In Turnaround, 2003 Charitable Giving Outpaced Holiday Spending

In a major change from 2002, Americans spent more last year on charity than they did on holiday gifts. Holiday retail sales for November and December 2003 in the general merchandise category totaled roughly $217 billion, according to the National Retail Federation. Charitable giving for 2003 topped $240 billion.

(PRWEB) October 25, 2004 -- Because Americans had been spending more on holiday gifts than they gave to charity in an entire year - I started the Holiday For Charity program in 2002," says Harry Hoover, managing principal of Hoover ink PR. Perhaps in some small way, the program made a difference. I hope that people will continue to give to charity as they did last year, and my Holiday For Charity program provides easy ways to help the less fortunate."

Heres how Holiday For Charity works:

1. Ask friends, family and business associates to donate to a charity instead of buying you holiday gifts

2. Sell your gifts online at eBays GivingWorks, http://pages.ebay.com/givingworks, and donate the proceeds to charity

3. Register and shop at iGive.com, whose merchants donate a portion of each transaction to the charities of your choice

4. Offer to do volunteer work in lieu of buying holiday gifts

5. Donate directly to charity in lieu of buying holiday gifts for clients and customers

Hoover has set up a special Holiday For Charity section on his website, http://www.hoover-ink.com/holiday.htm, to fully describe the program and provide links to charitable resources.

Hoover Ink is a Huntersville-based communications firm that develops and delivers bottom line messages for businesses serious about their success.

The firm develops and implements strategic communication programs for clients including Brent Dees Financial Planning, Bray Law Firm, Cabarrus Bank & Trust, Carolinas AGC, Grant Consulting, New World Mortgage, and Ty Boyd Executive Learning Systems. Find Hoover Ink on the web at www.hoover-ink.com.

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