Service: Buy and Serve

giving back • my world • Mom It Forward Mondays • tips for giving back

by Mom It Forward on June 27th, 2011 | No Comments »

Your Season of Service mission this week, should you choose to accept it, is to Buy. Buy products sold by brands who donate a portion of the purchase price to a cause, buy things from online retailers who partner with nonprofits in or devoted to other countries recovering from natural disasters, buy items and donate them directly to a local nonprofit of your choice, or buy with a discount as a result of having donated. It doesn't matter, just buy! You don't necessarily have to buy a lot; every donation really does help.

10 Things You Can Buy to Serve

Buy a children's alphabet toy puzzle from Ten Thousand Villages, and support an artisan in a developing country.
Buy your next group of books for your child's summer reading program or your book club from Better World Books, an on-line for-profit bookseller whose revenues help to fund literacy nonprofits across the country.
Buy your next box of Huggies diapers on Amazon through Huggies' Every Little Bottom program, and they'll automatically send it to the nearest food bank or other appropriate distribution center so that parents less fortunate than us won't have to reuse soiled disposable diapers or keep their child home from daycare due to lack of money to buy diapers.
Buy $50 worth of merchandise at Macy's, and get $10 off if you give $3 at one of their stores to their Be Book Smart campaign to benefit Reading is Fundamental.
Buy something on eBay's World of Good website. WorldofGood.com by eBay is the world’s largest multi-seller marketplace for socially and environmentally responsible shopping, featuring tens of thousands of unique products from around the world.
Buy two of whatever toy or outfit you're going to buy for your baby or toddler, and then drop it off at your local children's hospital.
Buy a little extra gas to heat someone else's home by adding extra money to your heating bill. Here are some sample instructions on how to do so.
Buy a cup of coffee or a smoothie for the person in line behind you at Starbucks or Jamba Juice.
Buy a copy of How to Survive the Loss of a Love for someone who has recently been divorced or suffered the loss of a family member.
Buy a pre-paid phone card the next time you're in line at the grocery store and give it to any struggling student you know.

How Will You Give to Others This Week?

What other ideas do you have for giving to others by buying?
How has buying made a meaningful difference for you this week?
How have others given to you this week and what difference has that made in your life?

How Else Can You Make a Difference This Season?

Make a meaningful difference this season by taking the Season of Service (SOS) Challenge. Here's how you can participate:

Commit to do one act of kindness/service based on the week's challenge.
Leave a comment with ideas relating to the week's challenge as well as your experience(s) performing it.
Enter to win each week's giveaway. Check out this week's prizes from Aveda by clicking here, from Huggies by clicking here, or from American Lamb by clicking here.
Join #gno this Tuesday or Thursday on Twitter to connect with other Mom It Forward moms about the challenge.