At 826LA, we encourage students to bring their full selves to our writing sessions. Be weird, be human–or be a flying hot dog with super powers in the wildest fiction you can imagine.

If you’re a human (or highly skilled lunch food) who wants to support students during an especially challenging year, here are a few ways you can help!

1. Donate to our Words of Encouragement campaign. Your donation will directly support free writing and tutoring programs for Los Angeles youth who attend under-resourced schools. (Prefer to write a check? Make it out to 826LA and mail to 1947 Addison Way, Los Angeles, CA 90041.)
2. Use the Time Travel Mart Tri-Dimensional Gift Guide to shop for your friends, family, and fellow time travelers. Our physical locations are closed for the moment, but you can shop year-round and through the centuries at the 826LA Time Travel Mart online.
3. Double the impact of your donation by seeing if your company participates in a corporate match giving program. Find a list of Corporate Match Giving Programs in California here.
4. Consider recommending a grant from your Donor Advised Fund (DAF) or making a Qualified Charitable Distribution from your IRA.
5. Shop Amazon through 826LA’s AmazonSmile* site (details below).
6. Shop at Ralphs and link your rewards card to the Ralphs’ Community Contribution program (instructions here). Enroll in time to make your 723rd round of pandemic baking benefit 826LA.
7. Download the RoundUp app and automatically give your “spare change” to 826LA! Once you select us as your nonprofit of choice, the next time you buy, say, Spark Happiness matches for $12.95, the remaining 5 cents will go to 826LA. 

*Register 826LA as your preferred organization on AmazonSmile, and Amazon will automatically donate 0.5% of your purchase to 826LA every time you shop. Here’s how:

1. Select 826LA: Log onto AmazonSmile using your existing Amazon account, and search for 826LA in the welcome screen. You only have to select 826LA once, and the system will remember your choice.
2. Save: Bookmark AmazonSmile and start your shopping from there every time. Here’s the key — 826LA only benefits from your purchase if you’re shopping through an smile.amazon.com web address, rather than an amazon.com address. But don’t worry if you forget to begin your shopping spree at AmazonSmile. Navigate to AmazonSmile at any point before check-out, and all of the items will remain in your cart!
3. Share: Once you register, AmazonSmile will give you the option to share via Facebook and Twitter so others can support 826LA, too.