during the holidays? I’d love to hear your ideas too!

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Stacey aka the Soccer Mom

Stacey is the creator of The Soccer Mom Blog, a Houston Texas mom blog that focuses on positive living for women and families. She loves to share real food recipes, money-saving tips, parenting encouragement, kids activities, DIY tutorials, home hacks, fitness, and so much more! To get to know Stacey even better, click here.

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