Stories

As the holiday season approaches and you look forward to the deals offered on Black Friday, Small Business Saturday, and Cyber Monday to help treat yourself and your loved ones, don’t forget to support local nonprofits on Giving Tuesday. Giving Tuesday is celebrated each year in the United States on the Tuesday after Thanksgiving. It marks the beginning of a season of giving. You can use Giving Tuesday as an opportunity to learn about and contribute to the good being done in your community. Share Detroit recommends planning ahead and researching a variety of nonprofits to make sure you can support one (or two!) whose mission aligns with your personal values. 

Here are some tips to help you prepare to do good this holiday season: 

• Explore Online: On Share Detroit’s website, you will find over 450 nonprofits located within Metro Detroit. Use our search functions to find ones close to home that work on the issues you care about. From there, continue learning about those organizations by visiting their websites and social media pages to gain a deeper understanding of their missions, the people they serve, and how you can help.
• Check their Finances: Nonprofits are very transparent about their finances. Nonprofits will often post documentation like 990 forms, annual budgets, and community impact reports to their own websites, but you can also use websites like Charity Navigator or GuideStar to feel confident that the nonprofit you want to support uses that support in a responsible manner.
• Visit in Person: If you have time, plan a visit to a nonprofit’s headquarters. Observing a nonprofit’s operations will let you see where your monetary support goes and/or help you decide if you want to volunteer on site.
• Make Connections: Whether via a site visit, a social media message, or a phone call, get to know the people behind the nonprofit. It is always the people that make an organization special because they are the ones who turn goals into reality. When you choose to support a nonprofit, you join the community the nonprofit creates within itself, so you should get to know your new peers.

Share Detroit emphasizes four pillars of giving to help you do good: donating money, volunteering, attending events, and shopping for good. Here’s how Share Detroit’s website helps you accomplish these tasks:

• Donate Your Money: By definition, nonprofits rely on community donations to maintain operations. Thus, donating money is the most direct way you can support a nonprofit. Each nonprofit you will find on Share Detroit’s website has a donate button on their page to make monetary contributions simple.
• Volunteer Your Time: Volunteering allows you to engage directly in the work that nonprofits do. Adults and children can volunteer. You can volunteer alone or as part of a group. Some nonprofits will help you gain new skills, some will allow you to put existing ones to work. You can volunteer once or regularly, on-site or remotely. There are over 400 volunteer opportunities on Share Detroit’s website so you can find one that fits with the time you have to give. 
• Attend an Event: A big way nonprofits raise money and provide services is through putting on events. Share Detroit has a page devoted to upcoming events ranging from galas to food drives to help you find something fun to do with your family, friends, or co-workers. 
• Shop For Good: Many nonprofits have Amazon Wish Lists or Walmart Registries that that make it easy for you to provide them with the items they need. When you shop an organization’s wish list through Share Detroit, these items are sent directly to the nonprofit to help them maintain their day-to-day operations and share them with the people (and animals!) they serve. Several nonprofits also have their own shops where you can buy merchandise for yourself that supports them financially.

The holiday giving season that kicks off on Giving Tuesday is the perfect time to show your community that you care. At www.Share Detroit.org, in 5 clicks or less, you can make a positive impact on nonprofits who are doing good each and every day. We hope one act of good will lead to another and you will continue to donate what you can to the nonprofits who help make our communities safer, kinder, and healthier throughout 2025 and beyond. 

Share Detroit connects nonprofits with members of our community. The website provides free information on hundreds of local Detroit area nonprofits. If you are looking for one-on-one support, staff are available to help by talking to you about the nonprofit, your volunteer or donation goals, or to connect you personally with nonprofit leadership.