How to give back to your community this holiday season

The City of St. Charles is promoting efforts to help those in need this holiday season through its annual Giving Tree and Neighbors in Need donation initiatives.

"The holidays are all about giving, and this is the time of year when our community spirit shines the most," said Mayor Ray Rogina. "It is our hope that none of our neighbors are left out of the joys of the season."

There are many ways to give back this season:

• Giving Tree at the Municipal Building

From Nov. 20 to Dec. 13, the St. Charles Giving Tree will be in the lobby of the Municipal Building, 2 E. Main St.

This year, the tree will be decorated with the gift wishes of developmentally disabled neighbors from the Association for Individual Development and a local family in need from the TriCity Family Services adopt-a-family program.

To participate, simply select one or more of the tags from the Giving Tree, purchase the item(s), and return the unwrapped gift(s) to the tree before Dec. 12. Items on the tags are at all price levels. The gifts will be wrapped and delivered in time for Christmas.

Cash donations are also welcome, and are used to purchase items on tags not selected. Leave cash donations with the city receptionist in the lobby. The Giving Tree program is coordinated by the city's employee Wellness Team. For more information on the Giving Tree program, contact the city's human resources department at (630) 377-4446 or hr@stcharlesil.gov.

• Neighbors in Need Program

Neighbors in Need helps financially struggling St. Charles residents pay their City utility bills. Utility customers are welcome to donate to the program by writing the amount to donate on your utility bill and adding it to the total amount of your payment. One hundred percent of the donations go directly to helping St. Charles residents. Businesses are also welcome to donate to the program. They would like to thank American Powder Coatings Inc. for their generous donation of $3,000 to the Neighbors in Need program.

For more information about the Neighbors in Need Program, contact Utility Billing at (630) 377-4426 or utilitybilling@stcharlesil.gov.

• Giving Tuesday

Giving Tuesday is Nov. 28. This initiative offers many options to donate or volunteer. You can search for local giving opportunities nearby or across the globe. Similarly, #ILGive offers statewide giving efforts. Visit www.givingtuesday.org or www.ilgive.com for more information.