Donate these items to nonprofits and shelters this holiday season

The holidays are upon us, gift-giving guides are out, and the spirit of charity is in the air. But before you donate food or clear out your closet, be aware that your seasonal household extras might not be the most needed donations.

This winter, nonprofits and community organizations are picking up after a disconnected year. Public health measures intended to prevent the spread of COVID-19 limited many nonprofits from accepting and distributing holiday necessities last year. Some organizations have retained these precautions, or created new online or contactless systems for donating, while others are trying to build back the networks of donors and volunteers lost since 2020.

As these organizations pick up the pace of holiday donation drives and other forms of support, many people are eager to take part in at least some aspects of a “normal” holiday season, including traditional opportunities for charitable giving. 

For a general guide on donating money online, read this story about how to make safe, impactful donations. And here’s what organizations around the country are asking donors for this winter.

Food 

Global supply chain issues and inflation over the last year have complicated food banks’ ability to stay stocked and ready for holiday demands. Local organizations across the country, from Texas to California, are reporting delays in expected food supply streams and a scarcity of items due to high prices. While food banks are at the whim of the global supply chain, community members can help fill in the gaps. 

Lauren Biedron, the vice president of corporate partnerships for national hunger nonprofit Feeding America, said the nationwide network is still recovering from the events of last year.  “We saw a couple of challenges during COVID. March 2020 was really the perfect storm for us, where we saw this dramatic increase in demand for food, owing to the economic crisis that was created by COVID-19. And at the same time, the Feeding America network saw a fall off in our typical donation stream,” she explained. While individual food donations are finally starting to pick up, widespread market issues still strain food banks and pantries. “We definitely still need food. In particular, healthy, shelf-stable food,” Biedron said. 

When donating food this year, Biedron said, prioritize non-perishable foods with very long shelf lives — think peanut butter, canned vegetables, or even canned, holiday-specific foods like canned gravy or cranberry sauce. Don’t forget about kitchen and food prep essentials, either, like neutral cooking oil, boxed milk, and cooking broths. Try not to donate boxed foods that require other ingredients (like butter or milk) without also supplying those ingredients. And don’t donate full meals or prepared foods that can easily go bad, even if you’ve got a lot of holiday leftovers.

Biedron says food banks and pantries are looking for three things, “food, funds, and friends” and that the most beneficial donation could just be your time, as food banks and pantries in the Feeding America network have struggled to rebuild their volunteer pool over the last year. 

“There’s a real need for volunteers right now. About 80% of our food banks are telling us… that they’re accepting and in need of volunteers right now. That’s a little bit unusual, in that the holiday season is typically a time when, pre-COVID, we’re brimming with volunteers,” Biedron explained.

Always check with your local food bank or food pantry about your community’s specific needs and volunteer opportunities. To find the closest Feeding America affiliate, head to the organization’s virtual map.  

You can also donate extra holiday food, drink, and other life essentials to community fridges, free food initiatives operated mainly by hyper-local mutual aid networks. While many fridges stopped taking homemade food due to the pandemic, many more have begun accepting whole meals and perishable foods again. You can find a countrywide map of community fridges on Freedge.org, an international network of community fridges that’s been documenting locations around the world since 2014. Or search the keywords “community fridge” or “mutual aid” and your city or neighborhood on social sites like Instagram and Facebook. 

Toys 

Many toy drives and children-focused organizations, including children’s hospitals, are organizing online campaigns and wish lists this year to prevent transmission and ensure recipients are getting gifts they’ll use and enjoy. 

Reach out to nearby children’s hospitals about their specific donation requests. Boston Children’s Hospital, for example, has its own site where people can donate funds for toys or start their own online campaigns. Nationwide Children’s Hospital in Ohio recommends gift cards to places like Amazon, Target, or Walmart (you can send these virtually as well). Keep in mind, some hospitals may host specific donation times and days for in-person toy deliveries, or might even require a quarantine before distributing to kids. To be safe, start donating early to ensure your gifts get to kids before the holidays are over.   

One of the nation’s best-known toy drives, Toys for Tots, encourages online toy donations through its Virtual Toy Box, an online shop of popular toys selected by the organization. Search through the Virtual Toy Box by age to find toys for participating children, add them to your “box,” and checkout online to send the toys to children in need. The organization also partnered with DonateAToy.org, a virtual toy donation platform that will match all toy donations made on its website one to one this holiday season. 

If you’d still like to donate in person, you can find more information about your local Toys for Tots drive on the organization’s website.  

Clothes

One Warm Coat, a national nonprofit that collects and distributes coats to in-need communities, is encouraging even more coat donations to combat health risks associated with extreme weather. According to the organization, the lack of winter gear and supplies among lower income communities is a particular concern this year, as hypothermia warnings, a possibly severe flu season, and the threat of pneumonia during winter months collide with the continued spread of COVID-19. The organization is concerned about these health risks among children in particular — COVID hospitalization numbers remain high among children ages 5-11. Find where you can donate coats for both children and adults on One Warm Coat’s website.  

The National Coalition for the Homeless, a network of shelters, nonprofits, and other advocates for unhoused people around the country, has a list of preferred donation items on its website, which includes socks, bandanas, thermal blankets, and weighted blankets for unhoused community members. Find a local shelter or resource provider to donate to in your area, or purchase and send donations through the organization’s Amazon Wish List. 

If you choose to purchase and donate clothes to a clothing drive, try to include a wider size range so more people can make use of your donations. Dress for Success, a national nonprofit that provides career support and professional attire for underserved women, specifically requests women’s clothing in sizes 0-2 and 14 and up. Don’t forget to include larger sizes in donations to children-specific clothing drives, as well.

General mutual aid 

Mutual aid networks around the country — which have existed for decades as community-led funds to address the immediate needs of individuals — took the lead in caring for communities in the early days of the pandemic, and will continue to provide needed resources for neighborhoods this holiday season.

Different mutual aid organizers focus on varying needs, ranging from food to clothes to PPE and even temporary housing. In winter months, these networks provide support for those battling the cold without proper clothing, food, or heating. Check out donation links and requests for various mutual aid networks around the country on supportmutualaid.org. Consider supplying essential flu season items this winter, such as extra masks, gloves, hand sanitizer, and pain medications. Or offer to volunteer your time with a mutual aid network directly, delivering supplies, hot food, picking up prescriptions, or offering other support to people in your area. 

Reach out to your neighborhood’s mutual aid organizers directly to ask about specific needs and donations procedures. You can find a nearby network on mutualaidhub.org, an online resource documenting mutual aid networks around the country. 

When in doubt, don’t hesitate to just donate funds to organizations across the country. This kind of support allows organizations to utilize funds in the most efficient way for the people they serve, limit any kind of waste caused by excess donations, and make it possible for you to spread your charity far and wide.