We are already two months into the new year! Really where has the time gone? Now, have you ever wondered how you could be a little more charitable or give back to the community? Well, a new year is the greatest opportunity to start something and start giving back in little ways, which all make a huge difference!
Volunteer
One of the best ways to give back is to volunteer. Whether it be helping to run a local charity shop. Going to speak to pensioners and give them a little time of your day to stop them feeling lonely. Helping your local charity shop and spending a few hours helping maintain it. Time is precious, and it is also priceless, so giving any of your time is already such an amazing way to give back to the community. Many charities rely on volunteers to keep running. For example, the British Heart Foundation and others are all charities that open shops around the country and help people every day and have done since 1961. Their stores are all manned by staff who aren’t paid, they are committed volunteers that help keep the charity going. So, if you have any spare hours in your day, and this sounds like something you could do, consider volunteering!
If you live near a park or a beach, why not do a group walk to pick up plastics and litter? At the same time, you can help your local environment, make a massive impact, and also get outside and meet lots of new likeminded people who care just as much about the environment and just making a difference as you do!
Help Sponsor those Who Need Help
Sponsoring is another way you can give back and keep giving for a long period of time. One example would be to sponsor an orphan child. There are children all around the world that are looking for help and are orphaned not by choice, but is just simply their situation. An orphaned child deserves the same level of care as any child, so sponsoring an orphaned child is a great way to give back. You can also sponsor animals too, who are in need of help. Charities such as Battersea Dogs and Cats Home, Dogs Trust and more, are all charities that house animals that have been abanded again not by choice by their owners. There are so many around that need help, or rehoming, so sponsoring one of these charities is yet another way you can give back this year.
Clear Out what you don’t Need
Over the years, we can accumulate a lot of things, that as time goes by, don’t really matter to us anymore. That is where the term spring cleaning came from right? Why not donate some of these unwanted objects, if they can still be used? Furniture, clothes, pots, pans, whatever it may be. By donating them you can make a massive difference, and also like the above comments, you help the environment as these things would go to waste otherwise. Which would be a shame as they would be perfectly usable, so why not donate if you can!
Give Blood or Donate your Organs
When it comes to medical donations, giving blood is a big way to give back. Every day someone is in need of a vital blood transfusion, and there are only limited supplies of blood in blood banks. Maybe you have a rare blood type, which is very low in quantity in blood banks. By giving blood, you help give someone out there a chance to live, if they have the same blood type and need a blood transfusion. Another way is organ donation. It is never nice to think about the ending of our lives, but imagine the change you could make even then, by donating your organs. Again, just like giving blood, you could help give someone the gift of life. There is no better legacy.
Research Retailers that have Good Social Responsibility
Lastly, this is the easiest one you can do. Every day whilst we shop, we shop in many retailers. But, did you know that some give a percentage of their proceeds to charities, local and global? COOP does a lot of work with FairTrade and many other retailers give back in small ways with the money you spend in their stores. So, when you are next hitting the high street, maybe have a little look at where and what stores give back and shop there. You give back without even needing to do anything different in your day to day life.
There you have it, there are some ways you can give back in small ways, and as much as you would like, and make a big change to other people’s lives this year! Let this be the year of giving back to those in need.