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Have you ever thought about how you could align your wedding with something that helps others? Do you have a cause that's near and dear to your hearts and you want to find a way to incorporate that into your wedding, but aren't quite sure where to start or what to do about it?
For so many of us contributing to a charity or non-profit is a no-brainer when we attend charity events, school fundraisers, and even when we're doing our grocery shopping and they ask you to round up your bill.
But, what about our weddings? Can we support a charity or non-profit that we care about with our wedding? If so, how? Where do we begin finding a charity and asking our wedding guests for their support?
With today’s wedding planning advice post we're sharing the simple ways to incorporate a charity into your wedding. Plus, we'll share all about our favorite wedding industry charity that is dedicated to ending childhood marriage around the globe.
Photo credit: HK Photography
Choosing an organization to support when it comes to your wedding is a personal decision. Together with your partner, choose a charity, cause or non-profit group that is something you are passionate about or feel called to benefit.
Maybe there is a cause that you and your partner feel passionate about. Maybe there was a group or organization that you were a part of growing that you really want to support. Maybe you have a friend or family member who is very involved in a cause and you want to support them with your wedding.
There are so many worthwhile groups and causes out there, I bet you and your partner won't have to look too hard to find a cause or organization that speaks to the issues that you both care about.
As we mentioned, choosing a cause or charity to support with your wedding is your choice. Just like with every other wedding decision from flowers to venues to what to wear, find a non-profit to support with your wedding is all about what matters to you. That's it.
We were recently introduced to VOW for Girls, a global organization working to end the international child marriage crisis. This charity is working hard to support girls' rights to live their own lives and live free from worry about child marriage.
Some facts about child marriage:
Photo Credit: VOW For Girls
Once you've made the decision that "yes" we want to support a cause with our wedding and you've found a group or a non-profit that you want to support with your wedding, the next step is how?
You're likely asking yourselves, how do we go about support a cause that's important to us with our wedding? What are our options?
Here are a few of our favorite ways for using your wedding to support the issues, causes and groups that you care about:
Choosing Your Vendors
One easy way to support a charity with your wedding is to hire vendors who are like-minded and who support the causes that you care about. There are many wedding vendors out there who use their businesses to support causes and organizations with their business, so my working with them and hiring those vendors, you are also supporting the charities and causes as well.
When you're planning your wedding, ask your vendors and professionals, such as your wedding planner, caterer, photographer, florist and more, about what charities or organizations they partner with. Some wedding vendors make monetary donations to charitable organizations, others make donations of their products or services to the charity itself or to fundraising events.
VOW for Girls is the wedding industry's charity of choice and partners with many wedding brands and vendors to build creative collaborations including custom products and experiences to support girls. When you hire or work with a wedding professional who also supports VOW for Girls you are also support VOW for Girls too.
Add The Charity To Your Wedding Registry
Another easy way to support a charity with your wedding is to incorporate that charitable organization or non-profit with your wedding registry. Yes, you can use your wedding registry to support a charitable cause with your wedding too.
Many engaged couples planning a wedding have a love-hate relationship with the wedding registry. It can be an overwhelming process to register for your wedding on top of everything else you're doing to plan your wedding.
On the con side, wedding registries can feel greedy and that you are telling your guests to buy a wedding gift for you, plus many engaged couples feel that they already have everything they need.
On the plus side, they can pick out wedding gifts that they might want or need to start their new life together. Wedding registries are so creative these days, and couples can register for gifts, like household items, experiences, trips, (hello, honeymoon!), furniture, cash (think: downpayment on a house) and so much more. Engaged couples can also register to support a charity or non-profit group with their wedding.
With your bridal shower, wedding gifts and even your wedding anniversaries, you can incorporate VOW for Girls or other charities as a preferred option for your wedding guests to contribute to on your behalf. When you register, you'll have the option to add your charity of choice in addition to selecting different items that you may need or wants, or you can simply just choose your charity or organization only to have your guests make a donation in in lieu of wedding gifts at all.
Your wedding guests are accustomed to purchasing a gift through your registry for these wedding events. By adding the charity as an option on your wedding registry, in addition to any other items that you might want to add to your registry, many of your wedding guests will be happy to make contributions in lieu of or in addition to traditional wedding gifts.
It's easy to add VOW to your wedding registry. Learn more on their webpage for brides and grooms.
For more help on wedding registries, be sure to check out this post on How To Register For Your Wedding With Etsy.
Photo credit: Studio Nellcote DIY
Make A Donation On Behalf Of Your Guests
Another super simple way to support a charity or non-profit with your wedding is to make a direct donation. Done and donation made!
In lieu of a traditional wedding favor, you can make a donation yourself directly to a charity or non-profit on behalf of your guests.
If you decide to contribute to a charity with your wedding, be sure to let your wedding guests know. You can use signs or cards at your wedding to let your wedding guests know about your donation in lieu of wedding favors and invite them to learn more about the charity you chose.
Make The Meaningful Purchase
If you're looking for a unique and unexpected way to support a charity with your wedding, consider shopping at a store or shop that also supports a charity. Just like hiring a wedding vendor who supports a cause that you care about, you can also find a shop that cares about what you care about.
Shop with a designated shop that has partnered with a charity for a portion of the proceeds. VOW For Girls has their own online shop with items for you, your bridesmaids, your wedding gifts and beyond!
Photo Credit: AIM Studio Co
Turn Memories Into Contributions
Maybe your wedding has come and gone or you're looking for an additional way to support a charity with your wedding beyond just your actual wedding day. You can support a worth cause with your wedding beyond your wedding day with your wedding anniversary.
Each year on your wedding anniversary, consider contributing again to a charity. Maybe you choose to contribute to the same charity every year...or maybe you change to a new one to match with the season of life you and your partner are celebrating each year. Either way, it's a great way to celebrate another year of marriage and contribute to an organization.
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So, what do you think? Will you choose a charity to include in your wedding registry? Will you donate to a charity on behalf of your wedding guests? There are so many ways that you can contribute to a charity with your wedding.
We hope you found this wedding advice post about charities for weddings to be helpful through your wedding planning journey.
If you're looking for the right charity to support with your wedding we encourage you to look into VOW for Girls and learn more about their mission.
Don't forget, we have so much helpful and practical wedding planning advice on our blog. Whether it's with our our tips or our wedding heirlooms, our main goal in life is to share our expertise and help you have a joyful and stress-free wedding planning experience. You can shop our wedding garters and bridal accessories anytime and you can find all of our wedding planning tips on the blog.
