Preserving Holiday Traditions

Holiday traditions come in many forms - from decorating the tree and shopping for loved ones to movie nights and your favorite festive foods. However, there is no holiday tradition quite as enjoyable and rewarding as giving back.

Here are several ways that you can create and preserve this important holiday tradition with your family.

Write a Letter to Make a Difference
It's simple to give back during the holidays through Macy's annual Believe campaign. Children of all ages can drop off their letters to Santa at the big red letterboxes in-store or send online through macys.com/believe. For every letter collected through Dec. 24, the retailer will donate $1 to Make-A-Wish, up to $1 million, to help grant the wishes of children with life-threatening medical conditions. Macy's has given $100 million in total to Make-A-Wish since 2003, with nearly $13 million donated through the Believe campaign. Keep the tradition of letter-writing alive and support the cause by spending time as a family writing letters to Santa.

Take Part in Acts of Kindness - Big or Small
Encourage your family to participate in the season of giving by taking on charitable activities. Projects could include volunteering at a food pantry or soup kitchen, coordinating a caroling group for a nursing home or collecting care packages for deployed soldiers. There are also plenty of ways to show children how easy it is to give back in small ways - whether it's paying for a stranger's coffee, creating a feel-good holiday playlist for a friend or leaving a treat for the mail carrier in the mailbox. By preserving these kinds of holiday traditions, you'll help make others' days brighter and instill the importance of giving in a younger generation.

Spread the Spirit of Believing
Belief in Santa builds family traditions such as writing letters, setting out cookies and milk, and hanging stockings by the tree. Part of this year's Believe campaign is The Santa Project, a nationwide movement to fill the internet with positive affirmations of belief. Macy's is calling on people of all ages to post a photo, video or message using #SantaProject via Twitter, Facebook, Instagram or YouTube. Everyone can play a role in keeping the magic of the holidays alive and ensuring that the internet is a place where Santa lives on for future generations.

To learn more about the Believe campaign and The Santa Project, visit macys.com/believe.

Photo courtesy of Getty Images

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