Gift-giving is something that Manitobans like to do. Whether it be a physical gift or a monetary donation, Manitoba is known to be the most generous province in Canada.
Harold Penner and Susan Yakabowich experience the generosity of Manitobans on a day-to-day basis serving as gift-giving consultants with Abundance Canada.
"Our role is helping people with their charitable donations," says Penner. "We have a variety of different things we can do with those people to help with their donation goals."
That includes a Generosity plan, which helps map out the best strategic options for giving today, tomorrow, and into the future.
Yakabowich says she believes the generosity we see in Manitoba comes from a prairie feel.
"I think we come together in times, and there is community in Manitoba," Yakabowich explains. "There is a heavy ag-related sector, and farmers have always been known to help their neighbours. They believe in community, and when they have a great harvest, we feel the impact in our communities. We feel their generosity."
She says people in Manitoba pull together, especially during tough times.
"They want to do better. They want to help and see the impact their generosity can have," says Yakabowich. "In the prairies, we tend to live a blessed life of abundance, rather than scarcity."
Yakabowich and Penner say working in this industry they experience Christmas every day they walk into the office.
"We work with people who are making a difference in people's lives, not just locally, but also across Canada and overseas. They care about people," says Yakabowich. "We really get the best of the best because we are working with people who generally think that they're making an impact, and they are."
When it comes to trends in giving, Yakabowich and Penner say that fewer people are giving these days, but those who are giving, are giving larger amounts.
"We've also noticed a trend in Canada and the U.S. of donor-advised funds. People are using more complex ways to give. They want to be able to support a charity over time and therefore they are looking at more impact investing."
Heading into the Christmas season, Penner and Yakabowich say the Abundance Life office can become quite busy.
"We find the last three months of the year, people are really ramping up their consideration about giving," Penner explains. "Many people have budgeted how much they want to give in a year and they're meeting those goals at this point."
Anyone looking to start at Generosity Plan is encouraged to visit abundance.ca
-With files from Judy Peters