As we’re nearing the end of another fulfilling year, we can’t help but think of the nonprofit organizations throughout our community providing a better future for us all. End-of-year giving is so essential to the success and vitality of these nonprofits. If we want them to continue their incredible work, we must support them.
Below, we showcase some impactful causes in Asheville and greater Western North Carolina. These nonprofits run the gamut, from supporting environmental initiatives with a focus on rivers and forests, aiding furry friends in need, contributing to community and hunger relief, addressing issues of sexual violence, championing educational equity, and investing in local businesses and the arts.
Consider supporting the nonprofits below to make a positive impact in our community. Be part of the change by donating your time, money, or volunteer efforts.
GIVE BACK TO OUR ENVIRONMENT
Asheville GreenWorks: If you want to put your time, money, and effort toward solutions that make the most significant environmental impact, Asheville GreenWorks should be on your giving list this year. This nonprofit is tackling the solutions that will prepare Asheville for the future we all want to experience. Protecting native pollinators, reducing waste, removing litter from our rivers and roads, restoring urban forestry, and educating the community are their primary goals. And with your volunteer efforts and impactful dollars, they can continue to build resilience to the changing climate in our community.
Dogwood Alliance: Give back to the forests this season by supporting Dogwood Alliance—a local nonprofit focused on advancing environmental justice and climate action by mobilizing diverse voices to protect Southern forests and communities from industrial logging. For over 25 years, Dogwood Alliance has fought threats to our forests and frontline communities and works hard to promote forest protection as the best solution to climate change. Become a forest defender by supporting this great cause!
RiverLink: RiverLink is a local nonprofit focused on enhancing the French Broad River and its surroundings by fostering environmental and economic well-being. They achieve this through initiatives such as improving watershed health, ensuring public access through conservation efforts, reclaiming polluted lands for public use, engaging more than 1,000 volunteers annually, and educating more than 4,000 students and the public about the importance of a healthy French Broad River watershed. Anyone can get involved by volunteering for a river clean-up or donating money to keep the watershed thriving.
GIVE BACK TO OUR FURRY FRIENDS
Asheville Humane Society: As the only open-intake animal shelter in Buncombe County, Asheville Humane Society has been dedicated to ensuring every animal has the quality of life they deserve since they started in 1984. From their shelter to their adoption center to their relocation program, this incredible nonprofit continues to grow and evolve with the needs of our community. Get involved by volunteering your time, fostering a pet in need, becoming an adoption ambassador, or simply donating whatever funds you can to support their impactful work.
Mountain Pet Rescue: A foster-based animal rescue in Asheville since 2017, Mountain Pet Rescue has saved thousands of animals’ lives without a physical shelter. This nonprofit connects people with pets in need through grassroots efforts and an incredible support system of fosters, volunteers, and donors. They host hundreds of adoption events around town every year, repurpose gently used items for the greater good at their thrift store, and promote cat habitats at PetSmart. Save a fur baby by showing them your support!
GIVE BACK TO OUR COMMUNITY MEMBERS
Eblen Charities: Proudly serving the WNC community for over 30 years, Eblen Charities provides invaluable assistance to families and individuals in our community during times of crisis and hardship, whether medical, financial, or emergency needs. Their nonprofit focuses on various assistance programs, including clothing, education, food, heating and utilities, housing, eyeglasses and medication, prom dresses, holiday gifts, and more. They also host several events and donation drives throughout the year.
Asheville Area Habitat for Humanity: Established in 1983, Asheville Area Habitat for Humanity, the first Habitat affiliate in North Carolina, has empowered more than 2,100 individuals in Buncombe County through homeownership and home repair programs. This support provides our community members the stability to build a better future, offering a decent home and affordable mortgage. Habitat homeowners can save more, invest in education, pursue opportunities, and attain greater financial stability with their help, donor support, and volunteer efforts.
MANNA Food Bank: MANNA FoodBank is dedicated to eliminating food insecurity across 16 counties in Western North Carolina. This nonprofit collaborates with more than 200 partner pantries and service organizations, connecting the food industry to help provide sustenance for thousands of families in the area. They are also a member of Feeding America, the largest domestic hunger relief organization, and strive to address and solve the issue of hunger collectively. There are several ways to get involved with MANNA, including donating food and funds, volunteering, becoming a partner, participating in a community event, and more.
Our VOICE: Our VOICE inspires hope and healing while ending sexual violence and human trafficking through education, counseling, and advocacy. They hold themselves accountable to several core values, including believing all survivors, promoting dignity, supporting individual agency, shifting paradigms of sexual violence, and creating a culture of care and honesty. From a 24-hour crisis line to counseling services and case management, Our VOICE truly gives a voice to all survivors of sexual violence.
United Way of Asheville and Buncombe County: Throughout its 100+ year history, United Way has created a community of collective impact striving to help all Asheville City and Buncombe County students graduate from high school ready and fully prepared to pursue their goals and dreams. They are working to align resources and partnerships in seven community schools. If you want to support a mission where all children and youth learn, grow, and thrive in a vibrant, healthy, and connected community, this is the nonprofit to support.
Community Foundation of Western North Carolina: The Community Foundation partners with donors and nonprofits across WNC, facilitating philanthropy, managing charitable funds, and making grants accessible. They have awarded over $362 million in student scholarships and grants to nonprofit organizations and public institutions and manage over $408 million in assets. Their current focus areas are finding ways to support cultural resources, education, human services, and natural resources. Become a donor to invest in multiple nonprofits and start your family’s charitable legacy.
Hope Chest for Women: When a local group of oncology doctors and nurses observed women choosing between receiving cancer treatments or providing for their families, a small patient fund was created to help them buy groceries, gasoline, and other critical needs. This has grown and has now become The Hope Chest for Women—a nonprofit offering financial assistance for women struggling with breast or gynecological cancer treatment costs. This nonprofit offers both medical and non-medical expenses, along with information on community resources, education on cancer prevention, and emotional support.
YMI Cultural Center: The YMI Cultural Center is one of the oldest and most unique Black cultural centers in the U.S. Their mission is to empower the Black community to celebrate its rich cultural heritage through programs that preserve and promote African-American arts and traditions with a commitment to justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion. They continue to stand in and lead the way for black rights and social justice and accelerate to the next milestones for Black people. Every donation helps in the fight for issues that affect the Black community in Buncombe County and ensures that Black lives are a priority in all spaces.
GIVE BACK TO OUR LOCAL BUSINESSES
Mountain BizWorks: Mountain BizWorks envisions a thriving Western North Carolina where small business owners and aspiring entrepreneurs can access the resources needed to make their dreams a reality. With help from Mountain BizWorks, new start-ups or burgeoning small businesses can keep learning, get funding, and start investing in themselves and their business ideas. When small businesses succeed in this community, we all prosper! Help support low-income, rural, people of color, women, immigrant entrepreneurs, and small businesses that operate within the local food system by giving to Mountain BizWorks.
GIVE BACK TO OUR LOCAL ART
Asheville Art Museum: With its mission to transform lives through art, the Asheville Art Museum is a local nonprofit committed to being a vital force in the community, providing lifelong opportunities for education and enrichment through the visual arts. People can support the museum’s mission in several ways, including a gift to the endowment or annual fund, honoring a friend or loved one with a donation, charitable distributions, in-kind gifts, becoming a member of the museum family, and even donating gifts of art.
