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Become Richer by Giving Back This Holiday Season

Being “rich” can be defined in many ways – having lots of money and material possessions, wielding position, power, and influence, having all your needs met, possessing multiple assets, or being abundantly supplied with resources – but money and material wealth isn’t the only way to be “rich.” There’s a richness of life that only comes from making other people’s lives better, and you don’t need a lot of money to do that.

Adopt a local family in need. Many local organizations, churches, and religious groups can help you find a family in your area to shop for over the holiday season. Get everyone in the family on board by deciding together to take some of the money designated for holiday spending to buy or make gifts for another family in need.

Give stockings to homeless people. Hit up the local dollar store for some inexpensive holiday stockings, and pack them full of practical and fun items. Let your children choose some of the things to go in the stockings, and include things like granola bars, water bottles, socks, toothpaste, stocking caps and warm gloves. Carry the stockings in your car and hand them out to the homeless in your community as you encounter them on your daily drives.

Perform chores in exchange for donations. Your kids can get involved with this project and offer to trade babysitting, snow shoveling, house cleaning, or gift wrapping services in exchange for donations to help sponsor a local family in need or donate to a favorite charity.

Visit a local nursing home or assisted living facility. Do your children like to read? There are elderly people living in nursing homes who get little to no visits from friends or family, and who would be thrilled to receive a visit from someone. Check with a nursing home or assisted living facility in your area and find out who those folks are, then surprise them with a visit. Many of them would enjoy having someone read to them, sing for them, or just sit and chat for a few minutes. Check with the facility when you schedule your visit and if they allow it, take some homemade treats, holiday cards or decorations to brighten up a common area or a resident’s room. You can use excess decorations you don’t need any more or make some simple construction paper ornaments and snowflakes.

Feed holiday workers. Take lunches to police stations, fire stations, hotels, hospitals, 24-hour restaurants, and even retail stores that are full of busy workers on holidays. Make some homemade treats like cookies, brownies, or cupcakes, and pack some sack lunches to take to the people in your area who work over the holidays. Don’t forget the bell ringers who stand out in the cold to collect donations for charity; they’d probably enjoy a homemade cookie and cup of coffee or hot chocolate to enjoy while they volunteer their time.

Volunteer at a local homeless shelter. This is a great way the whole family can get involved in giving back to the community. Take your significant other and the kids and share some time with people in need. Whether it’s a local mission or a battered women’s shelter, and whether you help ladle soup or hand out bedding, your time spent in this selfless endeavor will be well spent and much appreciated.

This holiday season, there are many ways to become richer by giving back to those around you, and it’s a great way to teach your children about the intangible rewards of showing compassion, giving, and selflessness. Take one or more of the above suggestions or come up with another way to give back to those in need and make some holiday memories that will reward you much more than money in the bank ever could.