Giving Back: How You Can Help Us Grow Food, Farmers & Community in Ferguson

The flurry of the holiday season is upon us. From family gatherings to holiday parties and pageants, and waist-expanding deliciousness to scoring great deals on holiday shopping, we are constantly on the move make it a meaningful time of year. The holidays are also a season of giving, and there are several ways that you can easily donate to EarthDance without the added stress of the holiday hustle and bustle, including Amazon Smile and the Go Fund Me Campaign to expand our YEAH programming in 2015. Who doesn’t love Amazon for holiday shopping or everyday needs? Well now, through the AmazonSmile Foundation, you can do all of your shopping and help out your favorite charitable organization (EarthDance) at the same time! AmazonSmile takes the ease and convenience of shopping on Amazon and donates 0.05% of the purchase price of items to a chosen charitable organization and it works 365 days a year. There are tons of products that are eligible for the AmazonSmile donation. It is set up exactly like Amazon, same account information, and even your registries (Wish List, wedding, baby, etc.) are transferable through the AmazonSmile website.  Once you login through AmazonSmile, select EarthDance as your selected charitable donation (second down on the list, Ferguson, MO) and then start shopping. Click here to check out all the details or to start shopping! And speaking of shopping, we all know about Black Friday and Cyber Monday, but have you heard about #GivingTuesday? It is a global day dedicated to giving back. This year, #GivingTuesday is today, December 2. It’s a day for charities, families, friends, businesses, and communities to come together in generosity to give back. You can get friends and family involved to give to something more. Share with everyone how you are giving, through Twitter, Facebook, etc. and spread the word on growing the global tradition of generosity. Growing food, farmers and community in our neighborhood has always been integral to our mission, but, in light of the tragedy in #Ferguson, awareness for the importance of youth outreach and education in a peaceful, community environment is growing. Developing opportunities for #Ferguson youth is one means through which we will achieve positive, meaningful change in our home. With your support, it can be a source of healing, too. This is why we established a Go Fund Me campaign to expand our YEAH (Youth Exploring Agriculture & Health) programming in 2015, including the Work Experience Program, Junior Farm Crew and Catch Healthy Habits. What will your donation do? Serve and empower young people by giving them the chances to learn practical job skills, healthy habits and connect with the land. You can learn more about each of these programs and donate here. Please think of EarthDance this season as you look for a way to spread the holiday spirit of generosity and hope.