Valentine’s Day is just around the corner, a day dedicated to showing love to everyone in our lives. But why not make your display of love more meaningful than just exchanging chocolate and flowers with your significant other? There are a huge number of charities which are doing great things around this time of year, and donating to them will give you the opportunity to show real love to those who need it most.
The Gold Heart Campaign
This year, February 14th also happens to be Gold Heart Day, run by a charity called the Variety Club who work to raise money for sick, disabled and disadvantaged children across the UK. Variety sell a range of adorable Gold Heart pins every year in order to raise money for this important cause and although the price tag for each heart is minimal, the difference you can make by buying one is huge. Alesha Dixon, the 2010 Brand Ambassador for the Gold Heart campaign, said “Just three badges will pay for an unforgettable day out for one of our young people. Have a heart, help a child.”
Shop Variety Club Gold Hearts: http://: https://www.variety.org.uk/shop/variety-gold-hearts
Valentine’s Day at Heifer
According to Heifer International, 79% of Americans have said they would rather have a charitable gift given in their name than receive a standard Valentine’s present, and this Valentine’s program offers the perfect way to make this happen. Depending on how much money you have to spare, gifts can range from $10 for a sheep or goat to around $50 to give the gift of stoves to a village or allow them to set up a self-help group for women. There’s even an option to give the gift of irrigation pumps to a village or send a girl to school.
Heifer’s Valentine’s Day website: http://www.heifer.org/gift-catalog/holiday/valentines.html
Random Acts of Kindness Week
Sometimes the kindest acts don’t require any money at all, and a perfect example of this is Random Acts of Kindness week, which stretches over the Valentine’s period this year, from the 9th to the 15th February. In addition to encouraging us all to go out of our way to be kind to other this week, The Random Acts of Kindness Foundation want to flood social media with kindness, encouraging everyone to post and share uplifting news stories, inspiring quotes and kind comments, and to share these posts using the hashtag #RAKWeek2015.
The Random Acts of Kindness Foundation website:http://rakweek.randomactsofkindness.org/Home
Of course, there may be lots of other worthwhile causes close to your heart, and showing love is not restricted to one day of the year! GiveWell have listed their top recommendations for worthwhile charities to donate to, which you can take a look at here: http://: http://www.givewell.org/charities/top-charities