As you begin planning for the holidays, please consider how you can help the organizations that are working to make our community a better place to live.
By WALTER staff

As the holiday season draws near, we invite you to think about the nonprofits striving to make our community a better place. This curated guide showcases local organizations that depend on seasonal fundraising to thrive. By giving your time or financial support, you can champion their causes and play a vital role in uplifting Wake County. We are grateful to our local business sponsors for making the WALTER Guide to Giving possible.

Black Box Dance Theatre

Based in Raleigh and working across North Carolina, Black Box Dance Theatre brings artists together with people and communities to explore things that matter—building empathy, strengthening our shared humanity, and creating meaningful, real connection.

For more than a decade, BBDT has worked alongside veterans, active-duty service members, and military families using movement as a way to connect, heal, and create truly moving art. This work is personal: founding company member and associate artistic director Alfredo Hurtado is a Purple Heart recipient and combat-wounded U.S. Army veteran. Today, BBDT offers free weekly classes in Raleigh for veterans and military-connected participants.

The impact of this work is captured in We Lift Each Other, a documentary exploring the power of art in America. Veterans will once again take the stage alongside BBDT in PATRIOT, presented by NC State LIVE March 5-6, 2027—a must-see performance. BBDT also reaches thousands of K–12 students each year through performances, residencies, and workshops in schools across NC.

Its arts-integrated programs use dance to make learning active and memorable—and its collaborations with scientists and researchers are finding new ways to humanize complex science and make it meaningful. Whether the collaboration begins with a veteran’s story, a fifth-grade science lesson, or a question from a physicist, BBDT believes movement can help us understand something differently and understand one another more deeply.

In 2026, founding artistic director Michelle Pearson received the Raleigh Medal of Arts, recognizing her artistic leadership and contributions to Raleigh’s cultural community.

YOUR GIFT PUTS THIS WORK IN MOTION!
• $120 supports six weeks of free classes for a veteran.
• $500 helps bring an arts-integrated BBDT experience to K–12 students.
• $3,000 brings BBDT performance and workshops to new schools and communities.

Invest in artists. Invest in connection. Invest in work that truly moves people.

Sponsored by Black Box Dance Theatre. blackboxdancetheatre.org

Core Sound Waterfowl Museum & Heritage Center

For over 30 years, the Core Sound Waterfowl Museum & Heritage Center has told the story of Down East and NC’s working coast—connecting communities from Salter Path to Hatteras Island. From its home on Harkers Island, the museum preserves the region’s history while perpetuating commercial fishing, boatbuilding, decoy carving, and hunting traditions that underpin its culture.

The water, marshes, weather, and barrier islands have shaped how people worked, built, hunted, and lived. Through programs, demonstrations, and community events, the museum keeps people at the center of its work. Students encounter a coast unlike the one they know from a beach vacation. Families and neighbors gather in a place that belongs as much to them as to visitors.

From the observation tower, visitors can look across Core Sound toward Cape Lookout, explore the galleries, shop for work by local artists, or return for year-round events and programs.

Support from members and donors carries these traditions forward.

Sponsored by Core Sound Waterfowl Museum & Heritage Center. coresound.com

Dix Park Conservancy

On a fall Saturday at Dorothea Dix Park, kids race across Gipson Play Plaza after searching the pines for a family of giant wooden trolls. Friends settle onto the deck at Flowers Cottage with a coffee or a glass of wine. And, on the side of an unassuming building, a poem-turned-mural by Jaki Shelton Green waits for anyone who stops to read it.

Ten years ago, none of that was possible.

Dix Park Conservancy was founded in 2016 to raise private support for Dix Park as the project’s nonprofit partner to the City of Raleigh. Together, they’re

transforming the former Dorothea Dix Hospital campus into a park where everyone feels welcome and where the people who love it help build what comes next.

