Local charities provide options for holiday giving

Nonprofits and charities all around the Cedar Falls Waterloo area are looking for and giving out support in these upcoming holidays months. Places like Goodwill, the Northeast Iowa Food Bank and the Cedar Bend Humane Society are all local organizations that do good for the people of Iowa.

The Northeast Iowa Food Bank located in Waterloo provides facilities with food as most smaller nonprofit organizations don’t have the capacity for bringing large amounts of food in.

Member agencies of the food bank that use their resources include local pantries, soup kitchens, congregate meal programs, shelters and non-profit daycares.

Qualified agencies pay anywhere from $0 to $0.21 a pound for food from the food bank, making it affordable for facilities that need the food.

Donating money, food and volunteering time are just a few of the ways you can help the Northeast Iowa Food Bank, as well as holding food drives like the one Cedar Falls High School just finished recently. By helping the food bank, you’re helping others who truly need it this holiday season.

The Cedar Bend Humane Society also serves to help other facilities around the state and country by taking transfers and switching out animals to better take care of them.

Providing adoption services and general care for animals, Cedar Bend workers love their jobs and the animals.

Humane Society volunteer Jordan Kruger said, “Working here is fun. The animals are great. I mean that’s why a lot of us do this. We’re here to help these animals and the people looking for animals too.”

Running only off of donations, the Humane Society gets supplies and food from donations and money given to them. Currently the Humane Society’s wish list includes leashes and cat toys.

Donated supplies such as blankets, rawhide bones, peanut butter, flea and tick control medicine, kitty litter, and canned and dry dog and cat food are very much appreciated and keep the animals comfortable, well fed, looked after and loved.

Donations are used every day to meet the needs of the hundreds of homeless animals each year that come to the Humane Society in need of help and a home.

Goodwill also helps others around the state and the country. With stores in Cedar Falls, Waverly, Independence, Oelwein, Dyersville, Decorah, Dubuque, Maquoketa and their headquarters in Waterloo, there are plenty of stores in Northeastern Iowa to find whatever you like.

Goodwill provides services to those with disadvantages and disabilities and helps out communities wherever they are by providing affordable products given to them by others.

Having just finished their dollar day where everything in the store was a dollar, they’re cleaning house for the upcoming Christmas season influx of clothes and sales.

They accept anything from old clothes and shoes, to books and electronics, so Goodwill should be in the back of your mind when donating clothes and used items this holiday season.

With many more local charities and nonprofit organizations around Iowa, this Christmas season should make you inclined to give and show generosity to charities that provide help and assistance in the community.