Lending a Yelping Hand

Yelp is all about connecting locals with the best of the best within their communities – from great new restaurants to reliable dentists and even local charities – but beyond helping people find great businesses, our community managers also do their part to help improve their communities as a whole. Below are just a few examples of the amazing philanthropic work our community managers organized over the past four weeks. Check out our Yelp Community Blog for even more!

Katie B. rallied Los Angeles yelpers to come together the day before Thanksgiving to help prepare for the Union Mission Holiday Dinners-in-the-Park – an annual event hosted by Union Station Homeless Services that provides warm holiday meals for people in the community. Nearly 30 volunteers turned out to lend a hand – some yelpers even played hooky from work so they could attend. We think local LA yelper Ciara G. summed it up best:

"We bagged up totes with canned goods, rolled utensil packs galore, worked the curb side drop off stations, made greeting cards, cut up maps and whatever else they told us to do. There was a great sense of community between our yelp group and the other volunteers. A great rewarding way to spend the day. We received so many thank yous but really I left feeling thankful that I was able to participate."

Indianapolis’ Jon A. decided to forego his usual Thanksgiving Day plans and instead teamed up with One Brick to host Yelpsgiving – a formal sit-down dinner for local Indy shelter residents.  More than 50 volunteers showed up the night before to prepare the meal, another 50 arrived on Thanksgiving Day to kick-off the event and nearly 100 diners arrived to enjoy a tasty meal that included everything from turkey to mashed rosemary sweet potatoes!

Farrah A. in Houston threw a Holiday Hoedown bash that included a "Warm & Wooly" coat and blanket drive. More than 700 of Houston’s finest yelpers showed up and 130 jackets and 44 blankets were collected for SEARCH Homeless Services!

Jane K. in NYC hosted a massive Snow Ball with more than 2,500 attendees! Amidst all of the merriment and, er, libations, yelpers didn’t lose sight of their charitable sides; through donations made at the coat check, $4,800 was raised for NYC Coalition Against Hunger!

Although the climate was much balmier in Honolulu, Emi H. hosted an equally cool holiday soiree: Yelp's Holiday Smash. More than 150 Yelp Elite arrived, decked in their holiday best and armed with nearly 120 toys to be donated for Toys For Tots!

What’s more, Emi also hosted a Yelp Adopt-A-Family Happy Hour, where she collected gifts, gift cards & donations for the Helping Hands Hawaii "Adopt-A-Family" program. The event was a huge success with $500 worth of gift cards, clothing & toys donated to fulfill the holiday wish lists of two needy Honolulu families who otherwise would not have had gifts or meals for the holidays.

Keep checking back for more updates on what our amazing community managers are doing to make their cities better places to live.