There’s Black Friday and Cyber Monday—two days that fall after Thanksgiving here in the United States and which focus on commercial interests and giving as it pertains to tangible gift-giving. In response to this kickoff to the giving season and a desire to create a community focus on giving back, #GivingTuesday was born in 2012.
This year, #GivingTuesday falls on Tuesday, November 28th.
#GivingTuesday is a celebration of America’s greatest traditions of generosity, entrepreneurialism and community. We believe wholeheartedly that every single human being has something to give, and that there are many ways of offering support.
This year, we’re participating in a couple of ways, and we’re asking you to join us.
- We’re extending #CyberMonday into #GivingTuesday and promising that $1 from every single product sold in the Lease On Love Shop between Monday, November 27th and Friday, December 1st will go to support two of our favorite non-profits: WEAVE, Inc. and Beautiful Minds Wellness. (Be sure you scroll down to read more about these two incredible organizations!)
- We’re encouraging you to participate in whatever way(s) you can this #GivingTuesday. Make a gift to an organization you value, shop in the Lease On Love Shop for someone on your gift list (or just for you!) and share our messaging of giving with #Contribute2Connect on social media.
Here at Lease On Love, we teach individuals and partners how to play their way to love through addressing the whole person and demonstrating human connection. Connection—with ourselves, with others, with the world around us—is a core piece of our collective foundations.
Because of this value on connection, we feel it our place to step up and demonstrate the spirit giving this #GivingTuesday, and we sincerely hope you’ll join us!
On April 23, 2012 our life took a dramatic turn—the kind of life change that causes time to slow down as your mind searches for cause and understanding because you are experiencing never-been-here territory. Our daughter, along with our five (plus one on the way) grandchildren had entered a women's shelter that morning in Utah after mustering up the courage to escape a decade long violent domestic relationship. We were in California.
“Could you come and get us, mom?” was her plea.
Thankfully her and the kids arrived safely the following day, with nothing more that a few clothing items and a favorite toy for each child. What to do now…
How do you manage something like this? Our heads were spinning with details. Details of the logistics, the financials, the healing, the legal issues…
It just so happened, my dear neighbor next door told me about WEAVE.
WEAVE became the place we turned for answers and support…plus a whole lot more.
They assisted us with providing safety, shelter, resources, support groups, clothes, toys, and more support. Simply put, our family can't thank them enough for all they have contributed to helping us through a very challenging time.
Now, five years later, we are thrilled to be in a place we can give back—not only as a way to say thanks for all that has been given to us, but to have the opportunity to help others who are perhaps embarking on a courageous journey out of domestic violence.
Violence is what happens when we don't know what to do with our suffering.
We must seek better skills for managing this suffering. We must all do what we can to eliminate violence from our relationships with others. Our children deserve a better example of what love can be.
Our ability to create and show up in our relationships is greatly impacted by how we think and feel as an individual. When our emotional and mental wellbeing is compromised it unravels every facet in our lives and our connection with others is the first thing to suffer as we follow our emotions and retreat.
As the number of people who suffer with anxiety, depression, and suicide continue to rise, it is becoming obvious that the traditional forms of treatment such as med’s and a few sessions of counseling fall short of creating the path back to wellness. Beautiful Minds is stepping up and offering a new and better way to regain wellness by offering a place that provides a whole person care approach.
Not only are meds and counseling offered, but so is nutrition and exercise, mindfulness through meditation and yoga, even massage and other forms of alternatives healing practices. And the best part, a community that provides a place for connection. Services are offered to those that do not have the financial means for high level care through donations.
Beautiful Minds is about helping us connect back to ourselves and each other, which we believe to be the biggest problem to begin with.