The Light the World Giving Machine is back in Indiana for the 2026 holiday season. This year Indiana hosts one location, in Carmel next to the Christkindlmarkt, running from November 18, 2026 through January 3, 2027.
We created a short video and this discussion guide to kick off the Giving Machine season and show the members of your church or organization how they can support and take part. Please show the video and hold the discussion in October or early to mid-November — before the machine opens, while people can still plan a visit.
Introduction meeting agenda
- Introduce the topic — the 2026 Giving Machine 3 min
- Play the video 10 min
- Group discussion, Q&A, and call to action 20 min
- Closing remarks, share the digital assets 2 min
A note to the facilitator
Thank you for leading today's discussion. The meeting's success depends on your preparation: inform the participants, generate real discussion, and close with a clear call to action.
For most people in the room, this will be their most complete introduction to the Giving Machine all year. As in past seasons, when the meeting is done well, most of your group leaves able to explain the initiative and ready to act on it — donating tangible items to help people across the street and around the world.
Video instructions
Open and play 2026 One Drop - Giving Machine Indy. Other Giving Machine Indy videos are on youtube.com/@GivingMachineIndy.
Setting up the room
- Use a chapel or the largest available meeting room. A projector is best; the largest available TV is the fallback.
- Test the setup before the meetings that precede yours. You will want to start right after the previous meeting ends, and setup time may be short.
- Test the sound. Confirm the video's audio carries to the back of the room.
- If you cannot access Google Drive in your building, download the video ahead of time and test playback from a laptop.
After the video, lead the discussion below about the Giving Machine and how your members can support it.
General discussion: about the Giving Machine
Work through these questions, using the paragraphs that follow each one. The presentation slides are available as a companion if you want visuals.
What is the Light the World Giving Machine?
It is the most visible part of Light the World, the annual Christmas initiative of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which invites everyone to share goodness, spread kindness, and serve others through the holiday season.
The Giving Machine itself is a large, bright red vending machine filled with items and services for people in need. Instead of buying a snack for yourself, you buy an item for someone across town or around the world.
What are the goals?
Experience joy.
The first goal is for every adult, teen, and child who visits to feel joy as they choose an item and donate it to someone in need. In that instant act of service, they connect with a person they will never meet but who will be lifted by the gift.
Support charities.
The second goal is to support the five Indiana and two global nonprofit organizations featured in the machine this year. These organizations serve thousands of people every day, and the Church is honored to partner with them, and with the venue, to create a convenient and memorable way to serve.
This is not a traditional fundraiser. It is a donation experience.
How does it work?
The machine holds cards representing specific items that local and global nonprofits need — food, hygiene kits, medical care, bedding, clean water, livestock, and more. You pay at the machine by card or mobile payment. A card representing your item drops into the display bin, and you receive a digital receipt.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints covers all operational costs, so participating nonprofits receive 100% of every donation to purchase and deliver your selected item. Participating nonprofits may use up to 10% of your donation for administrative costs. If an item substitution becomes necessary to meet unexpected needs, the nonprofit replaces it with another item or service in the same category. An itemized list of purchases goes to each nonprofit for fulfillment.
The 30 items in the 2026 Indiana Giving Machine range from $5 to $200, with options for many budgets. Individual prices appear in the charity lists below.
What Indiana has already done
Across three seasons, Indiana donors have delivered more than 83,400 food items to local charities, 6,700 chickens and goats to families worldwide, 6,100 education and children's support items, and 2,500 hygiene and wellness kits.
The Carmel Christkindlmarkt location, new in 2025, accounted for 62% of all 2025 transactions. Volunteers reported that roughly nine out of ten visitors there were experiencing a Giving Machine for the first time. Use this 2025 observation to encourage invitations to family, friends, and neighbors.
Worldwide during the 2025 season, nearly one million people visited Giving Machines in 126 cities across 21 countries on six continents, purchasing about 4.8 million items.
Where and when to find the Giving Machine
Carmel — Carmel City Center and Carter Green, next to the Christkindlmarkt.
November 18, 2026 through January 3, 2027. Open 24 hours a day, every day of that window.
| Date | What happens |
|---|---|
| Nov. 18 | The machine opens, three days ahead of the Christkindlmarkt. |
| To be announced | Committee kickoff event. Date and time to be announced. |
| Nov. 21 | Public grand opening, the same day the Christkindlmarkt opens to the public. |
| Jan. 3 | Final day. The machine stays up after the market closes. |
This is a change from last year. In 2025 Indiana had three locations — Carmel Christkindlmarkt, Carmel Clay Terrace, and Bloomington. In 2026 there is one Indiana location. If someone in your group plans to go, Carmel is the trip.
Tell people about the quiet days. The machine remains open when the Christkindlmarkt is closed, and free parking is available in nearby garages. Check the official market calendar before announcing closed days; holiday exceptions apply.
Giving Machines operate in select cities worldwide. The full list is at GivingMachine.org.
Events, entertainment, and how we are building awareness
A calendar of events, promotions, and live entertainment runs through the season to draw shoppers in and make the visit memorable. Earned media, radio, paid advertising, and a daily social media presence back it up.
Your members can be part of the entertainment. We have an open invitation for vocalists, instrumentalists, actors, character performers, balloon artists, and others to volunteer as performers at the machine. A new performer signup form is not yet available; contact the committee to express interest.
Questions to pose to the group
- Has anyone here been to a Giving Machine? What was it like for you?
- How about teens and children — what did you think of it?
- How can we, as individuals and families, support this?
- What can we do as an organization to provide performers and entertainment?
- Have you talked about the Giving Machine with friends? How did that go?
What's in the 2026 Indiana Giving Machine
Five local charities and two global charities. The lineup is new this year, so do not reuse last season's list.
