from Commission on Social Action Member, Barbara Lerman-Golomb
Contact a community Toys for Tots program or a local Jewish agency and find out how you can donate a holiday gift. Involve you children so that they can better understand the plight of other children in need.
Donate a can of food to a local food bank or volunteer to help out during the week of Chanukah.
Donate a gently used Judaica item to the World Union for Progressive Judaism (www.wupj.org) for a newly formed Reform synagogue in the Former Soviet Union or other country around the world.
Donate children’s books to a local hospital (www.reachoutandread.org) or donate books of all ages to a local homeless shelter.
Visit the Coalition on the Environment and Jewish Life’s (www.coejl.org) Hanukkah website for holiday eco tips for giving a gift to the earth through environmental stewardship. You can give a gift to your home such as an energy efficient appliance or a compact fluorescent light bulb.
Visit the North American Conference on Ethiopian Jewry’s (www.nacoej.org) website for donation ideas such as sponsoring a child’s lunches for the year or the RAC site for Lech Lecha to a Place of Hope—The Million Quarters Project.
Make a donation to Mazon (www.mazon.org) such as 3% of the amount you are spending for a holiday dinner.
Make a chai donation to charitable organization in the name of a family friend or loved one.
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