Once again it is the time of year when charities put out the call to everyone to fill their many needs. Often times it is easy to get so wrapped up in our own holiday that these cries slip the mind. We think, “Oh, I should do that” and go on our way. These are complicated and rough times, after all. It’s so easy to get lost and forget. I know I do it.

As I’ve gotten older I’ve discovered that I don’t really care so much about getting. I’m more interested in giving and reminding others to do so. Starting this year I’ve decided to do my best to get more people motivated than I ever have and I need your help!

To me, Christmas is important for children. I think faith and the holiday magic is good for young people. It can also be cruel time, however, as poor children who have been good all year get less than their wealthier friends. Sometimes they might get nothing at all. It breaks my heart.

That said, I’m calling all of you in to help. I’ve picked two charities that I think really make a difference: Child’s Play and Toys for Tots.

Child’s Play is a charity started by Penny Arcade’s Gabe and Tycho. It is designed to send much needed toys and video games to children’s hospitals to make the stays more bearable. To the best of my knowledge this is one of the “least overhead” charities out there. They take the absolute minimum out of your donation to get the job done (their website states roughly 2 – 3%). The best part is they use it as a way to show the country that gamers aren’t violent killers in training while helping the kids out.

I’m giving you two incentives to donate to this charity. The first is pretty simple. For every dollar you send to Child’s play with Epic Slant and/or Ferrel somewhere in the message, (take a screen shot of the paypal successful send message), I’ll match your total contributions up to $200 (sorry folks, Ferrel isn’t made of money).

The second incentive is not really mine but another option. Opposable Thumbs is running their own drive and they have some really stellar prizes. For every dollar you put in they’ll put you in the raffle once. They’re also doing some matching. In either case you may donate to the charity by using the button at the bottom of the article.

The second charity I’m supporting is one you might be more familiar with and one my family is fond of. Toys for Tots is a U.S. Marine Corps foundation that takes toys donated by you and I and gives them to children during the holidays. You may either donate toys at a local charity pick up point, (which you can find at their website), or cash online. I don’t really have an incentive for this one other than to say my father, my best friend and I plan to donate this year. According to my father, last year “they had too many toys just for girls and no sports stuff.” He fixed that situation then and I plan to help do so again this year.

If you don’t like those charities please pick another one. You’ll be shocked at how far a little money goes and what a difference you can make in a child’s life.