Local charities
Christamore House
A settlement house that has served families on the near west side of Indianapolis for more than a century, with youth programs, family support, and basic-needs assistance. The Giving Machine connects two Indianapolis communities that rarely meet.
Items in the machineBaby wipes ($7) · Infant formula ($50) · Car seat ($60) · IndyGo bus pass ($28) · Incontinence support ($20)
Hamilton County Harvest Food Bank
Supplies food pantries and meal programs throughout Hamilton County — addressing hunger in one of Indiana's wealthiest counties. These are neighbors, and that is how the story should be told.
Items in the machine12 dozen eggs ($10) · Pantry staples ($15) · Produce box ($20) · School break meals ($40) · At-home meals ($75)
The Julian Center
Serves survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, and abuse in central Indiana with emergency shelter, counseling, and a 24-hour crisis line.
Items in the machineOral hygiene kits ($5) · Emergency shelter toys ($15) · Diapers ($30) · Bedding and linens ($50) · Crisis support ($200)
Trinity Free Clinic
Based in Carmel — the same town as the machine — providing free medical, dental, and vision care to uninsured and underinsured neighbors in Hamilton County.
Items in the machineAntibiotics ($10) · Dental crown ($25) · Ten cavity fillings ($50) · Prescription eyeglasses ($60) · Heart care ($80)
Wish for Our Heroes
Provides practical, everyday help to active-duty military families — the kind of assistance that closes a gap in a hard month.
Items in the machineDay of meals ($10) · Winter gear ($15) · Gasoline ($50) · Relocation assistance ($75) · Home heating ($100)
Global charities
Water for Good
Builds and maintains clean water access in the Central African Republic, drilling and repairing wells and training local technicians so the water keeps flowing after the project ends.
Items in the machineWater pump repair ($9) · Village water treatment ($45) · Family hygiene training ($75)
Mentors International
Combines small loans, mentoring, and business training to help families in developing countries build a sustainable income and leave poverty behind.
Items in the machineCooking business kit ($40) · Two chickens ($20)
Call to action: three things you can do
- Visit the machine and donate. If you live nearby, go more than once. If you are farther out, organize a group trip. Choose the items you want someone in need to receive, and give.
- Share it inside your own circles. Invite family, friends, neighbors, and coworkers to learn about the machine and visit it in person. Remember: at the 2025 Christkindlmarkt location, volunteers reported that roughly nine in ten visitors were experiencing a Giving Machine for the first time. The invitation is the whole job.
- Share it on social media. Post about your visit using #GivingMachineIndy, and follow and share the Giving Machine Indiana pages from your personal accounts.
Follow and share:
instagram.com/givingmachineindy
facebook.com/givingmachineindy
youtube.com/@GivingMachineIndy
VERIFY The 2026 signage uses #GivingMachineIndy; the 2025 guide used #GivingMachineIndiana. Confirm which hashtag the committee wants people saying out loud this year, and use only that one.
Materials to hand out at your meeting
Digital assets
The 2026 resource link is intended to collect the Giving Machine social pages, shareable assets such as logos and illustrations, and explainer videos. Once the link and QR code are confirmed, attendees can open the link or scan the QR code with a phone camera. A new performer signup form is not yet available.
2026 resource short link and QR code: pending. Use only the confirmed individual links in this guide until the committee supplies the current resource link and QR code. Do not distribute the obsolete 2025 link.
Pass-along cards
Printed pass-along cards are not being supplied for this rollout. Share the dates, location, and social pages digitally using the confirmed resources.
Frequently asked questions
What are the payment options?
Debit and credit cards only — Visa, Mastercard, Discover, and American Express — by tap or swipe, plus mobile payments such as Apple Pay and Google Pay. The machine does not take cash.
What happens after I donate?
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints covers all operational costs, so participating nonprofits receive 100% of every donation to purchase and deliver the item you selected. Nonprofits may use up to 10% of a donation for administrative costs.
If an item substitution becomes necessary to meet an unexpected need, the nonprofit replaces your item with another in the same category.
How are operational costs covered?
The Church underwrites every operating expense for the initiative, which is what makes the 100% claim true. Donors may choose to cover credit card fees; if they do not, the Church covers those too.
Does the Church receive any financial benefit?
No. The Church pays all program and operational costs and receives no financial benefit. The Giving Machine is also not a proselyting effort.
Can I donate online instead?
The point of the initiative is the in-person experience — choosing an item and giving it in the moment. If visiting the machine is not possible, you can donate directly to the participating global causes at GivingMachine.org. Online giving to the Indiana charities is not available through the initiative, and online donations do not count toward Giving Machine totals.
Which items or charities need donations most?
Every charity in the machine represents a pressing need. Spend a few minutes reading about their work before you visit. One of them will resonate with you, and your gift will change a life.
Why only one location this year?
In 2026 Indiana concentrates on the venue that proved most effective. The Carmel Christkindlmarkt location accounted for 62% of all 2025 transactions. One Indiana location, at that venue, from November 18 through January 3.
Are you asking for volunteers to take shifts?
We recruit and train people to answer questions and support visitors during the busiest hours, so there is no blanket call for volunteers. If someone wants to serve several shifts and has not been contacted, take their name and contact information and pass it to the Giving Machine volunteer coordinator.
How else can I get involved?
Sharing your light goes well beyond a donation at the machine. For more on the broader initiative, visit LightTheWorld.org. For more on the Giving Machine, visit GivingMachine.org.
Who to contact
| Topic | Who |
|---|---|
| Overall committee, approvals | Bob and Rhonda Petersen, co-chairs |
| Charity partners | Susie Massela, charity partners coordinator |
| Public contact, media and publicity | John Gough — johnhillgough@gmail.com |
| Social media | John Gough — johnhillgough@gmail.com |