Help Children Worldwide With Light the World Giving Machines

Make charitable giving a family experience! The holiday season is the perfect time to teach kids the joy of giving to help those in need. UNICEF USA is collaborating with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to allow everyone to donate to children in a fun, informative way.

Saving a life could start with a Giving Machine

From mid-November through Dec. 31, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints places Light the World Giving Machines in locations worldwide. These striking red kiosks allow UNICEF supporters to choose one or more items for “purchase” that children need to survive and thrive.

For the eighth year, UNICEF USA has been invited to participate in Light the World by showcasing practical ways families can donate to help children and mothers. The UNICEF Inspired Gifts featured in Giving Machines turn passerby attention into life-changing action for the world’s most vulnerable children. 

“Each UNICEF Inspired Gift delivers hope and opportunity to children and women everywhere, providing lifesaving health and nutrition, emergency aid for newborns, bicycles for education, and blankets to keep children warm. From Sudan to Sri Lanka, the generosity made possible by every Light the World Giving Machine helps deliver what matters most to children,” says Michael J. Nyenhuis, President and CEO of UNICEF USA.

This year, UNICEF supporters in the U.S. can donate for children through Giving Machines in 12 cities:

• Anaheim/Long Beach, CA (Dec 2. – Dec 23.)

• Bellevue, WA (Nov. 8 – Jan. 1)

• Huntington Beach, CA (Nov. 27 – Dec. 10)

• Logan (Cache Valley), UT (Dec 15. – Dec. 31)

• New York, NY – Times Square (Dec. 1)

• New York, NY – Saint Peter’s Church (Dec. 2 – Jan. 1)

• New York, NY – West End Church (Dec. 2 – Jan. 1)

• Ogden, UT (Nov. 29 – Dec. 14)

• Prescott, AZ (Dec. 2 – Dec. 17)

• San Clemente, CA (Dec 11. – Jan 3.)

• Seattle, WA (Nov. 24 – Jan. 1)

• Show Low, AZ (Nov. 17 – Dec. 2)

• Snowflake, AZ (Dec. 17 – Jan. 2)

• St. George, UT (Nov. 17 – Dec. 27)

To date, UNICEF has raised over $2 million through Light the World donations, directing these funds to humanitarian aid efforts wherever they are needed most. UNICEF operates the world’s largest humanitarian warehouse and uses your donations to distribute urgently needed supplies. When you buy an Inspired Gift, you are supporting UNICEF’s extensive work in over 190 countries and territories.

UNICEF Inspired Gifts meet needs that everyone can understand

Your family can make a difference in two ways this year. With one swipe of a card at a Light the World Giving Machine, supporters can donate to help children through a UNICEF Inspired Gift — actual items that illustrate the challenges children face in other parts of the world.

Watch the video:

One mother who gave each of her five children $25 to spend in a Giving Machine says, “I love that they get this experience. They get to feel that they’re giving back, and it was something personal for them.”

Giving online goes just as far with Virtual Giving Machines 

If your city doesn’t have a physical Light the World Giving Machine, you don’t have to miss the fun. You can sit down as a family and visit our Virtual Giving Machines, an online marketplace offering additional UNICEF Inspired Gifts you can choose. 

When you purchase UNICEF Inspired Gifts, children and families receive essential health and nutrition services, emergency assistance for newborns, therapeutic food packets for malnourished children, blankets to keep families warm this winter and bicycles for learners to attend school. Below are a few examples of how your donation makes a real impact on children’s lives.

Polio vaccines

Polio has no cure and mainly afflicts children under 5. Vaccination has prevented billions of children from contracting this disabling and life-threatening disease and is the only way to eradicate polio completely. UNICEF helps vaccinate over 400 million children against polio every year. Today, polio is endemic in only two countries: Afghanistan and Pakistan. 

Educational feeding sets

UNICEF’s Feeding Bowl and Spoon sets are easy, effective tools for caregivers to remember key nutrition tips and ensure children get nutrient-dense, diverse meals at the right times. Featuring culturally relevant food icons and portion lines for different age groups, the simple bowl and spoon sets improve meal planning and feeding.

Baby resuscitation kits

Small, portable and easy-to-clean Baby Resuscitation Kits provide mothers and health care workers with the emergency supplies they need to support the health and survival of infants.

Sweet Dream bundle

Every baby, every child deserves the best start in life. The warm blanket that protects a child and provides a safe, comfortable place to sleep and the ready-to-use therapeutic food (RUTF) delivered in a Sweet Dream bundle help mothers nurture their children at home when the outside world threatens their right thrive.

School commuter bicycles

Too many children around the world miss an education because even the nearest school is too far from home. Others walk several hours each way, often across rough terrain, leaving them vulnerable to punishing weather and violence. One roadster bicycle can allow a child to attend school by making the journey quicker and safer.

Purchase a UNICEF Inspired Gift with your family today to help fund UNICEF’s work to support children and mothers across the globe.

Learn more about UNICEF's partnership with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

UNICEF does not endorse any organization, company, brand, product or service.