Since then, the Conservancy has raised more than $75 million to support that vision. Donors make the hundreds of free programs the city plans each season possible, so a skate night at the chapel or a mahjong class costs nothing to participate in. The Conservancy has led and funded most of the public art at Dix Park, from Thomas Dambo’s Trolls to Thomas Sayre’s iconic Sunflower Power Poles on Lake Wheeler Road. That same support restored the historic Stone Houses and reopened Flowers Cottage this summer as Cottage Coffee & Park Bar.

The park has nearly 2 million visitors a year from across the globe, and over 1,200 people have become Conservancy members. Some of them first arrived as volunteers to help build the trolls, made friends along the way, and decided to stay involved. Dix Park has made extraordinary progress in its transformation, but there’s so much more to go. The people who choose to support it now will shape what families find there on the Saturdays to come.

Scan the QR code to donate, become a member or volunteer, and help build a park for everyone.

Sponsored by Dix Park Conservancy. https://www.dixparkconservancy.org/

Empower All, Inc.

Raleigh-grown and Raleigh-focused, Empower All connects youth, families, and educators to STEAM learning, mental health resources, and career readiness that affirm belonging.

Programs:
• S.M.A.S.H.: Empower All’s signature program, Supporting Mental Health Advocacy & STEAM through Hip-Hop is now in its fifth year, connecting hip-hop elements to STEM. Year 5 Summit tickets for Nov. 7 are on sale now.
• STEAM Camps and Kits: Week-long, hands-on K-8 camps and classroom-ready kits that spark curiosity.
• The Hub: A free directory connecting North Carolinians to vetted mental health providers.
• INVEST Scholarship: Since 2022, a $5,000 award to a North Carolina high school student pursuing a STEAM-related career.

Empower All has engaged 8,000+ youth, connected 5,000+ families, and trained 1,000+ educators and advocates.

Tax-deductible gifts: $50 supports one student kit, $500 funds a class set for a teacher, and $2,500–10,000 sponsors a camp lab or the S.M.A.S.H. experience

Sponsored by Empower All, Inc. empower-allinc.org.

Frankie Lemmon School

Frankie Lemmon School believes in the limitless potential of every child. For over 60 years, it has been a place where children of all abilities are seen, celebrated, and supported through high-quality education, individualized care, and unwavering community support.

The school provides educational and therapeutic services at little to no cost to families. With a mission to educate and celebrate children of all abilities, it believes there should be no obstacles for children and families facing challenges. Its vision is a world where all children have the best foundation possible to reach their full potential, and families have the knowledge and support to navigate the journey.

Philanthropic support makes this work possible. Donors, foundations, and community partners help ensure every child has access to the education, therapies, and support they need, regardless of ability to pay. Today, that support is fueling the $26.5 million Expanding Possibility Campaign to create a larger campus and opportunities to serve more children and families for generations to come.

Sponsored by Frankie Lemmon School. frankielemmonschool.org

Friends of Wake County Guardian ad Litem

Friends of Wake County Guardian ad Litem (GAL) supports abused, neglected, and dependent children by filling resource gaps in their daily lives—physically, educationally, and emotionally. 

They partner with the community to provide what the county cannot, so that every child in foster care can feel seen, supported, and empowered to succeed.

There are more than 500 children in the Wake County foster care system, some placed outside the county and state, and some living in government buildings. This is a crisis, and Friends of Wake GAL exists to provide normalcy. From in-home tutoring and new school supplies to gifts at Christmas, summer camps, orthodontic care, and educational advocacy, they provide what the county and state do not.

From joining a committee to filling a backpack to hosting a fundraiser, everyone can do something. Gifts of all sizes make a difference and, with an all-volunteer-run board, they need you. A gift of $350 covers a child’s extracurricular activity or a new spring wardrobe, and $1,000 provides year-long in-home tutoring.

