Capital One Everyday Money Boston encourages people to talk about ‘everyday money,’ and I am happy to talk about how we are Teaching our children empathy and philanthropy through Giving Tuesday. #EverydayMoneyBoston #ad #GivingTuesday
Mr. Juggling Act and I want to instill in our children, from an early age, the importance of empathy and philanthropy. The best way I know how to do this is to lead by example. While past generations have thought talking about money to be ‘vulgar,’ I think it is incredible important to teacher our children the right lessons about money now.
Capital One has launched EverydayMoneyBoston.com, a unique Tumblr site that highlights authentic stories about Bostonians and their “everyday money” – the money that’s left over after the bills. Tapping into his passion for photographing real subjects, Boston-based photographer, Jesse Burke engaged with individuals around the Boston community to capture their photos and stories about how they think about money. This holiday season, the ‘Everyday Money Boston’ program will celebrate local heroes and shine a light on the efforts these Bostonians are making to better their city with money from their very own pockets.
Throughout the year, we as a family participate in a variety of service activities including collecting food for the those less fortunate through our church and Cub Scouts. In addition, we make charitable donations to nonprofits that are important to us in our own community with our “everyday money.” I’ll be the first to admit that some months it’s not much. We knew when I left the corporate world to work from home that it would be less financially rewarding. But the time I get to spend with my children helping with homework and volunteering in their schools is worth it. And again, this is leading by example. While they may be too young now to understand, I hope that these choices will show them the importance of family and education, as well as empathy and philanthropy.
Last year for their birthdays, the kids asked for donations for the local food bank in lieu of gifts. Truth be told, they are so fortunate to have many, many generous family members that give them toys and clothes. As a family, we brought the boxes to the food bank and their eyes lit up to see we had over 50lbs of food to donate!
Our children earn a little money for helping to do extra jobs around the house. We subscribe to the rule of three when it comes to money, and are teaching them to save, spend and give wisely. Each week, they can choose if they want their ‘give’ money to go to our church, or the animal shelter. Every couple of months, we take our donation to the animal shelter and say hello to all the current occupants. It’s a fun outing that leaves us all feeling good, even if it’s only a mere $15 donation.
And that’s what’s important about being charitable. It’s not how much you give or volunteer, it’s about taking a moment to be grateful for all your have, and remembering those less fortunate. And that’s what Giving Tuesday is all about. Capital One believes in supporting its customers in the areas of life that are most meaningful to them–such as the philanthropic deeds they’re devoting to their communities, using their own “everyday money.”
#GivingTuesday is a global day dedicated to giving back. On Tuesday, December 1, 2015, charities, families, businesses, community centers, and students around the world will come together for one common purpose: to celebrate generosity and to give. To learn more about Giving Tuesday, click the image below.
I was selected for this opportunity as a member of Clever Girls and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own.
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