Community Interest
The Lehigh Valley Gives Local
Join us in celebrating the organizations that make it their mission to support the Lehigh Valley in immeasurable ways.
The holiday season brings magic to the air, cozy nights, fond memories, and a special attention to the rich tapestry of support that is woven into our community. The Lehigh Valley is known for its ability to lift each other up, assist neighbors in need, and open their hearts to causes that are bigger than themselves.
The following guide will offer many ways to continue, or expand, your holiday tradition of giving. Explore non-profit organizations that bring creativity, vitality, and care to people across the Lehigh Valley all year long. And offer your support—financially, by volunteering, or by sharing their story.
At the Allentown Rescue Mission, a team of dedicated employees meet people where they are and give them the resources to get where they are going. They are a non-denominational social services organization that provides critically-needed goods and services to homeless and impoverished men, without regard to race, color, creed, national origin, or religion. For more than 100 years, they have served the Lehigh Valley, believing that we all deserve a second chance.
Services: Emergency Shelter, Transformation Program, Clean Team Workforce, DeSales Free Medical Clinic
Get Involved: Whether you participate in their Shop and Drop Program, sign up for the Changed Lives Champions, or provide a monetary gift, your thoughtful and generous gift will go a long way.
Boys & Girls Club of Bethlehem
The Boys & Girls Club Mission is to enable all young people, especially those who need us most, to reach their full potential as productive, caring, and responsible individuals.
The Boys & Girls Club of Bethlehem builds character through everyday leadership and guidance in behavior and attitude. Young people of all nationalities, races, and creeds join together in wholesome recreation and companionship—guided by trained professional staff who serve as positive adult mentors and role models. Club programs help young people succeed in school, stay healthy, learn important life skills, pursue interests in the arts and sports, and explore vocational choices.
As our 2021 Fig Social Mission partner, 10% of every subscription in 2021 goes directly to the work of the Boys & Girls Club of Bethlehem. Subscribe at figlehighvalley.com/subscribe
After nearly 10 years and countless films, FIFO (Fade In/Fade Out) still may be one of the best kept secrets in the Lehigh Valley…except to filmmakers. From the start, FIFO’s ongoing mission has been to grow, cultivate, and support filmmaking here in the Lehigh Valley, using a simple business concept that attracts revenue to the area while also creating jobs and careers.
Get Involved: On Sunday, December 19, FIFO will hold its one-day Cinema & Suds Film and Music Festival fundraiser, where some of those short films will be featured at the iconic, vintage Roxy Theatre in Northampton, along with a group of local talented musicians. This unique, end-of-year festival combines film and music to create powerful, entertaining, and endearing stories. For more information and to buy tickets via Venmo, go to fifolv.org. Tickets are also available at the Roxy Theatre’s box office, but payment must be in cash.
To quote an iconic line from THE WRITER’S MUSE, a FIFO film from the festival, “And don’t forget…it’s tax deductible!”
Performers from DanceLink
Our Mission: Developed as a model of the sustainable arts, IceHouse Tonight is a community initiative designed to serve and share the arts of the local culture. As a vehicle for creative placemaking, the venue focuses on works created by local and regional artists.
Get Involved: Since 2011, the IceHouse Tonight series has presented over 1,000 live performances to local audiences—everything from live music to comedy, theatre, dance, poetry, and more. A donation of any amount helps us ensure the future of live local arts.
Shop Jewelry Designed by Bob Agentis to Support the JAACF Palliative Care Scholarship Fund: etsy.com/shop/JudiesHeart
Judith Adele Agentis Charitable Foundation (JAACF)
From its founding in 2013 until the COVID-19 lockdown, JAACF delivered nearly 20,000 delicious meals to individuals spending precious last moments with a loved one at St. Luke’s Hospice House in Bethlehem. In early 2020, in partnership with St. Luke’s University Health Network, JAACF founded the Judith Adele Agentis Palliative Care Scholarship Fund. To date, 15 nurses have received the scholarship for palliative and hospice care certifications. In addition, the scholarship program will be expanded to include the Oncology and ICU departments.
JAACF was awarded the Heart of Hospice Award by the Pennsylvania Hospice Network and is also recognized as a Shining Star by St. Luke’s University Health Network. To donate to JAACF meal delivery or scholarship fund, please visit jaacf.org.
Junior League of the Lehigh Valley
WHO WE ARE
Women powered. Mission driven. The Junior League has played an integral part of the development, improvement, and support of the Lehigh Valley for the last century. We focus on educational disparity, food access, and developing the potential of women.
WHAT WE DO
The Junior League of the Lehigh Valley has a proud history of making a positive impact. Currently, we are working with community partners throughout the Lehigh Valley to address and solve pressing issues like educational disparity, food insecurity, and literacy. Through partnerships, signature programs like the backpack give-back, scholarship program, and fundraising initiatives, our members make a difference in the community while developing as leaders and building friendships.