Sponsored by Friends of Wake County Guardian ad Litem. https://www.friendsofwakegal.org/

Habitat for Humanity Greater Raleigh

Seeking to put God’s love into action, Habitat for Humanity Greater Raleigh brings people together to build homes, communities, and hope. One in four families in the community lacks access to affordable housing. Habitat Greater Raleigh offers homeownership opportunities for homebuyers making less than 80% of the Area Median Income and preserves existing homes. Since 1985, Habitat Greater Raleigh has built 1,000 safe, affordable, energy-efficient homes in all parts of Wake, Johnston, and Franklin Counties.

There are many ways to get involved with Habitat for Humanity Greater Raleigh’s work, including:
• Volunteer: Volunteers in construction or the ReStore make Habitat’s mission possible! No experience required.
• Advocate: Advocacy Ambassadors engage policymakers and campaign for safe, affordable housing in the community.
• ReStore: Donations of gently used goods or purchases at one of Habitat’s 10 ReStores to support its mission—and shoppers get great deals!
• Donate: Financial contributions help Habitat empower local families to purchase an affordable home. Every gift makes a difference!

Sponsored by Habitat for Humanity Greater Raleigh. https://www.habitatraleigh.org/donate

Haven House Services

For over 50 years, Haven House has been where youth in Wake County turn for help. Its mission is to help youth be safe, supported, and successful. Its programs focus on youth homelessness, mental health, and diversion from the juvenile justice system.

Haven House is the agency designated by the local Continuum of Care to coordinate intake and services for youth ages 24 and under experiencing homelessness. It may be best known for operating Wrenn House, the only crisis and homeless shelter for youth ages 10–17 in the Triangle, but that is just one piece of its work. Last fiscal year, Haven House served approximately 1,300 youth across its programs, and staff answered more than 1,200 calls on its 24/7 crisis line. Currently, Haven House is seeing an influx of older youth experiencing homelessness seeking help. Its Transition in Place program, which helps youth ages 18-24 move from homelessness into housing, is serving a record number of young adults, many of whom are parenting children of their own.

Haven House relies on community support to sustain this work. Volunteers can help by serving on a committee, leading a life skills class, organizing a donation drive, adopting a holiday wish list, or planning a group volunteer project. Donations change lives: $ 250 (21/month) provides a haven for one night at Wrenn House for a young person in crisis, including food, shelter, and counseling; $100 ($8/month) provides crisis counseling for youth or families; and a one-time gift of $50 provides an hour of mentoring and support for a youth struggling at school or home. Together, we can help our community’s most vulnerable youth find futures filled with possibility.

Sponsored by Haven House Services. https://www.havenhousenc.org/

Hope Community Church

Hope Community Church believes being a good neighbor means showing up for the community in tangible ways. Through Hope’s Community Impact ministries and school partnerships, volunteers meet practical needs and build meaningful relationships throughout the Triangle. Meeting Hunger with Help and Hope: Hope’s food pantry welcomes neighbors to its Raleigh campus, where families can select food for their households with volunteers’ help. The ministry serves around 450 families each month. 

Through BackPack Buddies, Hope provides weekend food for 180 students experiencing food insecurity at nine Wake County schools, so a student’s access to meals doesn’t end when the school week does.

Helping Students Thrive

Every week, Hope’s Homework Club volunteers provide free one-on-one tutoring, homework help, and test preparation to approximately 140 students across the Triangle.

Celebrating Every Guest

Each year, Hope partners with the Tim Tebow Foundation to host Night to Shine, a prom-night experience for people with special needs ages 14 and older. The evening is designed to celebrate every guest, reminding them that they are known, valued, and deeply loved.

At Night to Shine, 275 honored guests are welcomed by more than 600 volunteers for a night of dancing, dinner, photos, and red-carpet moments while their parents and caregivers enjoy a special experience of their own.

These ministries are different, but the heart behind them is the same: see a need, build a relationship, and continue to show up. Sharing hope doesn’t only happen inside a church. It happens wherever neighbors need support.

