Charitable Acts

Does anyone here still do acts of charity for their community or to help better themselves for example, like maybe donating books to a library, visiting the elderly in a nursing home participating in a cleanup program for trash or graffiti maybe baking some fudge or some cookies, and sharing it with your neighbors Feeding the homeless, maybe playing an instrument or singing at an event

I do.

I make amigurumi (crocheted dolls) as fidget toys and therapy companions for those going through whatever tough times, treatments, or therapy sessions they are in.

I donate them to local clinics, shelters, centers, etc.

The crochet is basically therapeutic for me, and the photos I have of people using and enjoying the dolls have gotten me through a few really tough days.

cuddle_bug88

@CharlesInWI those are amazing!!!! 😍😍 When I was a child and had to have surgery there was a similar concept with hand sewn bears....meant so much to have that little comfort item. How fabulous!!!

Bear

I have been working on getting rid of some of my. I will bring it to a charity instead of throwing it out. Also, I use the app from my city to stop and repair potholes and remove graffiti when I can.

PrettyLuv

I donate clothes and shoes on apps like BuyNothing & nextdoor. I love donating especially when a girl really loves something I have and I didn’t even realize it was something anyone would like anymore. When she’s so happy to get it that gives me a desire to donate so much more. But I don’t know if it counts as an act of charity because I just have too many clothes and shoes. I used to be a shopaholic but I hardly wore any of the stuff I bought. The majority still have tags on! Lol I really love heels though.

@cuddle_bug88 Thank you.

Lisa123

I was involved with lasagna love until I moved to FL and have not picked it up here. It was designed to help people down on luck, in a difficult situation, unable to cook, or maybe give a busy parent a break from cooking one night. You can set the distance willing to travel to deliver and the organization matches people willing to help with those who would like help. You make a lasagna, or something similar and drop at the door of the person.

achetocuddle

I push extra shopping carts back to the store. I think my days of pushing even 2 at a time are over; I barely made it the other day, lol. I walk up and down part of my street and pick up trash. I've taken a couple of people I barely knew to the doctor (friends of friends), as well as other people. I pick up items at the store and order things online for people that don't have internet. I do light yardwork for anyone that is not incredibly picky about every leaf being just so, lol. I used to visit old people until I got asthma and couldn't breathe in their hot abodes, ha ha. I do people a favor by not singing at an event, lol.

@CharlesinWI Your crochet talent is very impressive. I don't believe I've ever seen better.

AllAboutSoul

My creed is "practice random acts of kindness."
I donate clothes, food and books; often pet-sit for free; always round up at McDonalds (for the Ronald McDonald House); and take a plastic grocery bag (or two) to clean up parks, trails and beaches where I walk.

@achetocuddle

Thank you! That is very kind of you to say.

AllAboutSoul

@Bear Can you move to Michigan? We have lots of potholes here!

LadyVel

My work partners with United Way and I usually volunteer to help clean up one of the local parks or help with other projects.
I've donated lots of school supplies, books, and angel trees for seniors. I'm part of a pay it forward group and have donated items and food to people in my community that needed it.
I recently made a blind friend and have helped give them rides a few times to events.

UREverything

Daily charitable contributions for the community. Power to the people

TNNative

Love this thread. I donate and also shop at Goodwill and other second had stores. I participate monthly in my local electric company's giving program for those who need help paying their electric bill. I also volunteer for the yearly NAMI (National Association for Mental Illness) walk.

Let's all do good out there. 🙂

JohnR1972

@lonelytauros - Yes. I have a specialized skill set and I am volunteering my time and skills for several weeks this summer with an NGO in Nigeria and with a charity in Southern Florida.

Morpheus

I’ve volunteered with a non profit group for 15 years. I volunteer at least 100 hours every year.

