Photo credit: Central Texas Food Bank - photo taken pre-Covid-19
Live Here I Give Here’s Actions for Good campaign is happening November 1st – December 1st, 2020, as part of the global GivingTuesday generosity movement. It’s a great opportunity for parents and caregivers to share their values around philanthropy and get the kiddos involved in doing some good right here in Central Texas — the place we love to call home.
Giving back makes kids feel empowered and instilling the value of generosity can have lifelong benefits, including: enhancing your mood, fostering optimism, reducing depression, and creating healthy relationships. Generosity has even been linked to higher rates of happiness.
How to get your kids involved in Social Good
A great way to start engaging our kids in generosity is simply having a conversation. Ask your kids what causes and issues matter most to them. What do they love about their community and what do they want to help protect and grow? If your kids...
- ...love being outdoors: clean up a neighborhood playground, park or waterway; or donate to local conservation organizations.
- ...are concerned about the well-being of other kids: collect and donate school supplies; run a toy drive before the holiday season; visit a children’s hospital
- ...want to help create a society that’s kind: make a generosity wall in a public space and encourage others to write kind messages for their neighbors, chalk a positive message on your driveway, or paint kindness rocks and hide them throughout the neighborhood.
- ...are worried about the homeless in your community: prepare care kits and deliver them to homeless shelters (download the toolkit at GivingTuesdaySpark.org)
- ...love animals: set up a donation drive to support animals in need or organize an online fundraiser for the local shelter.
- …want to support our essential workers; write thank you messages to doctors, teachers, grocery store employees, and many others serving our community.
- ...want to address cyber-bullying: ask your school if you can help create an anti-bullying campaign and help plan a virtual rally about it.
- …are concerned with food inequities: create bagged lunches and give them to anyone who might be hungry or help raise money for your local food bank.
Three things you can do right now to take action for good
Connect
Visit
AmplifyATX.org to connect with nonprofits that are working toward all of these causes and more, right here in Central Texas. Search by cause category to find local organizations advancing the issues important to your child and family, see areas of need, make a donation, or start your own family fundraiser.
Get ideas
Check out the
GivingTuesdaySpark website, which has additional free, kid-focused resources including online lessons, inspiring stories about young philanthropists, coloring pages, dinner discussion topics, and more.
Share
If your kids use social media, ask them to participate in the #GenerosityNow Challenge and share how they give back locally using #ILiveHereIGiveHere while tagging a friend to join them in giving back. They can help represent generosity in Central Texas as part of a global conversation with influencers from all over the world during GivingTuesday on December 1st.
I Live Here I Give Here’s Central Texas Actions for Good campaign runs through December 1, 2020, as part of the global GivingTuesday movement.
GivingTuesday is a global generosity movement that’s unleashing the power of people and organizations to transform their communities and the world. Whether it’s making someone smile, helping a neighbor or stranger out, showing up for an issue or people we care about, or giving some of what we have to those who need our help, every act of generosity counts and everyone has something to give. You can give and get involved by visiting
AmplifyATX.org.