Giving Back This Holiday Season

With the holiday season upon us, we begin to reflect more on the year and relationships. This holiday season, we are reminded of what really matters given everything that has happened in 2020. Many use this revelation as an opportunity to give back. For everyone in healthcare, and the general public, there are a multitude of opportunities to get involved.

‘Tis the Season To Give

The holiday season is synonymous with giving back and helping others. Healthcare workers have a natural inclination to help people. Luckily, opportunities exist to participate in person or virtually. Due to COVID-19, some charities may offer only digital donations or virtual volunteering, so please reference individual organizations’ websites for updates and more information on how to get involved.

Giving Tuesday

December 1st is Giving Tuesday: A ‘Global Day Of Giving’. Giving Tuesday is a generosity movement unleashing the power of people and organizations to transform their communities and the world. It provides numerous opportunities at the local level for both individuals and organizations to get involved with nonprofit organizations. Kickoff December on the right foot with this movement.

Ways to Give Back

If you are a health care provider, your skills are always needed but your time is definitely precious. There are countless ways to give back to your community or even on a global scale. However, with limited resources, we each need to decide what we can provide; time, expertise, or money. To save you time searching for inspiration, we put together a few lists.

Volunteer Virtually

There are plenty of ways to give back from the comfort of your own home. PowerOf.org has some great ways to donate and volunteer with causes you care about. You can also check out Create the Good, AARP’s searchable database of volunteer opportunities. They have filters that allow you to search via location, timeframe, and type. You can find interesting ways to support a range of organizations in whatever capacity you have available.

Help Your Neighbors and Loved Ones

Whether you know of some elderly or disabled individuals that could use an extra hand getting groceries or just checking in virtually with friends or family that might be feeling lonely this holiday season, make sure to reach out to lend your support. Send a care package to someone or do some yardwork for a neighbor.

Check out these questions to check in with loved ones and print out these cards to let your neighbors know you’re here to help! If you are more interested in helping the elderly, check out the Brain Exercise Initiative and Love For The Elderly.

Many people are going through difficult times this holiday season. Create a Little Free Pantry in your neighborhood to help support others with the essentials. Meals on Wheels supports more than 5000 community-based programs across the country. They focus on addressing senior isolation and hunger., which is even more dire in times of COVID-19.

Support Schools

With many schools going back to virtual learning this winter, consider supporting programs that offer free or discounted internet access to students and teachers. You can also send supplies with to a school or teacher’s wish list to help them through this time.

Thank Essential Workers

This has been a standout year for our essential workers during COVID-19. Don’t forget to recognize the work they continue to do this holiday season, as many spend this time away from loved ones. You can write a thank you note to healthcare professionals, postal workers, and sanitation crews or send food delivery to first responders in your community. Be sure to tip generously at your local restaurants and coffee shops if you can. Stay at home when you can to slow the spread of COVID-19 and practice social distancing and wear a mask in public to keep our essential workers safe.

Donate

Time is precious and definitely perishable but your desire to help doesn’t expire. Many organization need help in all kinds of ways. You can donate toiletries, books, clothes, toys, food, and more. In addition, most all organizations can always use monetary support.

Whichever service you choose, the act of giving back has a tremendous effect on the people receiving the aid. On a personal level, volunteering has been shown to deliver benefits such as improved social skills, social recognition, higher self-esteem, and better health.

At Supplemental Health Care, we truly believe in giving back to the community and have made it a yearly priority for our team. We donate and volunteer with Ronald McDonald House Charities and Toys for Tots every year during the holidays. Look for more information about what SHC is doing this holiday season on our blog and social media accounts!