Celebrate National Soup Month with a heartfelt gesture – head to the nearest soup kitchen in your area with your nieces and nephews. Volunteering your time and service together will certainly warm these cold winter nights for those in need, and is a wonderful way to teach children about giving back. Below, a few tips from Celebrations.com writer Yelena Johnson to help you get organized.

Where to Find a Local Kitchen
Check out the Homeless Shelter Directory for information regarding soup kitchens, food pantries, and food banks in your area. Another way to find a local soup kitchen is to ask your religious organization if they have a particular place to recommend. Get nieces and nephews to help on the search and help decide which kitchen to visit.

Get Others Involved
Get other friends involved who cannot spend the day serving food by organizing your own canned food drive the week before the scheduled volunteer day.

Don’t Forget to Feed Yourselves
Either start the day with a big group brunch or end it with a fun dinner. This gives everyone enough time to catch up and spend time with each other outside of the soup kitchen. Use the time to talk with nieces and nephews about their expectations, or to reflect upon their experience.

End the Day On a Sweet Note
Finally, organize a baked goods exchange as a parting gift from the day of volunteering. Have each volunteer bake a batch of their favorite holiday treat, and hand out Ziploc bags so everyone can take home a few pieces of each treat to enjoy. It’s a sweet way to end your day of food-filled volunteering.

Visit Celebrations.com for more tips and party ideas.

Photo: wonderlane via Flickr cc
Published: January 21, 2014