It’s just about Thanksgiving time which is one of my favorite holidays. The cool air, the family, the food…you just can’t beat it. We all have a lot to be thankful for. We work in an industry we love where there is growth unlike a lot of other sectors which are experiencing record declines.
For the last couple of years i’ve tried to do things for other less fortunate families at Thanksgiving time. If you recall last years post Flagged & Removed For Christmas I bought a family that couldn’t afford it a full Thanksgiving dinner. This year i’m sponsoring 2 families and buying them complete Thanksgiving dinners and all the trimmings. This post isn’t meant to brag because in fact I never much cared what people thought of me. The purpose of writing this is simple.
If you have the means I’d like to ask that you do something similar. It’s not that expensive and can really lift a families spirits. I don’t really like formal charities for a number of reasons. Actions like these are a more direct way of helping people in your community. We don’t need more government programs and increased taxes to help people; we just need to go out there and do it!
Are you with me?
Giving: great idea. This year, I took a page out of Dan Kennedy’s play book and established a “Giving account.” It’s a simple, free checking account into which I make regular, automatic deposits. Whenever I find a charity or non-profit that strikes my fancy, I check the balance and write a check for the entire amount. It’s a fantastic feeling.
I’m with you. I will too now donate TDay Dinner & the Trimmings moola to a family in need. I’ll call my friend the Rev. David Stout of Trinity Asbury in Asbury Park, NJ and ask him to please pass it on to a family in need. Thank you for the reminder that even the most simplest of gestures are still powerful!
A+ idea Hustler. All my friends and I do a Fantasy Football league where we pay $50 at the beggining of the season to enter and donate half ($500) to a foodbank for Thanksgiving. A lot of times even if you aren’t that charitable of a person or have the money to do it, you can find creative ways to make it fun and fulfilling.
On your posts, do you receive requests from people reading CL who are in need or emails from people like ‘I have a friend who is really hurting this year…’?
@Mike – Yea I do receive emails like that. I also received about 30 other requests for meals. There are a lot of people that need small gestures like this.
I would much rather receive a message from someone else legit asking to get something for someone in need. If someone was emailing me like ‘Hey things are tough can you help me out?’
I would probably reply back with something like ‘quit lurking all day on Craigslist and get a job’.
Great post and even better message. I’m a big believer in giving back, whether through formal charities or just directly helping someone in need. We do a number of things here at affiliate.com over the course of the year to give all of our folks the chance to support the local community.