Giving Tuesday: Give back to your community

Lake Charles, LA (KPLC) - After Thanksgiving, there’s Black Friday, Cyber Monday and there’s also Giving Tuesday.

It’s not another day for shopping, but a day to give back.

“If you can afford to give, I strongly encourage you to do that,” United Way of SWLA CEO Denise Durel said.

Giving Tuesday is all about giving what you can, whether that’s by donating items, money or even your time.

“It really is just a reminder for us to take a deep breath today and think about all of those people in our community who are less fortunate than we are. In what ways can we help them and strengthen them and therefore strengthen our community” Durel said.

The day started in 2012, giving people the chance to take advantage of the giving season before the holidays.

One of the ways you can give back to your community is getting connected with a local nonprofit like United Way of Southwest Louisiana.

“We do think that we are the one organization that has a different approach than most because we approach so many different elements and we work with so many partners. We fund a lot of other really great nonprofits but we also do a lot of work ourselves,” Durel said.

The organization works with other nonprofits to provide aid for those in need when it comes to housing, education, health and hunger amongst other issues impacting Southwest Louisiana.

“We’re only as strong as the person down the street, you know the other people in our community,” Durel said. “Some people have just been faced with different challenges and we all know that challenges can happen to any one of us at any given moment and any given day. So, I think it’s just really important for us to be reminded that if we have the opportunity in our community that maybe is struggling that we really should do that.”

Durel told 7News you can certainly donate to United Way or you can give them a call and they can direct you to other nonprofits in the area that make a difference in the community.

To donate or to learn more about volunteering with United Way of Southwest Louisiana, CLICK HERE.

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