To honor Giving Tuesday, some jewelers are going all out in their support for nonprofits, charitable organizations, and causes they care about through donations and special events that give back to their communities.

Jewelers including Awe Inspired and Lika Behar are creating fundraising and “pay it forward” efforts for Nov. 29, which is known as Giving Tuesday. After the deluge of Black Friday, Small Business Saturday, and Cyber Monday, Giving Tuesday is a way for people and businesses to give back to the people and causes that help others.

At Awe Inspired, the jewelry company cofounded by mother-and-son duo Jill and Max Johnson, is donating 100% of the proceeds from their jewelry sales on Giving Tuesday to the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI). This is the second year the New York–based brand has given all of its Giving Tuesday proceeds to the nonprofit that focuses on mental health awareness, Max Johnson says.

“We believe holiday gifting becomes all the more meaningful when you tie in an opportunity to give back,” Johnson says.

Philanthropy has been front and center for Awe Inspired since 2018, when the company was founded. Since then, it has donated more than $700,000 to its charity partners, which include the NAACP and Planned Parenthood.

They select these partners for the work they do to empower women overcoming adversity, something Jill experienced when she was diagnosed with cancer. The family gave jewels and charms as gifts to those who helped support them during that time, and Awe Inspired is the result of that experience.

NAMI and its efforts seem that much more important in recent years, Johnson says, so Awe Inspired wanted to partner with them again in 2022 for this Giving Tuesday.

“For the millions of people who face mental illness, winter and the holidays can be the most challenging and lonely time of the year,” Johnson says. “We think it’s poignant to take a respite from holiday sale discounting to give back to NAMI, an organization at the heart of mental health awareness, research, and policy.”

Giving 100% of its sales proceeds on Nov. 29 is the heart of what Awe Inspired stands for. The brand has always donated 20% of its proceeds to its charity partners and uses its social media platforms to advocate for the causes it champions, Johnson says.

“As a brand focused on self-empowerment and channeling inner strength, we have organizations like NAMI to thank for the changing national conversation around mental health,” he says. “NAMI has helped our loved ones and the loved ones of our goddess community access affordable mental health resources and seek immediate help through the National Suicide Hotline.”

Bario Neal

Simultaneously, Bario Neal is donating 100% of the profits from the sale of its Bans Off Our Bodies charm to ARC Southeast for Giving Tuesday. Bario Neal said as part of its efforts as a feminist business, it seeks to highlight choice and reproductive autonomy as fundamental human rights. ARC Southeast is a nonprofit that provides funding and logistical support to ensure Southerners receive safe and compassionate reproductive care.

Lika Behar Collection

Lika Behar, a breast cancer survivor, is continuing her efforts to encourage people to get mammograms. For Giving Tuesday, the Lika Behar Collection, through its partnership with the American-Italian Cancer Foundation, brought the Mammogram Bus to New York, offering no-cost mammograms to women in the city’s five boroughs.

The bus, which was available Nov. 23, is able to screen about 40 women per day. Behar says this is an essential service that she is proud to support.

“In this season of thanks, this is my way of giving back for my continued good health,” Behar says.

In addition to sponsoring the Mammogram Bus, the Lika Behar Collection is continuing its partnership with Citymeals on Wheels, donating meals to the frail, homebound elderly of New York City in honor of her customers.

Top: Awe Inspired is donating 100% of its proceeds on Giving Tuesday to support mental health, noting that the company was founded on giving back to its charitable partners, says cofounder Max Johnson (photos courtesy of Awe Inspired). 

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