If you want to give something that has a tangible, significant impact on someone's life, just look down. Your body is a potential gold mine for charitable giving, Boles says.
You can give blood to the American Red Cross. Every two seconds, someone in the U.S. needs a blood transfusion, and a single pint of blood can save the lives of up to three people, the nonprofit group says. Yet only 3 percent of Americans donate blood, according to the American Red Cross. Yes, it does involve a needle, but giving blood is free and it's fast.
Thinking about a haircut? Donate that hair to Locks of Love based in West Palm Beach, Fla. The charity makes custom hair pieces for children suffering from long-term, medical hair loss due to illnesses such as cancer. Custom wigs can cost as much as $6,000, an impossible cost for many families, but Locks of Love provides them for free.
Got milk? If you produce more breast milk than your baby needs, you may be able to donate it to the National Milk Bank in Escondido, Calif., where it will be given to premature and critically ill babies whose mothers cannot nurse. After going through a health screening process, donating moms will store expressed milk in the freezer then periodically send it to the milk bank.