Please welcome EllynAnne to the guest blogosphere! Today is Tie One On Day, but you can take today’s sentiment into the weekend or even extend it to a monthly act of giving if you’re so inclined.

This Thanksgiving Eve, Tie One On (an apron of course!) and bring joy to the life of someone in need. TIE ONE ON DAY™ means give from the heart on Wednesday – then give thanks on Thursday. 

Participation is easy and uplifting. Simply wrap a loaf of bread or baked good in an apron and tuck an encouraging note or prayer into the pocket; then present your offering to a neighbor, friend or person in your community who could benefit from your gesture of kindness. Tie One On – and put the “give” back into Thanksgiving.

Tie One On Day™ is a win-win, for the participant and the receiver. And by embracing TOOD, you will make someone else’s day brighter.

Here’s EllynAnne’s post about her choices for our friends who lost their linens in the Austin TX flooding last month.

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Guest Post: Filling a Home with Cloths of Comfort

by EllynAnne Geisel

When I approach a company or individual about sponsoring Tie One On Day, it’s because I believe they are perfectly aligned with the message that is the heart of TOOD: the value of kindness is priceless.

So when 2013 TOOD sponsor Kate Payne reached out to her hip girl’s community to bring light into a friend’s family’s darkest hours, I was immediately on board.

Victims of a flash flood, the family managed to salvage pieces of their lives, but lost forever were the mama’s sacred stash of recipes, handmade and family heirloom napkins, beautiful vintage aprons and tea towels…a household’s comforting cloth. Kate’s call-out asked for donations, to bring back a little handmade and vintage love into their lives. “This family of four will be adjusting to so many things over the coming weeks and months, let’s give them something to cherish.”

To replace the irreplaceable for a stranger gave me pause.

The selection of napkins was simple – a set so pristine they were likely never used; the selection of the apron required much consideration. From numerous possibles, I chose this one – a classic Fifties gingham with flowery cross stitching, tacking at the waist, and a pocket in need of minor mending – because as in life, it is less than perfect but gets the job done.

The homemaker who sewed this apron over sixty years ago would be flabbergasted that it still exists, much less that it will yet be worn again by a loving wife and mother.

A handwritten note accompanied the bundle, my message inspired by the apron story told to me by Vonetta Lee, the woman pictured: …when life happens, get your apron on and get goin’ !

Tie One On Day is the day before Thanksgiving because it offers an opportunity to give from the heart and then give thanks.

As I packaged the apron and mailed it to Kate, I could not stop smiling! and as I write this, my heart is filled with the happiness that comes from making someone else’s day a little brighter. Such is the win-win of TOOD.