#Giving Tuesday, or Making the Most of a Hashtag Holiday

So last week's roundup of activities included mention of #Giving Tuesday, an attempt to at least parallel (if not shift) Black Friday's launch of the spending season leading up to the December holidays with the start of a giving season.  Idealistically, the campaign hopes not only to encourage people to give to charities but also to have them crow about it in social media, spreading the word and momentum about the need to give to organizations, causes, people that we care about and which enrich our community and depend on our support.  It's a fine idea, even if one may question (see, e.g. this critique) whether this will ultimately increase giving over all, or change our national pattern of giving to charity (in which giving clumps up in the month before the end of the tax year anyway), or whether it will be heard above the ca-ching ca-ching of spending at the mall.

It is also an opportunity to begin or continue a conversation with your kids about why you give to charitable organizations, and which ones you care about, or even why you think giving to charity is the wrong thing to do to improve your community and what you advocate instead.  I mentioned last week that this page includes some activities for families to do, and I think there are some good ideas there whether or not you link them to this event.  A number of them involve ways of creating a regular habit of giving small amounts -- seasonally, monthly, marking holidays -- throughout the year, and using that plan to foster a family discussion about how and where to give.  I haven't tried this yet, but it seems to make sense as an approach (and is echoed by other sites discussing how to introduce kids to charitable giving).  Kids tend to like rituals and routines and they may become bigger sticklers for keeping with it than you are, if you're lucky.  It also makes sense to really think through what you are likely to maintain, because, as with a lot of things involving children, consistency matters.  So, if you are unlikely to convince your kids without a struggle to skip meals or forego small treats periodically and give the money you'd spend on the meal to a charity of their choosing then pick something else.

Obviously, you can participate in the day (or not) by writing a check to an organization or in support of a cause important to you, but it's harder to involve children in that.  If you want to do something tomorrow and haven't planned ahead, here are a few ideas that you can accomplish on a work day that can involve kids - these are ideas, not endorsements:

• Ask your kids to help you pick out items from the Occupy Sandy Registry on Amazon.  Send blankets or diapers or hand warmers.
• Contribute to the "Virtual Food Drive" organized by the Food Bank for New York City and DoSomething.org; you can browse the food categories and put items in your shopping cart and then charge them.  This allows the food bank to buy the food wholesale rather than collecting cans from individual donors.
• Give a cow, a plant, or some honeybees at Heifer International.
• Go buy some warm breakfast treats and bring them to the crossing guard near your school - not a charity exactly, but a reminder to thank people who help you in small ways every day.

Your ideas?  Are you buying into this hashtag holiday?  Why or why not?

Things you can do THIS weekend and beyond

So tomorrow is Thanksgiving, the kids are out of school Friday, the traditional holiday tsunami of consumerist frenzy is about to overtake the country, what can you do to staunch the flow just a bit? Funny you should ask.  Here are some opportunities in the coming week and beyond:

Hurricane Relief

 Although most power is now restored for those who have houses to return to, many people in the Rockaways, Coney Island, Staten Island and New Jersey are still homeless or trying to rebuild or salvage damaged homes.  There will be a lot of work to do in the near future, and kids can continue to help collect and sort donations of food and other items, food preparation, etc.

• Occupy is organizing Thanksgiving meals tomorrow, if you're looking to do some volunteering.  Go to 9818 Fort Hamilton Parkway, where they will be cooking in the morning.  520 Clinton Ave. will be closed on Thanksgiving.  The St. Jacobi Church (4th Ave. between 54th and 55th) will be taking in and dispatching volunteers until 2pm on Thanksgiving (no donations on that day).
• Coney Recovers no longer needs Thanksgiving volunteers, but still need donations of canned goods, diapers, paper goods, toilet paper, baby food and blankets.  You can take a trip out there with the kids and some stuff between 9:30 and 2:00.  Check the link for locations.

Black Friday

Across the country Walmart workers and supporters are demonstrating in front of Walmart stores on the Friday after Thanksgiving to call attention to efforts by Walmart to retaliate against employees who speak out on workers' rights.  For more info, look here.  There aren't any events in New York City proper, but if you're visiting family somewhere else, you can spend some time (and take a break from leftovers) out there lending your support.  Kids can talk to folks on the picket lines about why they're protesting and what it means for their families and their kids.  You can find an event near you here.

#Giving Tuesday

The basic idea behind #Giving Tuesday is to create a national day of charitable giving in the midst of the holidays, following on the heels of Black Friday and Cyber Monday, two days devoted to shopping and spending on STUFF.  Okay, so maybe it's a bit hokey, but it could be a great opportunity to engage your kids in a discussion of why we think about giving to others and not just about getting the things we want, and to plot out ways to give back in the coming year.  There's a nice list of ideas for families here, developed by staff at the 92nd St. Y, which is the big nonprofit leading the effort.  I like this list because it includes ongoing activities that can be incorporated into your family rituals going forward, encouraging regular mindfulness without overtaxing busy lives.

We Belong Together Campaign

The We Belong Together Campaign is trying to gather 20,000 letters and pictures by the end of November from children asking legislators to stop deportations and detentions that tear families apart.  The campaign focuses in particular on immigrant families of mixed status, with some members having green cards and others living with documents, at risk of deportation.  The website, which also lists its sponsors here, has an activity guide for working with kids on the project.

Coming up in a few weeks.....

There are a couple of family volunteering activities coming up being organized by Hannah Senesh Country Day School.  On December 16th and February 3rd, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m, folks will be preparing and serving food at the Masbia Soup Kitchen at 4114 14th Ave. in Brooklyn.  Anyone interested should RSVP here.