Thanksgiving is a great opportunity to give back to those less fortunate. Americans donate astonishing amounts to charity: total donations to charitable organizations was $410.02 billion in 2017 (2.1% of GDP)
In the spirit of Thanksgiving, GivingTuesday was created in 2012. Giving Tuesday refers to the Tuesday after Thanksgiving, which is recognized nationally as a day dedicated to doing good
11% of Americans say that volunteering is their favorite Thanksgiving tradition over food, football, and shopping
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Data about American Thanksgiving Volunteer Trends:
Economy: COVID has severely affected the economy in 2020. However, Thanksgiving weekend will provide a much-needed boost to economic activity through increased travel, food, and shopping
Entertainment: The Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade traditionally has around 50 million viewers, and the National Football League hosts 3 games on Thanksgiving with average audiences ranging from 60-90 million
Family: 88% of people say family is what they are most thankful for. With Covid-19 restrictions increasing, families may choose to celebrate with their immediate families only
Food: Americans consume a whopping 1.2 trillion calories on the holiday
Household Expenditure: Roughly 46 million turkeys are sold every year for the holiday and total turkey sales could reach $552+ million. The average cost of a 10-person Thanksgiving dinner comes out to about $48.90 per person and total Thanksgiving sales will surpass $1 billion this year based on our estimates
Wine: 63% of adults are planning to open a bottle of wine, with beer and spirits trailing at 19% and 10%, respectively
Shopping: The average person's spend during Thanksgiving weekend is $313. The majority of spending this year will take place on computers or smart phones due to Covid-19 and store closures