Donors have raised more than $100,000 for an incarcerated man in the US who, earning 13 cents an hour in a California prison doing janitorial and porter work, donated his paycheck of $17.74 to Gaza relief efforts.

Last month, Los Angeles-based filmmaker Justin Mashouf who has been in correspondence with the 56-year old man – known only by the name Hamza – shared photos on social media of Hamza’s October time log and a check of $17.74 with the words, “California department of corrections and rehabilitation.”

The holidays are an exciting time for parties, sweet treats, shiny decor and family gatherings. Of course, this season is also the busiest time of year for shopping.

“While this time of year is often associated with joy and celebration, it can also bring about financial stress and anxiety,” said Kara Stevens, author of “Heal Your Relationship with Money” and founder of the Frugal Feminista. “Maintaining financial boundaries during the holiday season is crucial for several reasons.”

Giving Tuesday — the first Tuesday after Thanksgiving and the internationally recognized day to contribute to charity — is upon us.

Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving, has always been the kickoff event of the holiday shopping season and one of the biggest shopping days of the year. Marketing experts recognized how popular it was and followed it up with Cyber Monday, a second day of mega-sales focused on online shopping, and then Small Business Saturday — making the period after Thanksgiving famous for its blitz of deals.

Needs rose last year. But so did giving to evangelical ministries.

The annual State of Giving report from the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability (ECFA) found giving to ministries increased more in 2021 than it had any year out of the last 10. Inflation and the pandemic both raised real concerns for ministry leaders trying to make ends meet, but evangelicals responded to the crises with generosity.

More than 80 countries from around the world are expected to join this year's Giving Tuesday, when acts of "radical generosity" are encouraged.

The growing global phenomenon takes place each year on the first Tuesday after US Thanksgiving.

GivingTuesday, the non-profit that created the movement in 2012, says every act of generosity counts.

It tracked a record $2.7bn (£2.2bn) donated by 35 million people on Giving Tuesday in the US last year.

Giving to charity is great, not just for the recipients but for the givers, too.

But it can be intimidating to know how to pick the best charity when there are thousands of worthy causes to choose from, and especially when the world is recovering from a massive pandemic and economic shocks that are still causing suffering around the globe.

Rev. Al Sharpton’s charity nearly doubled his compensation and also shelled out close to $300,000 for private jets so that he and other bigwigs could attend “important gatherings.”

The National Action Network paid Sharpton $348,174 in 2021 as its president and CEO and gave him a hefty bonus of $278,503 — plus $22,117 worth of benefits for total compensation of $648,794, its latest tax filing shows.

The preacher’s 2020 compensation came to $347,183, which did not include a bonus.

NAN also forked over nearly $1 million on private jets and limos.

The Biden administration on Wednesday hosted the a conference on hunger, nutrition and health, the first such conference the White House has hosted in more than 50 years.

Speaking at the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center, President Biden called for the U.S. to build on the measures passed under his administration meant to improve financial security for families, such as the expanded child tax credit and the Inflation Reduction Act.

More than $8bn has been pledged by private corporations and non-profit groups to help Joe Biden achieve his goal to end hunger and cut diet-related diseases, White House officials announced on Wednesday.

Donors include food industry lobby groups, pharmaceutical companies, the world’s second largest meat packing company, medical associations, a film studio, as well as philanthropic foundations and universities.

The Biden administration is working to end hunger and “diet-related diseases” by hiring more minority nutritionists, according to a White House plan released Monday.