As the holiday season approaches every year, communities band together for canned food drives, clothing collections, and toy donations. While the surge in giving is undeniably positive, it highlights an underlying problem: society’s impulse to care becomes seasonal, skyrocketing during the holidays and fading directly afterwards. Shelters, hospitals, religious institutions, and community organizations require support throughout the year, yet donations drop sharply once the calendar doesn’t surround Thanksgiving and Christmas. Need isn’t seasonal; people should give year-round.

Seasonal giving creates unequal support for communities that need it all year long. Food banks report receiving around 40% of their annual revenue during the final quarter of the year, which leaves the remaining 9 months disproportionately underfunded. This imbalance is referred to as the “winter slump,” where, according to Harness, donations drop sharply after December, averaging only 3-5% of yearly donations. 

This pattern continues into the “summer slowdown”, when donations fall to nearly 18% below monthly averages. No other season comes close to the generosity of November and December irrespective of the consistency in need.

Culturally, the labelling of the holiday season – particularly Christmas – promotes generosity. Schools – including Oxford’s Canned Food Drive and Bags of Hope initiatives – and community organizations utilize this sentiment as an opportunity to hold drives. Oxford aims to give consistently, by holding other drives throughout the year, including Socks of Love, and a supply drive during the L.A fires last year. 

Additionally, the holiday season influences people to donate under the “gift-giving” mood and holiday spirit. They are more sentimentally motivated to donate during the holiday season than to give with a clear purpose. Although all donations are helpful, people must begin donating out of a true desire to help those in need. Consistent giving helps strengthen communities; donations allow organizations, especially homeless shelters, to support people throughout the year as they can provide stable care. 

Giving should be valued throughout the year. Instead of concentrating donations to the end of the year, donors should try to find a small way to give consistently. Some shelters that accept donations year round include The Salvation Army, Orange County Food Bank, The Seal Beach Animal Shelter, etc. Society should stop restricting giving to the holiday season and understand that the value of donation — whether of supplies or time — is year-round.