Giving spirit
With about 50 days until Christmas, most people are either starting their holiday shopping or beginning to hear that they should. And in Alabama, we can’t wait until there’s snow on the ground to get in the holiday spirit, so it’s up to planning ahead and the warmth we feel from gathering with family in the November and December months to fuel our Christmas cheer.
Along with gifts for loved ones, many people feel more inclined to donate to worthy causes. Sometimes this looks like pausing with the bell ringers outside most grocery stores, but it can also look like choosing to buy specific gifts for a child to help a struggling family make sure everyone has something under the tree Christmas morning.
In Limestone County, we have several organizations worthy of consideration that are working day in and day out to provide for these same families year round. And while, of course, Christmas is a spectacular time to give to holiday causes, these organizations are working year-round to serve us and our neighbors, which makes them prime candidates for our efforts to sustain our community past the holidays and propel them into the new year.
Our local organizations have unique needs and goals for the use of their donations. Some, like the Alabama Veteran’s Museum and some efforts of the United Way, benefit most from monetary donations so that they can be more flexible and use the funds as they need at the time. Other organizations, such as the Limestone Children’s Advocacy Center and DHR, have specific items that they request for those they serve, although they are always grateful for any monetary donations as well. For example, the Family Resource Center is currently looking for some homemade snacks and a photographer for their first-ever pictures with Santa event this year.
Below are five local organizations that are dedicated to Limestone County and some information on how we can best help them in return, including their peak times so we may know when we need to really remember these groups and lend a hand if we are able.
- United Way:
- Preferred donation type: Monetary (Although supplies for specific holiday programs, time in the case of volunteers, and some specific skills are helpful.)
- Peak time of year: Fall & winter
- Alabama Veterans Museum
- Preferred donation type: Monetary (Although service member’s items are the museum’s purpose and substance.)
- Peak time of year: Veteran’s Day, with Memorial Day as a close second
- Family Resource Center
- Preferred donation type: Monetary & supplies
- Peak time: End of the year programs
- Limestone DHR
- Preferred donation type: Supplies (particularly school supplies)
- Peak time of year: School & holidays
- Limestone Children’s Advocacy Center
- Supplies (particularly stuffed animals and treats for Canine Advocate, Harper)
- Peak time of year: Child Abuse Prevention month in April & holidays
Of course, we all want our efforts to truly touch the lives of those we are planning to donate to, which is why organizations such as the BBB can be instrumental in determining where to direct our giving spirits when we encounter an organization that we may not be familiar with, such as the five listed above.
Our local BBB refers questions about the credibility of any specific charities to the charity arm of their organization at give.org and will happily help you locate a charity by emailing tpruitt@northalabama.bbb.org or calling (256) 355-5170, but they offer a few tips below if you want to do the research and make the decision yourself:
- Watch out for name similarities leading to mixups.
- Review their website first; don’t give in to on-the-spot pressure.
- Be wary of overly emotional appeals.
- Check with state charity officials, and rely on standards-based evaluations.
- Research their tax-exempt status and your tax deductibility.
“When (donors) want to give and (the donation) stay in their community … we’re probably the best to do that (through directive financial donations for specific programs). Resources are limited, so we want to do the most we can with what we have.”
~United Way
“We proudly display the items of service members past and present … our country wouldn’t exist the way it is today without our Veterans … That’s what we do, we honor and thank them every day and we couldn’t do that without the generous donations from our community.”
~Alabama Veteran’s Museum
“I’m always amazed at the overflowing hearts of my fellow (Athens-Limestone) residents, groups, and businesses (The donations) are priceless with eternal value for both the receiver and the giver. The ALC-Family Resource Center is honored to have the trust of our community that allows us to share these life-changing, heartfelt donations of all kinds with those we serve.”
~Athens-Limestone County Family Resource Center
“Limestone County DHR is extremely appreciative of the donations that are provided. The donations that we receive assist us greatly with providing for the needs of the Children and Families that we serve here in Limestone County.”
~Limestone County DHR
“All our funding comes from grants and donations from our community. Monetary donations help with the upkeep of our building making it a nice, clean, safe environment for kids and their families. Without the support of the community we wouldn’t be able to provide these services and give these children the safety, healing, and justice that they deserve.”
~Limestone Child Advocacy Center