JOIN US
If you are enthusiastic about volunteering in our community, developing your potential as a leader, and building lifelong friendships, we invite you to begin your journey with us.
The Lehigh Conference of Churches
Since 1954, The Lehigh Conference of Churches has been bringing healing, housing, and hope to the Lehigh Valley’s most vulnerable. Through programs like housing assistance, three free meals a day/five days a week, and a drop-in center to provide a sense of community, they aim to play a vital role in supporting our community.
This summer alone, they were able to:
Assess 572 households for rental assistance
Serve over 10,000 meals
Provide services to 124 individuals, 54 of whom were homeless, at our drop-in center
Partner with us! In partnering with The Lehigh Conference of Churches, you help provide short- and long-term solutions that empower individuals and get families back on their feet. Our social service programs put our faith into action through compassionate outreach to those on the margins of society. To learn more, donate, or for volunteer opportunities, visit lehighchurches.org.
Second Harvest Food Bank of the Lehigh Valley and Northeast Pennsylvania
A Program of Community Action Lehigh Valley
Second Harvest provides nutritious food, offers nutrition education, advocates to end food insecurity, dismantles barriers to create access, and works to attain food justice. Their programs provide children, seniors, and families with fresh and nutritious groceries. They also provide training and access to land for new and emerging farmers at The Seed Farm, help people enroll to receive SNAP benefits, and administer supplemental nutrition programs for seniors and military families.
Get Involved: For every $1 donated, Second Harvest provides six meals to our neighbors in need. To make a donation visit shfblv.org.
Known formerly as Center for Vision Loss
Sights for Hope transforms lives by removing the barriers to independence and success caused by visual impairments. Through life skills education, technology solutions, individualized support, and prevention services that empower people with visual impairments to thrive, Sights for Hope’s focus is on hope over loss.
Get Involved: While every community member is impacted by the pandemic, individuals with visual impairments are experiencing the effects at a greater magnitude. It is the generous giving that has maintained the most critical services including guided transportation for food access and medical appointments, emotional support groups, casework, and the safe implementation of free vision screenings for children. Loyal support of Sights for Hope has maintained independence for individuals living with visual impairments and championed vision health throughout every obstacle, including the current pandemic. To make a donation visit SightsforHope.org/Give.
The SouthSide Arts District is filled with beautiful works of public art, exciting and thoughtful programming, and some of the most unique and wonderful small businesses in the Lehigh Valley. An initiative of the Bethlehem Economic Development Corporation, the SouthSide Arts District organization is committed to creating an economically thriving South Bethlehem Business District. But they can’t do it without you.
Get Involved: If you want to see more public art—like our Street Mural “Connected by Kindness” and fun events like First Friday and Cocktail Crawls, the SouthSide needs your help. Please join them as a community sponsor and donate to the organization to ensure the future of this program! Visit southsideartsdistrict.com/resources to help contribute to their mission, and be a part of the artistic renaissance in our SouthSide Community!
State Theatre Center for the Arts
Since 1926, the State Theatre in Downtown Easton has been in the business of creating memorable, joyful moments for their patrons and performers. They are delighted to have reopened for their 95th Season, and as CEO Shelley Brown told their volunteers, “Seeing you all here feels like a B-12 shot!”
The 2021–2022 season kicked off in the beginning of September and will be running through the end of June, with new shows being announced along the way. Which means now is the perfect time to purchase a State Theatre Membership—either for yourself or a friend—to get first access to ticket sales! Memberships start at $75 and last all year long. It’s truly the gift that keeps on giving.
Speaking of gifts, State Theatre gift cards start at $25 and NEVER EXPIRE! The perfect gift for everyone on your list.
Celebrate the holiday season in the Christmas City with Touchstone’s high-spirited, homegrown, vaudevillian variety show—Christmas City Follies
Experience the fun December 2–19, 2021 Thursdays through Saturdays at 8pm, Sundays at 2pm; additional performance on Saturday, December 18 at 2pm
Please visit touchstone.org for details on COVID-19 mitigation measures. They look forward to welcoming you back into the theatre!
United Way of the Greater Lehigh Valley
In an ever-changing world, United Way of the Greater Lehigh Valley’s commitment remains the same—to build strong, healthy, and safe communities where every person thrives. Over the past year, our community has made incredible strides in recovering from this pandemic. Together with partners, we helped 27 million people stay in their homes, feed their families, stay connected to school, and more. We’ve made great strides, but the work continues. Not everyone is back to normal and thousands of our neighbors are still struggling to recover and rebuild. Let’s continue to build this community—our community—together.
Their Mission: Together, we’re building a strong community—where our kids thrive, our seniors are healthy, and everyone has access to nutritious food and emergency services.
Get Involved: Every gift counts, no matter how small. Learn how you can create lasting change at unitedwayglv.org/donate.
Want to discover more local? Follow Fig on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn for inspiration.
