The holiday season is here and this year the American Red Cross is urging people to give something that means something by donating to the Red Cross and helping those in need.

The Red Cross has launched a holiday fund-raising campaign, asking everyone to go online to make a donation in the name of the people on their gift list this year. The donation can help provide food and shelter to a victim of disaster, help purchase things like phone cards and supplies for a member of the armed forces, or help supply basic necessities to families in desperate need in countries across the world.

Everyone is invited to browse through the Red Cross Holiday Giving Catalog and view symbolic gifts they can “purchase” for, or in honor of, a loved one – things like infant care kits for babies in emergency shelters, comfort kits for wounded warriors, or water containers used when natural disasters disrupt a community’s water supply overseas.

In the last year, the Capital Region Chapter of the Red Cross — which Lake Tahoe is part of — responded to more than 400 local disasters, educated more than 50,000 residents in lifesaving skills like first aid and CPR, and helped relay 800 emergency messages for local military families.