It’s that time of year again. Tis’ the season of unsurpassed culinary delights like that succulent turkey, the comforting ladles full of gut-busting stuffing, Grandma’s green bean salad with the Durkee onions on top, and enough pies to sink a ship. The morning after, of course, the newly girthed gluttons of the pilgrim’s buffet will line up outside stores as though football players in the red zone, and prepare for their mad dash…to still more excess.

So it’s only fitting as we prepare to indulge and splurge this holiday season, we’re reminded this country has experienced a devastating sea-change of unemployment and homelessness in the past year, the severity of which hasn’t been seen since the Great Depression.

Thousands of people are in the process of, or have already lost their homes to foreclosure, forcing many to cut back drastically on daily necessities, while still others---single Mom’s with children---have been forced to shelters, or worse, to the streets. Countless thousands more are out of work with no prospects of decent employment; and many that are working have succumbed to the need to grab two jobs---any jobs---just to keep something coming in to avoid losing everything they’ve worked so hard for.
And so it is that we with the most should be called to action to help our brothers and sisters with the least, and consider making a donation to our favorite charity or organization. As previously reported, charitable giving will be down this year drastically due to the economy, but don’t let that inhibit you. No one is peeking into your pocket book or lifting your wallet to see how much you can give….the bottom line is: it’s important to give something/anything, this year more than ever.

To that end, below are some suggestions; and they are merely morsels of information designed to stimulate your charitable inclinations; to get you thinking; to tug at your heart strings; and to get your mind and your checkbooks open to help another as we celebrate the excesses of ourselves this holiday season.

The Children’s Trust: this Miami foundation was established with the mission of respecting and strengthening the family while working towards enabling all children to reach their full potential. In addition to community partnerships and advocacy that foster this mission, the Trust also provides a variety of services geared to helping single Mom’s with kids, as well as preventive programs to keep children out of destructive environments brought about by hardship. www.thechildrenstrust.org

Feeding South Florida (formerly the Daily Bread Food Bank): this organization strives to fight hunger for the needy in south Florida via food drives, food drop-offs, and fundraisers. From Palm Beach county south to Monroe, Feeding South Florida provides sustainable, nutritious food to needy kids, working poor, the physically or mentally challenged, single mothers, homeless, elderly, and persons infected with HIV/AIDS. www.dailybread.org

United Way of Miami Dade: this organization’s mission is to build community by helping people care for one another. Through a diverse array of programs and community partnerships and fundraisers, it seeks to improve education, income and health of all to enhance the stability and viability of the community. www.unitedwaymiami.org

Community Partnership for the Homeless: due to the housing crisis and the economic tsunami, more and more of our neighbors are finding themselves inexplicably in the streets, with nowhere to go. This partnership helps homeless men, women, and children in transitioning off the streets of Miami-Dade on their way to attain greater stability and self-sufficiency. www.cophi.org

The Florida Bar Foundation: established in 1956 by Florida lawyers and the Supreme Court of Florida, this foundation seeks to provide greater access to justice by funding programs that improve representation and advocacy on behalf of low-income persons in a variety of civil legal matters. Further, they work to enhance and improve the fair and effective administration of justice; and, they promote service to the public by encouraging members to get involved while they are still in law school. www.flabarfndn.org

If you don’t see anything here that moves your soul, you can find any charity for any purpose in any city, town, or county in the United States at www.charitynavigator.org

Finally, if you want to have a more localized, immediate impact, be sure to invite an extra person to your Thanksgiving celebration that you wouldn’t normally consider inviting. Now more than ever, limitless numbers of people are in desperate need of the comfort of good food, caring arms, and open hearts.