As the weekend of early Christmas shopping comes to a close after Black Friday, Small Business Saturday and Cyber Monday, there is one more shopping opportunity to look forward to, the purpose of which is to promote the holiday spirit of giving.
The founders of #GivingTuesday hope to start a new national celebration through social media to encourage people to donate to charitable organizations locally and around the world.
Stuart’s Opera House, 52 Public Square, Nelsonville, has partnered with the organization not only to promote itself as a local nonprofit organization but also all charitable institutions.
“This is a time of year where folks tend to think about (charitable giving) a little bit more, being that it’s the holidays and you’re thinking about those less fortunate or the places that are doing good things right where you live,” said Brian Koscho, marketing director for Stuart’s. “Something like this is a good way to kick off the holiday season in a positive way that isn’t just getting up at 5 a.m. to stand outside a Walmart.”
He added that some organizations ask for donations such as canned goods or volunteers to help out, but this year Stuart’s will ask for monetary compensation to help keep its doors open and the facility operating.
Koscho said #GivingTuesday is also about raising awareness. He will promote the event on Stuart’s Twitter and Facebook accounts in order to help get the hashtag trending.
Athenians have been mindful of local organizations in the past, including Saturday’s celebration of small businesses. Ellie Dudding, a clerk at Artifacts Gallery, 2 W. State St., said people came out strong for the unofficial holiday.
“It was pretty busy,” Dudding said. “I don’t know how many people were in town, but a lot of people came out and supported us. We had a couple customers that were really excited about Small Business Saturday, and they came out especially because of that.”
The day didn’t mark an upswing in sales for every small business, though. Frank McDermott, owner of Blue Eagle Music, 40 N. Court St., said Black Friday was a big day for him, selling everything from guitars to ukuleles, but he had less luck come Saturday.
“Small Business Saturday was absolutely dead, nothing,” McDermott said. “Friday was just smokin’ hot with all kinds of stuff, but Saturday we just sat here.”
wh092010@ohiou.edu
@WilburHoffman
This article appeared in print under the headline "New shopping day to focus on charity"
