How we’re helping some of our favorite Seattle charitable organizations with AmazonSmile this holiday season while we create traditions with our family
This post is sponsored by Amazon, however all thoughts and opinions are my own.
I love December! No other month feels quite so magical-there are sparkly lights, yummy festive foods, fuzzy sweaters and, because we’re in the Pacific Northwest, we sometimes even get a bit of snow. This is the time of year that it feels so good to think about others and create traditions with our families. And as my kids are nearly 11 and a half years old, some of the things we’ve been doing over the years have gradually become traditions, just because they’re things we love, and look forward to so much.
Every year, we head to the same tree farm that we’ve been visiting since the guys were about 2 years old. We cut down a tree, check in with Santa, eat sprinkly tree shaped cookies and drink hot apple cider. Over the years, the boys have always helped, but this is the first year the guys are finally big enough that they can both carry the tree together. We never realized that coming to this tree farm was something that we’d all love so much, but we look forward to it every year. One day I want to get all the pictures from years past and compile them so we can see how we’ve all grown up through the years. It feels like it was only a short while ago that we visited this tree farm for the very first time.
Another one of my family’s favorite holiday traditions is a gift my sister and I give to each other each year. Instead of exchanging gifts, we rent a skating rink and host an ice skating party for our family and friends – we have hot chocolate, popcorn and other festive treats, and guests can bring donations for the local food bank. It’s such a fun way to get people we care about together and it feels even better that we can give to others through this festive party too.
Giving with Every Gift with AmazonSmile
Giving is something we all want to do more of during the holidays and it’s something I want to make more of a tradition in our house. I love that AmazonSmile makes it really easy to give. By starting your shopping at smile.amazon.com, and designating a charitable organization, a portion of the purchase price of the eligible products we buy on Amazon will be donated to that organization. The PikePlace Market Foundation is my family’s AmazonSmile recipient for the holidays. I’ve spent time volunteering for this amazing Seattle non-profit, and I love that it supports the Pike Place Market neighborhood with access to low-income housing, healthcare, a preschool, and healthy food. As someone who is always telling people to visit Pike Place Market in Seattle, I love it even more because it is a place that takes care of others and I’m proud to be part of a community that cares.
If you are looking to give back during the holidays and want a simple way to do it- designating a charitable organization and using AmazonSmile every time you shop on Amazon is one of the easiest ways I can imagine. Once you designate a charitable organization, you can even check out the Amazon Holiday Store for gift inspirations.
Helping Others with AmazonSmile Charity Lists
Another non-profit that I am thankful to be able to help out with AmazonSmile is Mary’s Place through AmazonSmile Charity Lists. Mary’s Place believes that “no one’s child should sleep outside” and they provide access for women and children and their families to transition out of homelessness. I have been to a few Mary’s Place events and learned that the things this organization does to help people are incredibly life-changing. There are more and more people facing homelessness in our Seattle community lately, and it is so difficult to know exactly what we can do to help. I’m thankful Mary’s Place has a Charity List on AmazonSmile. These AmazonSmile Charity Lists make it really easy to buy exactly what an organization needs to help its community. I scrolled through the list for Mary’s Place and found flashlights, hand warmers, underwear and heaters, and Amazon will deliver them directly to Mary’s Place so I know that the minute I buy these things they are on their way.
I love that you can scroll these AmazonSmile Charity Lists anywhere on your phone while on the go. The holidays are busy and I’ve been trying to think of ways to get my kids involved in trying to help out others. We’ve looked at these lists while we’ve been waiting together at holiday activities, and it’s an eye-opening reminder for all of us to think about what other people might be hoping for during this holiday season.
Donating with Amazon Alexa
Alexa is another great way to donate to a registered charity – just say, “Alexa, I want to make a donation” to any Alexa enabled device and you can donate to that organization. When I was my kids’ age, I would have been mind-blown that you could even do this. I looked to see what Seattle organizations are Alexa-enabled and Mary’s Place, Seattle Children’s and Woodland Park Zoo are among many in the Seattle area that you can donate to with Alexa. There are many more national and international organizations available too.
With these three easy ways to donate AmazonSmile, AmazonSmile Charity Lists, and donating via Alexa – it is very simple to give back during the holidays. I hope this becomes more and more of a tradition in our family as my kids get older too. Are you looking for ways to give back during the holidays? Does your family have a favorite local charitable organization to support? And do you use AmazonSmile to help Deliver Smiles when you shop on Amazon too?
Terumi Pong is a Seattle-based family travel writer and mom of twin teenage boys. She loves coffee and pastries, shopping local and looking for greener ways to live. She is also known as Scout’s mom (Scout is a 5ish pound little black yorkie-poo)