A nonprofit can plan one or two feature stories a year around moments when readers think about giving or helping, such as GivingTuesday or an awareness month. Choose a practical angle, tell people's stories only with their permission, describe what a gift does in plain words and submit the story well ahead of the date.
Want to know whether your story would run? Todd Simon, National PR Director, will tell you on a strategy call.
Book a call with ToddGiving and volunteering follow the calendar. People look for ways to help at New Year, in the fall and around the holidays, and many causes have a month of their own. A story that arrives at that moment gives readers a way in, and it tells them what your organization does without a hard sell.
2027 dates and story angles
| Moment | When in 2027 | Story angle | Approve the story by |
|---|---|---|---|
| New Year | January 1 (Friday) | A story about setting a simple goal to give time or skills this year, with practical ways to find a local group that needs help. | December 2, 2026 |
| Earth Day | April 22 (Thursday) | A story on a local clean-up, garden or repair project, and how a reader can join with their family on a free afternoon. | March 23, 2027 |
| Mental Health Awareness Month | May (all month) | A story on how to listen to a friend who is struggling and where to find local support, told in plain words and with care. | April 1, 2027 |
| Back to school | August (most of the month, varying by district) | A story for families on supporting students at the start of the year, with ways to volunteer or share supplies where needed. | 30 days before the confirmed date |
| National Hispanic American Heritage Month | September 15 to October 15 | A story that honors local community voices and traditions, told with the permission and review of the people involved. | August 16, 2027 |
| Breast Cancer Awareness Month | October (all month) | A story on how to support someone in treatment with practical, kind gestures, and what a local group can help with. | September 1, 2027 |
| Veterans Day | November 11 (Thursday, a federal holiday) | A story on practical ways to support local veterans and their families, written with respect and with their consent. | October 12, 2027 |
| Thanksgiving | November 25 (fourth Thursday of November, a federal holiday) | A story on sharing a meal, from hosting someone who would be alone to helping a local food program in a useful way. | October 26, 2027 |
| GivingTuesday | November 30 (the Tuesday after Thanksgiving) | A story explaining in plain words what a gift to your cause does, who it helps and how readers can take part. | October 31, 2027 |
| Holiday season | December (all month) | A story on meaningful, low-effort ways to help neighbors through the holidays, from volunteering a few hours to donating items. | November 1, 2027 |
Pick one or two moments
You do not need every date. Choose one or two that fit your mission and your people, and plan them early. A story that teaches something, such as how to help a neighbor or what to ask a volunteer coordinator, will be remembered longer than a plain appeal.
Sample headlines
- Simple ways to help a neighbor this holiday season
- What a gift to a local food program does, in plain words
- How to listen when a friend is struggling
What to keep out
- Stories told without permission. Tell a person's story only with their agreement, and let them read what you plan to publish. Leave out details they would not choose to share.
- Figures you cannot source. Do not state how many people you serve or what a gift will pay for unless you can prove it. Describe the work in plain words instead.
- Pressure and guilt. A story that shames readers into giving rarely builds trust. Offer a way to help and let them decide.
- Promises about results. Say what your team does, not what a gift will guarantee. Honest, careful wording protects your name.
- Speaking for a community. Invite voices from the people you serve and let them describe their own experience.
Turn an angle into a story
Lay it out with the feature story template, see the shape in the feature story examples, and check the draft with the feature story checker. For other industries and months, the story angle finder suggests dated angles.
Want it written for you? NewsUSA has a journalist write the story, you approve every word, and it runs on 2,000+ US news sites within 30 days. Book a strategy call with Todd Simon.
Questions
When should a nonprofit start a giving-day story?
Start well before the date. Choose the angle, collect any permissions you need and agree the wording. Then submit the story for approval early, because an approved NewsUSA story runs on 2,000+ US news sites within 30 days, and you want it live before readers decide where to give or volunteer.
Can we tell a beneficiary's story?
Only with the person's permission, and only after they have seen what will be published. Leave out details they would not choose to share. Many good stories need no individual at all, since a staff member explaining what a day of the work looks like can be just as moving.
How should we describe what a donation does?
Use plain words about the work, such as what a gift helps your team provide, and leave out figures you cannot source. Do not promise a result. A clear, honest description builds more trust than a number readers cannot check, and it is easier to get approved.
How this page was made
Dates from NewsUSA's 2027 feature story calendar, which links each observance to its organizer. Angles and advice written by NewsUSA. NewsUSA figures (2,000+ US news sites within 30 days, live-only billing, the 2,637-site September 2026 campaign) come from NewsUSA and its campaign reports, which Todd Simon can show you on the call. How these guides are made.