Ways to Give Back to Your Community This Year and Beyond

The past two years have been incredibly challenging for millions of people, with the global pandemic, political and social unrest, economic uncertainty, natural disasters, and so much more.

Rather than getting down in the dumps about all the tough stuff going on in the world, it pays to be proactive and look for ways to brighten someone else’s day and, in turn, your own.

Giving back to the community can reward you just as much as the people you help. Here are some ways you might go about doing this over the coming months.

Volunteer at a Local School

You might decide to give up your time to volunteer at a local school. Many educational facilities are always keen to get some help with things like reading with students or working in the school canteen, being a part of the parents’ association, coaching a sporting team, or otherwise getting involved.

Think about your skills and interests and where your knowledge and experience might be the best fit. You don’t have to have children going to a local school to participate in this way, either. Feel free to approach places with your interest in getting involved. Keep in mind, though, that you’ll likely need to submit to some checks being done on you to ensure you’re allowed to be around children.

Fundraise

Another option is to spend your time fundraising. There are organizations and individuals galore that could use the support of someone who aids them in generating cash flow. You could take on a formal fundraising role for a not-for-profit, perhaps, or help your kids to raise more money for the Scouts or their next school excursion, or anything in between.

If you have excellent sales, marketing, planning, and administration abilities, fundraising may be the perfect fit for you. Choose a cause or goal you believe in and get satisfaction seeing donations rise as you work your magic.

Donate Money or Goods

If committing to continual donations of time is challenging for you with your busy schedule, you might prefer to donate money to causes close to your heart either on a regular (i.e., monthly or weekly) basis or throughout the year as you feel inspired to do so. Organizations of all types are always looking for cash donations they can use to achieve their goals.

Alternatively, you might consider donating goods. For example, homeless and domestic violence shelters look for deliveries of items that will help those that are less fortunate, or you could pay attention to when food banks and other groups are searching for edible items or other donations annually. Animal shelters and farms also look for donations of goods to help them feed and otherwise care for the creatures in their care.

Donate Your Blood

A personal way to assist others that’s worth keeping in mind is donating your blood. Blood banks, hospitals, health clinics, and other venues are generally always looking for donors because there’s a constant need for whole blood, plasma, platelet, and related blood donations. If you give blood, you can save the lives of multiple people, including those who have been in accidents or suffered some other trauma, going through a transplant or surgery, dealing with cancer or other dire medical condition, and so on.

Donating blood or specific components of your blood takes around one to two hours each time you do it and can serve a need that you yourself might have one day. Many of us have to have a blood transfusion at some point in our lives, after all.

Buy Goods from Businesses That Do Good

Many people don’t think about how much impact their spending habits can have. You might like to support your community by concentrating on only buying goods from local businesses and those that do good in some way. For instance, you might shop with companies that employ the less fortunate, give a percentage of profits to charity, or sell sustainable or otherwise feel-good items. Every buying choice you make can add up to powerful impacts over time.

Some other ways you might give back to your community include by becoming a mentor, sponsoring an event, serving on a community board, being a helpful neighbor, or otherwise sharing your skills and spending time supporting those who live in your area.

There’s no right or wrong with this, so think about what will have the most meaning for you and where you can see your knowledge, skills, or finances might help you affect the most change.