My favorite time of the year is over. Yes, I love the Thanksgiving community and the start of the winter season, but late November to early December is also a time to celebrate another worthy holiday: Give Tuesday.

Giving Tuesday falls on the Tuesday after Thanksgiving, on December 3 this year, as a day for people across the United States to give back to their communities, support local organizations, help those in need and generally do good. The Giving Tuesday movement started in 2012 and has since raised billions of dollars for nonprofits that support vulnerable youth, the environment, animal shelters, food insecurity and many more important social causes.

While donations are always encouraged and important for nonprofits to continue working in communities, there are many more ways to participate in Giving Tuesday than just sending cash. If you’re looking for ways to pay it forward, here’s what you can do for your community #GivingTuesday.

Share your knowledge

Donations go beyond just money – they also include your skills and time. Offering your expertise is sometimes more beneficial than simply writing a check.

You can start sharing your knowledge by leveraging your professional expertise or experience in areas such as marketing, accounting, programming, law, teaching, and healthcare, and offer your services pro bono. For example, an accountant can help file a nonprofit organization’s taxes or a health care provider can volunteer at a clinic for free. This allows you to contribute directly to non-profit organizations, community groups or local initiatives without simply sending money.

Donate necessities

You may not always have time to donate skills, but you can always donate important things if you want to do more than donate money. Many organizations – such as women’s shelters, children’s hospitals, animal shelters – usually accept canned goods, clothing, blankets, personal care products, water and other essential items. You can even donate blood, which is especially important because American Red Cross declared acute blood shortage in July 2024.

If you are interested in donating items, you can start by calling organizations to ask what they might accept or need most critically. Anything you offer will certainly be appreciated.

Volunteer in your community

There is probably a social cause or organization that means a lot to you. A great way to support your community and its important initiatives is to volunteer.

If you have an organization in mind, call or email them to ask if they are interested in volunteering with you. Or if they have a volunteer program, as many hospitals and animal shelters do, keep track of the volunteer application and onboarding process through its website.

If you’re not sure where to volunteer, I suggest doing a quick Google search for local nonprofits or organizations. You can also use VolunteerMatch to find volunteer opportunities in your city. Most cities, especially larger cities, need volunteers to pick up trash, work at soup kitchens and homeless shelters, clean animal shelters, and more. Each group you choose is a start to helping those in need and making a difference in your community.

Spread kindness

Being kind to those around you should be a daily occurrence, but Giving Tuesday can be a day to be intentional about the acts of kindness you want to perform. It could be holding doors, paying for the next person in line for coffee or lunch, giving a compliment or asking someone how their day is. A simple act of kindness can go a long way in letting someone know they care.

Before you act

If you are going to make a donation, make sure to know the organization or charity first. You can use a platform, such as Charity navigatorwhich rates charities based on their financial health, accountability and transparency. Charity Navigator awards a “Give With Confidence” designation to those organizations it deems safe to donate to.

Before donating anywhere, you should make sure that a given charity aligns with your values ​​and that the donation is used in the way you want.

For more information, see our guide at how to know a charity. You can also explore these seven charities that will pick up donated furniture free.