Reverse Advent Calendar
Most of us have used an advent calendar to count down the days until Christmas, typically starting on December 1st and ending on Christmas Eve. Kids - and adults (no shame) - get a small treat each day leading up to Christmas Day.
A reverse advent calendar does the opposite. Each day you’re encouraged to donate something to help food banks fill their shelves; at the end of the advent period, the box of donations is delivered to a local food pantry.
You don’t have to wait until December! Hunger doesn’t happen only at Christmas, and we want to make sure people have food during the holidays. You can also go shopping all at once for all the items - kids pick out the items and check them off one by one as you shop - then immediately take them to your food bank. Ask your kids to think about what other kids would like. You can also take items from your own personal pantry one day at a time to make giving a prominent daily thought. Whatever works best for your family is the right way to do it.
Always double check expiration dates to be sure that items are not out of date. And please do not donate any homemade food, jars or cans without labels, or anything that requires refrigeration.
Some products that people use every day are often forgotten when it comes to pantry donations. Beyond things to eat, families need other household items: feminine pads, diapers, baby wipes, toilet paper, toothpaste, soap, hand lotion, shampoo, and paper towels. Consider adding some of these items to your box of donations.
Kids understand that people need food, and letting them participate in giving grocery items to a pantry helps develop empathy, as well as gratitude for the resources and opportunities they have.
We’re very busy around the holidays, and it would work better to collect all the donations at once and take it to the food pantry at the beginning of December.
Awesome! That will help us stock the shelves through the rest of the holidays.
We would rather gather the donations day by day, and drop them off after Christmas or in the New Year.
Awesome! We are definitely going to need food and supplies after the holidays.
We don’t have all the requested items in our cupboard and I don’t have time to shop. Can we double up or substitute?
Absolutely! But please check out this list of pantry donations do’s and dont’s - it’s got a lot of great information about what pantries need the most.