(CBS DETROIT) – The holidays are all about the spirit of giving, and people in Detroit can help someone else with the push of a button.
Detroit is one of the few cities with a Giving Machine. This newer way to give back is as easy as buying a bag of chips.
“This is the first year the Giving Machines are coming to Michigan, and we’re starting at Campus Martius,” said Joan Johansson, a volunteer with the Giving Machine. “The donation machine is a return machine. We have five local charities and two international charities for which you can buy items.”
The Giving Machine is sponsored by the Church of Jesus Christ Latter-day Saints. People can buy clothes, medicine, food and more. Essential items go directly to those who need them.
There is an opportunity for everyone to help. The gifts range in price from $5 to $250.
“Items as simple as a pair of socks for the Pope Francis Center or as large as $250 that can help sponsor a community of good for our international charity,” Johannson said. “They represent things like a therapy session for a single mother or meals for someone who is homebound. I absolutely love the charities we partner with. Each of them represents a mission that is just incredible.”
Once you pay for an item, a card with a photo of your donation drops into a locked display bin and you leave with a digital receipt.
The Giving Machine is available until December 8.
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