This holiday season, Hope would love to welcome the community inside their doors, too. Whether church is already part of a family’s Christmas tradition or it’s been a long time, there’s a place for everyone at Hope. Join Hope at either their Apex or Raleigh campus to celebrate Christmas and the hope found in Jesus.

Sponsored by Hope Community Church. https://gethope.net/

Housing Options for Students Today

College student homelessness is a harsh reality: A 2023 survey of NC State University students revealed a 14% homelessness rate — that means students who are sleeping outside, in vehicles, or with others in unstable, sometimes dangerous circumstances.

HOST envisions every college student in Wake County to be safely and stably housed. HOST has helped 100+ housing-insecure students achieve their basic needs, with 26% having been supported through the Host Home program, a temporary housing program placing students in nearby households.

For 2026 and 2027, HOST aims to serve at least 30 new students and recruit 12 new Host Home providers. A monthly $50 donation can help increase the pool of host homes, while a one-time donation of 500-1000 can help students stay housed. Or, volunteer as a HOST home! This requires a spare bedroom and the willingness to welcome a local student for 1-4 months. Households near Wake County-based colleges, particularly those who welcome BIPOC, LGBTQ+, and culturally diverse students, are strongly encouraged to apply.

Sponsored by Housing Options for Students Today. https://www.hostnc.org/

Meals on Wheels

Meals on Wheels of Wake County nourishes, enriches, and strengthens the lives of older adults through daily meal deliveries and human connection. Each day, Meals on Wheels delivers close to 1,500 meals to homebound seniors throughout Wake County. They rely on the support of more than 100 volunteers who show up every day to drive routes, delivering life-sustaining nourishment, care, and connection — to ensure every senior can age with dignity.

But Meals on Wheels of Wake County needs your help! Seniors are the fastest-growing population in the county, yet only 1% of philanthropic dollars go to support aging. Be there for our neighbors who helped build this thriving Raleigh community — ensuring they can stay in their own homes, age with dignity and community, and have nourishment for their body and soul.

How to help: volunteers can help pack bags or take a route to make deliveries. You can also donate: just $10 supports a senior’s meal for a day, $180 provides them meals for a month, or $2,160 provides meals for a senior for an entire year.

Sponsored by Meals on Wheels. https://www.wakemow.org/

North Carolina Wildlife Federation

North Carolina Wildlife Federation (NCWF) protects, conserves, and restores the wildlife and habitats that make the state extraordinary. Through science, community collaboration, and an all-encompassing, non-partisan approach, this organization tackles urgent threats to wildlife, most notably habitat loss and species decline. NCWF brings North Carolinians together, regardless of their differences, around a simple belief: That the state’s natural resources belong to no one and yet are the responsibility of everyone to protect for future generations.

Today, that responsibility is especially urgent along the coast. North Carolina’s marine fisheries are in trouble. Since the Fisheries Reform Act passed 30 years ago, fish stocks including weakfish, Southern flounder, spot, croaker and blue crab have experienced significant declines. NCWF and other conservation advocates have pushed for science-based solutions to rebuild stocks, protect nursery habitats and reduce destructive bycatch.

Recent developments have underscored the need for change. A four-year independent study commissioned by the General Assembly identified significant shortcomings in the health and management of North Carolina’s fisheries.

Then, in August, a Wake County Superior Court ruling found that the state had failed to meet its legal obligations to protect North Carolina’s coastal fisheries for the public. The decision followed a six-week trial and years of litigation brought by the Coastal Conservation Association North Carolina and 86 citizens.

For NCWF, the path forward requires systemic reform: stronger scientific oversight, more responsive management, protection of critical nursery habitats and meaningful reductions in bycatch from large-scale, inshore bottom shrimp trawling.

Now is the time to rebuild iconic fish stocks, restore coastal ecosystems and protect the resource today so future generations don’t curse those of the present.

With public support, NCWF aims to secure the state’s seagrass meadows, safe-guard its sea life, sustain its seafood and save its sounds.

