TEMPLE, Texas — GivingTuesday was created ten years ago as a simple idea -- and that idea was to do as much good in one day around the world, as possible.
To date, there are 80 countries that participate in GivingTuesday and in the U.S. alone, 300 community campaigns rally thousands of nonprofits, foundations, grassroots organizations, small businesses and generous individuals to give back.
Locally, one of those non-profits is Family Promise of East Bell County, an organization with a mission to empower families experiencing homelessness.
Rucker Preston, the Executive Director, said GivingTuesday is a chance to help those who need it achieve sustainable independence.
"The work we do with our families is not achieved without the financial support of our community," he said. "We served 200 parents and their children this past year and without the help, I am not sure where those 200 kids and parents would be, maybe in a car or something," Preston said.
Preston says the promise of the organization is to keep families together and he said the program has strict guidelines to help families achieve success in the two-year program.
"When you give it a family promise you're not giving a handout, you're giving a hand up and so when you give, you're given that empowerment to move forward on their own," he said, adding families must save 70-percent of their income.
Preston said all of the families they serve are hard-working and some of them hold down two or three jobs at one time just to make it all work and to gain that independence they crave.
"These are not the people that are slacking by any means, they work sometimes two or three jobs whether in our program. These are all people who would admire if you got to know them especially the kids, they just break your heart, I just love on them so much because they're so thankful for the smallest things," he said.
For more information on GivingTuesday and how you can help, click here. If you would like to read more on Family Promise of East Bell County, their mission and to donate to their cause, you can do here.