Worldwide Day of Giving

Worldwide Day of Giving is observed annually on June 15th, a very special day that was started on this date in 2010 as part of the founding year of Reed’s Year of Giving.

Worldwide Day of Giving is all about giving. It can be anything material or immaterial, including food, clothing, money, or your time and efforts.

This day is observed across the globe to make a difference in the lives of those who cannot meet their basic needs. Volunteering on this day to help the homeless or anyone in need is an appropriate way to celebrate this day.

History of Worldwide Day of Giving

Worldwide Day of Giving started in 2010 as part of the Founding Year of Reed's Giving and since then on this day, people help others by giving them something they need like food, clothing or blankets.

On this day, the most important thing is volunteering. It can also be micro, through online means, or formally by joining an organization that supports giving.

How to celebrate Worldwide Day of Giving

• Give a friend $10

So you are old school? You want to celebrate World Giving Day by paying upfront like Reed did for 365 days. Find a complete stranger. Approach them and tell them you're participating in Global Donation Day and want to give them $10. The only rules are that you may not know the person and you may not get anything in return for the $10 (other than the kindness you would feel).

It's best to take some time to talk to the recipient, find out what they're going to do with the $10, and a little bit about who they are. If you can take a photo or video, that's even better - we'd love to have you post it here or on the Facebook Page of the Year.

• Volunteer

You can volunteer with any organization. For those of you who are busy and can't take time off work, consider micro-volunteering at www.sparked.com. Many volunteer projects last 20-30 minutes. You can volunteer on your lunch break!

• Donate $10

Give away $10 today to your favorite charity. Don't know who to give? You can donate through the Year of Giving website to help some of the 365 recipients I gave away $10 in 2010. Most recently, I've been helping Anthony since Day 67 - learn more about those efforts and donate by clicking here.

I hope that you will share your experience here or on the Facebook Page of the Year of Giving

Then sit back and start watching the phenomenon begin. Dripping stories from around the world. Imagine the different reactions and stories we will have in common from Oconomowoc, Wisconsin to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia to Raahe, Finland to Montevideo, Uruguay!

I encourage you to harness the power of social media to help us get as many people as possible into this year's event!

Use #WDoG when tweeting!