Sponsored by North Carolina Wildlife Federation. https://ncwf.org/

Neighbor to Neighbor (N2N)

Neighbor to Neighbor (N2N) creates pathways to economic mobility for families stuck in generational poverty through education, employment, and housing. Rooted in relationships, the Raleigh nonprofit connects young people with caring mentors, adults with meaningful living-wage work, and families with stable homes. Together, these opportunities help families build on their strengths, overcome barriers and shape their own futures. N2N puts a simple belief into practice: everyone deserves a pathway to the possibilities in Raleigh.

It starts with education. Each week, students in N2N’s afterschool program receive 1-on-1 academic and life mentoring, keeping the same mentor all year to build lasting relationships. Through this rigorous academic and relational approach, students gain an average of 1.67 grade levels per year, and 98% graduate from high school. N2N is also building a Teen Center where middle and high schoolers can study, explore careers, and gain employment skills. It will host programs like “Everyone Eats,” where teens earn a paycheck by providing meals for N2N’s afterschool students.

Employment is another critical pathway, so N2N runs two social enterprises: Neighbor Cleaning and Neighbor Lawn Care. Both serve commercial and residential customers across the Raleigh area, and N2N reinvests all profits in living-wage jobs. On average, employees earn $10 more per hour than in similar previous roles. One of the best ways to support N2N and invest in local families is to hire Neighbor Cleaning (neighborcleaning.com) or Neighbor Lawn Care (neighborlawncare.com).

Stability starts at home. N2N’s housing initiative offers affordable homes that help families build security and long-term savings. Sixteen units are home to neighbors today, and with investments such as the Lotus Campaign partnership and the Coleman Project, that number will grow rapidly in the coming years.

Sponsored by Neighbor to Neighbor. https://n2noutreach.org/

The Poe Center for Health Education

For more than 35 years, the Poe Center for Health Education has been dedicated to helping North Carolinians make healthy choices. Its team of expert health educators works with schools and organizations across the state to provide engaging health-science education for people of all ages. Programs take a holistic approach to health, supporting physical and mental well-being. From its iconic themed teaching theaters and PlayWELL Park — a favorite field-trip destination in Raleigh— to classrooms and communities around the state, the Poe experience is effective, valuable, and one-of-a-kind.

The Poe Center has served over 1.75 million North Carolinians across the state since it was established in 1991. About 77,000 children and adults participate in health-education programs annually, with 87% reporting positive behavior changes as a result. Educators are encouraged to book a program with the Poe Center, and businesses are encouraged to sponsor a health initiative for their communities. Donors make a difference: $50 will sponsor a child, $875 will sponsor an entire class, and $5,000 can sponsor an entire series of programs.

Sponsored by The Poe Center for Health Education. https://www.poehealth.org/

Preservation North Carolina

North Carolina is rich with beautiful, interesting people, places, and cultures. Its history is as diverse as our landscape, from the rugged Blue Ridge Mountains to the untamed Outer Banks to the rural communities and cities in between. When thinking of those places, what special buildings come to mind? The rustic cottage where you fell in love with the ocean? The light-filled Rosenwald School your mother attended as a young girl? Maybe the Victorian house in Oakwood that makes your head swivel every time you drive by?

Places like that exist, in part, because of Preservation North Carolina. When these reminders of the past are lost to neglect or development, so are the stories of the people who built them, lived there, and worked in them.

Headquartered in Oberlin Village, Preservation North Carolina is the only statewide nonprofit protecting historic buildings and landscapes that make North Carolina special, from Raleigh’s Mid-Century Modern masterpieces to the Bellamy Mansion & Slave Quarters Museum in Wilmington, their stewardship educational site.

As a nationally recognized trailblazer since 1939, Preservation North Carolina permanently protects historic places through legally binding preservation covenants and easements — the gold standard for demolition prevention in NC — in two ways:

• Rescuing at-risk buildings and finding preservation-minded buyers to rehabilitate them. One example: The Dodd-Hinsdale House, which was saved in 1995 and now serves as Second Empire Restaurant and Tavern.

