Great savings and a great time to give to those less fortunate
We have a family tradition for Black Friday which we really enjoy. We do go physically into stores, early in the morning. However, we have a budget and are specifically shopping for Toys for Tots. After we buy the toys (and books), we take them to a local fire station and drop them off.
It gives us such joy to do that! While our own financial situation is going to change soon, this is something we expect to be able to keep doing.
We think pretty carefully about what we are getting…we want to “fill in the gaps” on what might be donated, for one thing. We try to get some teen things (they tend to get fewer things donated than for younger kids). We like getting brands: even though a child may not have much money or a secure home, they know who Wonder Woman is. We’ll probably get at least one fidget spinner this year. 😉 No batteries, not a lot of pieces (so it’s easy to take from home to home), we like something which might change someone’s life (a world map, a magic trick, a toy veterinarian kit…) and of course, books fit that well.
There are a number of wa,ys you can benefit non-profits when shopping from Amazon.
The easiest thing, which you can do all year round, is shop at
Smile.Amazon.com
It feels just like shopping at Amazon…because you are shopping at Amazon. 🙂
Same prices, same payment methods, same address book, same lists…
The only difference is that you designate a non-profit (and you can search for one…there are many!) and Amazon donates half a percent of your purchases of eligible items (lots of items are eligible) to them.
That’s fifty cents on a $100 purchase. That may not sound like much, but it can make a big difference, especially to a smaller non-profit. Over sixty million dollars have been donated by Amazon
You can change your non-profit whenever you want. We are currently designating Sitters without Borders, and over $15 has been donated to them because of our purchases.
You can click or tap where you designated recipient is, and see what your impact has been (how much to the current designee, how much total has been donated on your behalf).
While this next one isn’t as easy, it allows you to give something which is really needed…and you may get a tax benefit. With Smile.Amazon, Amazon is making the donation and gets any benefit. With this one, you are making the donation. I don’t want to advise you on taxes, so if you aren’t sure, check with whatever or whoever you might use for tax advice.
This
Cloud for Good article by Ashley Papp
takes non-profits through the process of setting up an
Amazon Wish List (at AmazonSmile*)
The harder things about it are that you can’t find them as easily (as far as I can tell, you just have to search) and that you are paying specifically for the item.
If you know the name of the group, then you just enter it as if you were searching for an individual’s name. When I put in “Library”, I found a number of options. When you do this, you are getting them exactly something they need, which can be a lot more valuable than a few dollars.
There are a couple of options! You can also directly donate things…we sort of ended up with an extra unopened
All-New Echo Dot (2nd Generation) – White (at AmazonSmile: benefit a non-profit of your choice by shopping*)
and are donating it to a local children’s center (where kids typically go after school, not where they live). I’ll include instructions telling them how to block voice purchases. I think this could make a big difference, both in accustoming children to an emerging technology, and in answering questions for them.
So, as you are saving money with holidays on
Amazon Devices (at AmazonSmile*)
and Black Friday sales are available now, you can benefit non-profits buying them through AmazonSmile, and perhaps use some of your savings to donate through an Amazon Wish List.
Do you have other great ways you like to give? Have you or someone you known been the benefit of a gift from a stranger? Feel free to tell me and my readers what you think by commenting on this post.
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* I am linking to the same thing at the regular Amazon site, and at AmazonSmile. When you shop at AmazonSmile, half a percent of your purchase price on eligible items goes to a non-profit you choose. It will feel just like shopping at Amazon: you’ll be using your same account. The one thing for you that is different is that you pick a non-profit the first time you go (which you can change whenever you want)…and the good feeling you’ll get. 
Shop ’til you help!
This post by Bufo Calvin originally appeared in the I Love My Kindle blog. To support this or other blogs/organizations, buy Amazon Gift Cards from a link on the site, then use those to buy your items. There will be no cost to you, and a benefit to them.
I Love My Kindle 