How To Give Back This Holiday Season
Amidst a pandemic, donating this holiday is very important to help those struggling in our community.
November 29, 2020
The holiday season is among us, and it is crucial now more than ever to give back to the people in our community as we are still in a global pandemic.
During normal circumstances in past years, it was easy for us to get wrapped up in all of the glamour of the holiday season and overlook the struggling. However, this year because of COVID-19, we can and must do better. Members of our community are food-insecure, some are still out of work, and facilities are struggling to thrive.
There are many opportunities to give back this holiday season in Pittsburgh and we hope that these recommendations aid in figuring out how.
The Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank
As the price of living increases, more and more people struggle to afford the cost of basic living needs. The Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank is dedicated to making sure that everyone has access to enough food during the holiday season and especially during COVID-19. There are many options available when wanting to volunteer at this food bank. A person or group can volunteer to distribute food and feed the hungry, donate food, or host a fund or food drive. No matter how big or small a donation is, it is put to great use as feeding all people in need is their mission. To find out more on how to help, look at the sections, “Get Involved” and “Ways to Give” on their website.
Although some restaurants are open now, many have remained closed in order to stay safe and avoid being exposed to COVID-19. With the Pittsburgh Virtual Tip Jar, those who are out of work due to their restaurant being shut down are able to receive online tips from anyone. Workers in the restaurant industry are tipped nicely during the holiday season as customers tend to be more generous during this time. But with some restaurants closed during this season due to the pandemic, wait staff, hosts and hostesses, and cooks aren’t receiving those generous tips. The Pittsburgh Virtual Tip jar helps support our local service industry staff during both the pandemic and the holiday season.
The goal of this organization is to work with different food retailers to prevent surplus food from going to waste. They prevent good food from entering the waste stream by redirecting it to people who are experiencing food insecurity. Their approach to food insecurity in Allegheny County is to eliminate barriers such as transportation and time to ensure food access to those who need it. A person can donate money or food and they have eight different programs available for volunteers to be a part of. They break the norm on where food should be available and they reach an unprecedented number of people in poverty. With COVID-19 preventing normal conductance of rescuing food, they have implemented a no contact rescue protocol. For more information, visit their website and learn more on how to take action.
Every year at Angel’s Place, the founders create a wishlist that volunteers can contribute to. This list includes different cleaning products, kitchen supplies, healthy snacks, office supplies, and child care products. At this facility, they have programs for early childhood education, child care, and family support. They need the supplies on this list to keep these programs running smoothly. At Angel’s Place, their mission is to support a community of joy for single parents and their children. By donating either items or money to them, they ensure that they can provide good care to the growing families in the community. COVID-19 has impacted their normal procedures, and they are only able to care for a certain amount of children and adults at a time. Because of this, they need all of the support and donations they can get.
No matter how big or small someone is looking to donate during this holiday season, there are many options for all of us to give back in Pittsburgh.