RadiantHugs

I host a cuddle party event in Austin once every three weeks or so. For each one, I pick a local cause I care about and donate the net proceeds to it.
I also admin my local neighborhood Buy Nothing Group. When I have stuff in good condition which I no longer need I offer it on there first, before I take it to goodwill. Similarly, when I need something, I first ask on that group before I go out and buy it - for example, all of the plants, planters, and supplies I needed to replant dead plants after a huge unexpected winter freeze recently I got from that group. I encourage everyone to learn about the buy nothing project and find a group in their neighborhood! https://buynothingproject.org
@CharlesInWI those dolls are amazing!

Before last years court ruling that impacted my state of residence and many surrounding it, I was a medical clinic escort for 10 years.

I used my body and calming presence to shield individuals from harassment and cruel taunts as they made thier way from the parking area into the building.

It was a volunteer position I spent many hours in all kinds of weather weekly for years.

I am now doing more financial support then on the ground as things have changed.

waynewv

I took many items to Goodwill many years ago, the last time I took several boxes and they looked thru and picked out what they wanted and told me to throw away the other items they didn’t want. Well that was the last time I went there. I just took 5 boxes to a local Sheriffs thrift store where they help local youth in my county.
I am fully retired now and I have been having fun with my new toy, a tractor with several attachments and been doing work for friends and family and a local church all at no charge. On my street I have helped neighbors, cut down trees, dig a ditch, level out a load of gravel , dress up drive ways, level ground. To me it’s fun, I run heavy equipment in my younger years in WV.
When asked, how much I owe you, I say
I’ll charge it to the dust on the road and let the rain settle it.
I would be very open to trade off tractor work for some CUDDLE time, lol

achetocuddle

This is a neat thread. A good way to get to know some nice people here even more.
@waynewv I know the slender tree in the first pic is kinda crooked but I like it. It's no surprise that you and your sidekick @KYtransplant do a lot for other people

@achetocuddle I agree this thread has been amazing, and the contributions that everyone has made is awesome! Thank you everyone you all deserve a round of applause!

achetocuddle

I really like it when the OP comes back and makes a post @lonelytauros.

CuddleHugs01234

These are my favorite ways to donate. I love cleaning out (a fav thing to do for me anyway) and donating to local thrift store. Their proceeds go to help women in domestic violence program and also go to buy backpacks full of supplies for any child in our county. (People donate supplies county wide) I also volunteer for the backpack day, which is one of my favorite days of the years. I also love to give blood. I don’t like needles or getting the finger prick, and sometimes it’s extra painful because of my veins (the look easy to do but are not!) but it’s worth the pain. This used to be completely altruistic but it helps my body now too due to a medical reason. I also love taking food to my neighbor when I have a little extra, or it’s something I’m intolerant to and my child won’t eat it, or I have baked goods to share. I also love serving in the children’s ministry at church. In the past I would have homeless packs made up to hand out. Some bathroom essentials, some healthy snack foods, water, so on. That would make it easy to hand them something useful and needed.

JohnR1972

I’ve noticed a lot of people in this thread mentioning donating clothes to thrift stores and that is great (I do as well). However I would really like to encourage everyone to also shop at thrift stores!

This not only saves you money but it is good for the environment. The average American discards (throws away or donates) 80 lbs of textiles per year. In 2017, Americans threw away or donated 12.8 million tons of clothing (according to “Unraveled: The Life and Death of a Garment” by Maxine Bedat).

Only 40% of the clothing donated each year to the Salvation Army makes it to the rack to be sold. 60% is either torn, stained, worn out etc. and is immediately discarded. Of the 40% that gets tagged and put on the rack for sale, only 20% of that (or 8% of all donations) actually gets sold. The other 92% is bundled up and sent overseas where it is resorted and a few items are sold, some are burned, and others are sent back to the United States for use as industrial rags.

Manufacturing clothing is an extremely water, energy, and chemical intense industry. The long supply chains that wrap around the world, sometimes twice, creates a HUGE carbon footprint. China uses a much higher percentage of fossil fuel for their energy production (85.7%) than we do in the United States (63%) and they often do not properly remove harmful chemicals from textile manufacturing waste water before dumping it into rivers.

When you buy from a thrift store, you are reducing the demand for new textiles and all the wasted water, energy, and chemicals involved in manufacturing new clothes.