Designated fundraising and awareness days have become commonplace in our calendar, but as well as events such as No Smoking Day and Red Nose Day, there are plenty of lesser known but equally brilliant days. TFN has scoured the globe for a week's worth of the more unusually titled and lesser known days!
1. Sewing Machine Day (June 13 2014)
A stitch in time saves nine, or so the saying goes, but what you may not know is a few stitches can help poor people around the world. The idea is to get people threading up their machines and making clothes for those less fortunate. There are slightly different versions and dates around the world but it’s most popular in Australia where the campaign is known as Dress a Girl Around the World. Find out more about Sewing Machine Day here.
2. Wrong Trousers Day (27 June 2014)
Throw off your boring work trousers and don some unusual leg wear to raise funds for sick children across the UK. Organised by Wallace & Gromit’s Children’s Charity, 27 June is the day to donate £1 and put on some chef checks for your board meeting or wear your suit trousers to the gym. The idea is to stand out as much as possible to give you an opportunity to tell people about the charity. Find out more about Wrong Trousers Day.
3. World Toilet Day (19 November 2014)
No this is not advocating spending all day on the toilet, that would be no good to anyone. Instead World Toilet Day is a UN recognised day of action to draw attention to the fact that one in three people don’t have access to a toilet. The idea is to break the taboo and talk about toilets (maybe not at lunch though) and support campaigns to improve sanitation across the world. Rather fittingly it is even sponsored by a popular brand of bleach.
4. Wear a Hat Day (28 March 2014)
Hats off (or should that be on?) to those who have taken part in Wear a Hat Day. Similar to Wrong Trousers Day the idea is to wear a hat to get yourself noticed and raise funds and awareness for charity. The cause this time is Brain Tumour Research and it is aiming to raise £1 million for a research centre. This year’s event was held on 28 March and next year’s is already being planned.
5. International Pillow Fight Day (4 April, 2015)
Now this has to be our favourite day. Who wants to train for a marathon when you can raise funds by whacking someone with a bag full of feathers? Flash mobs of pillow fighters are organised online for this annual day, usually in March or April. Originally launched for a bit of fun, events now encourage donations for local charities. The day became widely known on 22 March 2008 when pillow flight flash mobs spread across London, New York, Sydney and Shanghai to name only a very few. The event was declared the biggest ever flash mob.
Pic: Donato Accogli
6. National Barefoot Day (1 June 2015)
This one takes a bit more courage than just swapping your trousers but is for an equally good cause. Global charity Soles4Souls aims to highlight the plight of 300 million underprivileged children who can’t afford footwear. Money raised by the charity goes to kitting them out with a shiny pair of shoes. Just remember the golden rules if you want to take part: 1. Wash your feet first. 2. Watch out for any dog’s dirt as you traipse along the street.
7. Left-Handers Day (13 August 2015)
Do you know of the dailystruggle left-handed people go through? No, neither did we. But then, that’s why this awareness day is needed. Organised by the Left-Handers Club, this year will be the 23rd annual celebration of left-handers. Visit one of 20 UK events to take part in various left versus right competitions to find out just how hard it is being a lefty.
