Posted by Kevan Lee :: December 16, 2008 @ 5:56 am

Give a little at Christmas, if you have anything left to give.

No doubt all of us would like to put on our best Bill and Melinda Gates hats (the derby and beret, as it were) and give generously to charities of our choice. But let's get serious. Nowadays it is hard enough to scrounge for $4.00 milk. Giving to charities has got to come secondary to soaking our Cocoa Puffs.

But should it?

One of the most recognizable persons around Christmas time, after Santa Claus and Frosty the Snowman and Matt Lauer, is that of the Salvation Army bell ringer. Every Christmas he faithfully rings his bell and makes sure-fire eye contact outside of stores and malls nationwide. He is a staple of the holiday season. Yet for some reason, I figured he would have taken this year off with the economy the way it is. But no, he is still outside of my favorite Best Buy, braving the cold for my pocket change. The spending habits of Americans may have changed, but the persistence of the Salvation Army bell ringers has not. Which begs the question: who is giving to him?

To be honest, it is not me. I'll gladly hide behind the excuse of my ATM/debit card as a reason why I have nothing monetary to give (on that note: I hope they don't set up credit terminals strapped to those red pots next year). And I'll gladly find the most circuitous route around the bell ringer so as to minimize my own internal struggle between charity and Charlie's Angels 2: Full Throttle.

And I know I'm not the only one Scrooge-ing it up outside of Macy's. I've seen all different styles of donation avoidance. There is the fast walker, the fake cell phone talker, the apologetic "Sorry, no change" guy, the couple who sneaks in behind someone who actually put money into the kettle pot. If there are so many of us not giving money to the Salvation Army guy, then one has to wonder who is. Even more, what about all the charities that exist in places not in our immediate path to the mall? The Salvation Army is just one of thousands. I'm pretty sure I can't use the debit card excuse on all of them.

With money being tight, many different charities are struggling to stay afloat. There are soup kitchens that are running out of soup and care houses that are running out of clothes. When the economy goes down, the giving of others goes right down with it, and that ends up hurting the people and businesses that depend on that help.

So what is a money-wise consumer to do? If citizens were to succumb to every noble and virtuous opportunity that came across their path, there is no chance that they could feasibly support or reply to each one. People are doing what they need to do in order to survive in a tough economy, and it seems like charities are one of the places that we have deemed expendable. But take a closer look at the budget or the expenses, and there is a good chance that you can find something extraneous or unnecessary. We might think that we have scrimped and saved down to the last penny, but that is usually because we are considering necessities to be those things that are not necessarily necessary.

That's one way to find a little extra to give away this Christmas. Here's another: go without a certain something around the holidays. Perhaps your budget really is pared down to the nitty-gritty, and there is no room for so much as a RedBox of a splurge. In that case, if you really feel that giving is important, maybe it would be appropriate to sacrifice something of your own so that others can benefit. For instance, if you depend on a weekly meal out at a restaurant, try dining in for the month of December and sending the saved cash to a local shelter or stuffing it into a Salvation Army pot (so that other, less charitable people can sneak past behind you, naturally). What a blessing it would be to think of others before yourself this holiday season, and what a lesson it would set for others.

One of the best solutions on how to solve the giving situation is to give of yourself and to give of your time. Take money out of the equation completely, and you still have plenty of ways that you can spread holiday cheer to others. Too often we associate charity with writing a check or dropping change in a jar; meanwhile, places could just as easily use a helping hand as they could an Alexander Hamilton. Don't believe me? Head on down to a soup kitchen and stand back in amazement as volunteers scurry back and forth at a frenetic pace doing the work of three people. Actually, don't stand back. Get in there and help. Standing would be pretty rude.

The only problem with this plan is that we will actually have to get our hands dirty. Ew. A lot of times, sending money is easy because you can end the relationship with a stamped envelope. Once the check has been written, you're done. Not so with volunteering. You are putting your time and energy on the line, and you run the risk of building relationships and impacting people's lives. Think about it: instead of buying the paint, you'll be the one applying the paint. And you're sure to find the experience all kinds of rewarding.

There is no better feeling than to know that you have made a difference in someone's life. And there is no better time to make a difference than around the holidays. If you're not sure where to start, try searching online for charities in your area or asking your local chamber of commerce or a local church for ideas. The opportunities are out there, you just have to want to go find them.

You may not have money to spend on charity this holiday season, and that's alright. That Salvation Army bell ringer is sure to be back next year. But you can find other ways to give, and I guarantee that it will make brushing off the Salvation Army jar a whole lot easier.