The holidays are time for giving and sharing with family, friends and the community. There are many ways to help out in the Savannah area, from serving community meals to donating new toys or coats for children in need. Many charitable organizations rely heavily on donations made during the holiday season. Some of the charities collect items for distribution for Christmas while others accept donations to help with their programs throughout the year. Find out more about a few of the charitable organizations that are holding special holiday donation campaigns.
Toys for Tots Holiday Toy Drive
The Marine Reserves sponsor the annual Toys for Tots Holiday Toy Drive Campaign to collect new, unwrapped toys for children that are in need. The organization receives millions of dollars in toy and monetary donations each year. They work with local community organizations and church groups for toy donation on Christmas. There are several Savannah area drop off points for Toys for Tots. They will be collecting toys through mid-December.
Salvation Army of Savannah
The Salvation Army was started in the mid 1880’s by a British evangelical preacher, William Booth. Members of Booth’s church group immigrated to the United States in 1880 and the program quickly spread across the United States. Today, the Salvation Army assists nearly 30 million Americans nationwide each year with homeless relief programs, disaster relief, boys and girls groups and much more. The Salvation Army of Savannah has been serving those in need in the Savannah area since 1900. One of the major fundraising campaigns for the Salvation Army is the Red Kettle Campaign. This giving program began in 1891 and today raises millions of dollars every holiday season to help with local Salvation Army programs. Salvation Army volunteers are dispersed across the area collecting holiday donations with their red kettles and bells.
Another popular Salvation Army holiday charity program is The Angel Tree. The program matches donors with children from qualified families to ensure that they receive gifts and clothing during the holidays. Participating donors can take one or more Angels from the “Angel Tree” located in malls and at various stores throughout the Savannah area. Donors can purchase age- and gender-appropriate toys, clothing, or special needs items as listed on the coded section of the Angels donation slip. Return the unwrapped items with the coded section of the Angel slip attached to the designated drop-off locations by December 14th to ensure delivery by the holidays.
Savannah Food Bank
The Savannah Second Harvest of Coastal Georgia is the Savannah area’s food bank. The organization serves over 300 charitable programs in 21 urban and rural coastal Georgia communities. The Savannah Second Harvest of Coastal Georgia is always accepting monetary or food donations and volunteer assistance to help sort the food in their warehouse. Donations to local food pantries also come in handy throughout the year, but especially during the holidays. If you would like to donate actual food items to the food bank or food pantries in the Savannah area, make sure that the items are non-perishable. Suggested items for holiday meal donations include canned pumpkin, canned yams, cranberry sauce, boxed stuffing mix or died macaroni. For everyday needs, suggested food donations include canned beans, nuts, peanut butter, canned tuna or salmon, dried beans, rice, oatmeal pasta, tomato sauce, flour and canned vegetables. Check with local organizations for Christmas free dinners and events for the community.
Savannah Feed the Hungry Meals
Savannah Feed the Hungry Inc. hosts Christmas dinners during the holiday season in Savannah and Port Wentworth. The Port Wentworth dinner is at the Holiday Inn Express in Port Wentworth on December 22nd. The Savannah meal is at the John S. Deleware Center on December 23rd. Savannah Feed the Hungry is planning on serving over 45,000 meals in 2015 to those in need in the area. Since 2009, they have served over 450,000 meals. The event will also help families in need with extra help for toys for Christmas, free health screenings and clothing.
The holidays are a wonderful time to help others by giving to holiday charity programs or by volunteering at food banks, food pantries and community holiday meals. Helping others who are in need is a great way to honor the meaning of the season. Stop N Stor wishes all of their customers, vendors, family and friends all the best this holiday season.