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Easy ways to support causes you're passionate about this season of giving

The Great Singapore Give offers opportunities to tailor your giving to your interests

Giving can be as easy as sharing your talent with others. PHOTO: NVPC

What drives you the most when it comes to giving your time and effort for a good cause? Are you inspired by the same causes as your friends or the people around you, or do you yearn to support a cause that you are truly passionate about?

This season of giving, why not support causes and organisations that align with your interests? Lovers of the arts and heritage can gift beneficiaries and community groups an art tour organised by the Singapore Art Museum. You can also support the Nature Society (Singapore), which has teamed up with local musicians - who are environmental advocates - for workshops and live performances.

These are hundreds of unique giving opportunities that you can sign up for as part of The Great Singapore Give, which runs from now till Dec 31. The initiative is launched in conjunction with SG Cares Giving Week on Nov 30.

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The Great Singapore Give is all about helping people find causes they care about under the categories of People, Nature and Passion. Simply visit giving.sg/givingweeksg or the SG Cares app platform and pick one that interests you.

Partners this year include non-profit organisations, SG Cares Volunteer Centres and corporates, such as City Square Mall, social enterprise Elpis @ Hideout, and volunteer-led ground-up movement Be Kind SG.

For instance, you can help grant the wishes of 100 children living in rental units in Limbang Division with City Square Mall this Christmas, or help Elpis @ Hideout reach its target of S$1.8 million for Dementia Singapore.

Besides donations with a click of the mouse, consider giving your time to Be Kind SG, which is seeking volunteers to make Christmas cards for staff and residents of adult disability homes.

SG Cares Giving Week is also spreading the joy of micro-giving activities - easy, small opportunities through Everyday Giving, with Eat, Play and Shop activities to show that giving can be simple and part of everyday life.

Through these micro-giving activities, patrons of participating food and beverage (F&B), retail and entertainment businesses, can support the charities adopted by businesses.

Visit the Marina Bay Gives Back Charity Bazaar from now until Dec 17 to support causes close to your heart and make a difference by purchasing products at the bazaar from participating non-profit organisations and social enterprises. Your purchase will provide a meaningful purpose to beneficiaries whose product sales help sustain their daily lives. The bazaar is held at Marina One (Dec 2-3) and Marina Bay Link Mall (Dec 16-17) from 10.30am to 2.30pm.

Fans of Singapore-based illustrator Jangandfox will also be glad to find that Jangandfox's limited-edition postcard sets are produced in collaboration with UOB for UOB Gift for Good Project. UOB is supporting New Life Stories with 100 per cent of the postcard sales going to its education and well-being programmes for children from vulnerable families.

Says Jangandfox: "I always enjoy stories that encourage empathy and help us to understand each other. It has been a privilege for me to be able to illustrate such stories full-time. Collaborating with UOB and New Life Stories for Giving Week helps to multiply the reach and joy of this humble gift of mine, for a meaningful cause."

Executive director of New Life Stories Saleemah Ismail adds: "Our children need our support more than ever, and we as community partners need to extend more than a helping hand to help them restore from their past trauma and more importantly, to heal from within. With the support from corporate partners like UOB, we are thankful to be able to continue with our programmes and provide our children with the necessary resources to prevent intergenerational incarceration.

"This festive season, we are so excited to be collaborating with UOB once again to gift our children with postcards by the very talented JangandFox! We hope that this can not only spread cheer to the children, but to also remind everyone in the community that giving is always better than receiving."

All these initiatives inspire people to continue everyday giving even after SG Cares Giving Week, which is in line with its theme "Giving Gives Life". The aim is to encourage the community to integrate giving into their lifestyles, and remind them of the joy that giving brings to givers and receivers alike.

Through these micro-giving activities and target causes, SG Cares Giving Week shows that giving is simple. Everyone can give within their comfort level even in trying times.

Says Mr Tony Soh, deputy CEO of the National Volunteer & Philanthropy Centre: "This year continues to be challenging for us all, but we are not deterred from giving our best for others. Instead, we are even more committed and motivated to uplift those in need, especially during this season of giving."

Ms Tan Li San, CEO of the National Council of Social Service, adds: "Any act of giving, be it big or small, contributes to building a culture of care for those in need. The act of giving gives life to the giver as much as it does to the receiver. Whether it is giving of time, talent or monetary donations, we hope that everyone will be inspired to give. This will go a long way towards supporting individuals and families in need and make us a more caring and inclusive society."

As the festive period comes around, find the best opportunities to contribute via giving.sg/givingweeksg or the SG Cares app. You can also share the giving spirit by showcasing your giving activities on social media. Tag @GivingWeekSG on Facebook, Instagram and TikTok with the hashtags #GivingWeekSG #SGCares and #GivingGivesLife.

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