• Helping private owners place preservation easements on historic properties. One example: Annie Laurie Snow Williams was able to protect her beloved Hayes Barton home and garden at age 98, so it will never be demolished or subdivided.

Today, Preservation NC protects over 900 historic properties on more than 4,000 acres across 84 counties, driving economic growth, environmental sustainability and cultural revitalization. Your donations make this work possible and help broaden its reach, especially in high-development areas like Raleigh.

Join Preservation NC in protecting North Carolina’s special historic character!

Sponsored by Esther Hall.

Refugee Hope Partners

Worldwide, more than 117 million people have been forcibly displaced by persecution, conflict, and violence. For refugees resettling in the U.S., adjusting to a new language and culture can be overwhelming.

Wake County is home to refugee families from around the world who are rebuilding their lives, raising their children, and becoming our neighbors.

For nearly 20 years, Refugee Hope Partners has walked alongside these families. Today, RHP serves 600 refugee families across Wake County through four pillars of service: Education & Enrichment, Health & Wellness, Faith & Community, and Equipping & Advocacy. Through these programs, families build connections, navigate new systems and establish their lives in a new community, surrounded by meaningful relationships and the hope of the Gospel.

They are deeply grateful to TowneBank for partnering with them in this work. Volunteer, give, or partner with RHP.

So that ALL may thrive.

Sponsored by Refugee Hope Partners. https://refugeehopepartners.org/

Salvation Army

For nearly 140 years, The Salvation Army of Wake County has been a trusted resource for families in crisis, offering emergency shelter, food assistance, clothing, and disaster relief to those in need. They operate the largest family shelter in Wake County and provide hundreds of meals and groceries each week to those in need. They also offer crisis intervention support and case management services for victims of human trafficking.

In addition to supporting individuals experiencing crises, the Salvation Army of Wake County offers ongoing support to our area’s lower-income residents through a variety of programs. It operates a Thrift Store and provides vouchers for clothing and household goods for those in need, and offers programs to seniors to help combat isolation and loneliness. For young people, it offers athletic programs to learn the importance of team play and good sportsmanship.

The Salvation Army of Wake County also works to make sure the holidays are joyous for all of our residents through the Angel Tree program, which provides Christmas gifts to more than 7,000 children each year. The Salvation Army’s work is only possible thanks to generous donors, volunteers, and community partners.

Sponsored by The Salvation Army. salvationarmyusa.org

WakeMed Foundation

For more than 30 years, the WakeMed Foundation has connected the generosity of the Triangle community with opportunities to save lives, improve health, and provide hope for patients and families across the region.

As the philanthropic partner of WakeMed, the Foundation supports innovative programs, advanced technology, caregiver education, and critical services that help ensure exceptional care is available when it matters most. Donor support goes beyond what traditional healthcare funding can provide, creating new possibilities for healing, innovation, and healthier communities.

Today, that generosity is helping address one of the region’s most urgent healthcare needs: access to mental and behavioral health care. WakeMed is leading the development of a transformative Whole Health Campus in Garner, bringing physical health, mental health, and wellness services together in one integrated environment. At the heart of this vision is a new 150-bed Mental Health & Well-Being Hospital designed to expand access to compassionate, comprehensive care for individuals and families throughout our region.

Behind every gift is a story: a patient receiving lifesaving treatment, a family finding hope during a difficult time, or a caregiver equipped with the resources to provide extraordinary care.

This holiday season, the WakeMed Foundation invites the community to invest in the health and well-being of their neighbors. Every gift helps create healthier futures, expand access to care, and make a lasting difference for generations to come.

Sponsored by WakeMed Foundation. wakemed.org/giving 

A version of this article originally appeared in the November 2026 issue of WALTER Magazine.