In response to Black Friday and Cyber Monday, community organizations are touting Dec. 1 as Giving Tuesday to promote generosity and community support.
It’s a broad national campaign, and Squamish is taking part for the second year through an initiative called Sea to Sky Gives, which represents several community organizations in the Sea to Sky Corridor – for example, Squamish Hospice Society. Locally, the plan came together through the Squamish Non-Profit Network.
The aim is to look for a way to make it easy for people to give in conjunction with the Giving Tuesday campaign for Dec. 1.
This year, the plan is to take a cue from Cyber Monday and use the Internet to get the community informed and involved about the work these groups do.
This year Squamish Hospice Society and other groups through Sea to Sky Gives have devised an easy online way for groups to raise donations and other forms of community support like time or services. Other organizations include the Squamish Helping Hands Society, Squamish Hospital Foundation and local SPCA branch. The website, which gives information on groups like hospice, provides ways to offer support.
“We’re one of the non-profits that are using this avenue,” said Nicole Carothers, of the Squamish Hospice Society. “It’s kind of a fun and easy way to contribute.”
While Dec. 1 is designated as Giving Tuesday, Carothers said the website is not limited to that day. Instead, it is the day that Giving Tuesday organizers want people to be most aware of the campaign. “The website will be up for the whole holiday season,” she said.
The hospice aims to increase the number of members by 200 before the end of the year.
“We want people to know what the hospice society is doing in our community,” Carothers said. “Membership is a huge support to us.”
Hospice relies on events like the annual Hike for Hospice or the annual lighting of the Memory Tree – this year set for Nov. 27, 6 p.m. at On the Farm Shops – to build support for and awareness of the work hospice does to provide palliative care and bereavement programs, so Giving Tuesday simply gives the organization another method.
The Giving Tuesday website can be found at givingtuesday.ca/partners/seatoskygives#.VkkIDmSrRz9.
