Giving Back Through the Cold: How Wolverines Can Warm Their Community This Holiday Season

With the first snowfall of the season, the warmth within the buildings around campus becomes more comfortable than it seemed before. The lights and garlands that spiral the lightposts of State Street usher in the holiday season. A season where school winds down and students may enjoy bountiful meals with their family and friends. The holidays are a season of joy and relaxation, marked by the gifts of warmth and plentiful food contrasting with the onset of the cold and desolate winter. However, many people without access to warm shelters are forced to battle the harsh conditions and cold weather that the season brings. For others, the season comes with stress of not being able to provide a quality meal and holiday for their families. The holidays can be a much different reality for the underprivileged compared to the pleasant, cozy experience that most students on campus are accustomed to. 

As Wolverines, and as people we should take advantage of the lighter workloads and no classes during the upcoming breaks to do our part to support members of our community that are most in need of our help. Not only will your support relieve the burden that the holiday season brings to many, but volunteering within your community will also strengthen your personal gratitude for the season. Volunteering helps one to identify the simple privileges and blessings of life, while also working to share these blessings with others who are less fortunate. Volunteering particularly during the holiday season is one of the best ways to remind yourself of all the blessings that you have in your life at a time when you are sharing them with your closest loved ones. The season also provides a unique opportunity as there are more volunteering opportunities available to take advantage of in every community. 

Soup kitchens and food drives are popular options of volunteering that focus on the always important issue of food insecurity. Clothing and toy drives are two more ways that anyone can get involved, regardless of where they travel for the holidays. In the Detroit-area specifically, there are many groups that are in need of volunteers over the holiday season. Right here in Ann Arbor, Food Gatherers works to alleviate hunger through sustainable methods in the Ann Arbor community. Another organization fighting food insecurity, especially during the holiday season, is Detroit Thanksgiving. Detroit Thanksgiving distributes turkeys and sides to 1500 families in Detroit, Harrison, Madison Heights, and Warren. The Capuchin Soup Kitchen in Detroit is another established organization that offers various services for the homeless. Contrary to the name, the soup kitchen does not only focus on the issue of food insecurity, and rather provides a plethora of services including clothing distribution, a shower program, and support for the youth, such as tutoring. These are all great opportunities to volunteer within Detroit and its surrounding areas. For those who do not reside primarily in this area, with just a little digging you can find organizations that need support in your community as well. 

Enjoy the time spent free from the daily stresses of college, eating delicious meals with family and friends over the holiday breaks. But also remember the less fortunate, that do not have these privileges during this season, and take whatever time may be available to you to help those in need of it. Live out what it means to be a Wolverine and uplift your community during this season of giving.