I’m thinking about Christmas gifts for my children already. Are you? I’m pretty sure I’m going to go to Costco and get Ollie a bunch of free cardboard boxes for Christmas. They keep his attention longer than any other toy we have in our house.
I have a lofty goal of getting my shopping done by Thanksgiving this year. Which is crazy since I will be travelling for eight of the next sixteen days. Still, my intentions are good.
Last night we had a Family Home Evening where we talked with our kids about true service. I think November is a perfect time to remind them that the greatest joys come not from receiving, but from giving to others.
Last year for Christmas we began a new tradition of finding a way to make a charitable difference in a complete stranger’s life. After some research, our family chose to donate to Charity: Water . Our children were unaware that many children don’t have clean drinking water in underdeveloped countries.
This year our children are excited to choose individual gifts to give schools in underdeveloped countries through the WorldVision progam. Hannie is leaning towards art and music supplies for a school, Big C wants to give soccer balls and RedDog was moved by the idea of mosquito netting so that children don’t get malaria.
What about you? Do you have a charity of choice? Are you teaching your kids to make a difference?
5 comments:
We donate regularly to Operation Pinecone (www.operationpinecone.org) which sends care packages to the military year-round. Every Christmas season, we try to attend one of their "packing parties" so the kids can help in a hands-on way. My kids also love to put money in the Salvation Army bucket, of course!
I like Heifer International, they have many gifts that you can give for under $100.00. For just $20.00 you can give a flock of chicks, geese or ducks, that is a small donation which can make a HUGE difference in someone else's life.
http://www.heifer.org/site/c.edJRKQNiFiG/b.204586/
I carry around extra bills to give to Salvation Army bell ringers; I will never forget how generous they were to Phil and Lori when they lost their home in a Tornada.
I also donate regularly to the LDS Humanitarian fund which you can do as a gift or as a memoral for someone else.
https://secure3.convio.net/ldsp/site/Donation2?df_id=1861&1861.donation=form1&s_src=14703
You can also donate to LDS Charities at: http://lds.org/haiti-relief/relief/homepage.htm
Our church has an Alternative Christmas Bazaar where you can donate to various charities to honor someone in your life. The charities are widely varied: local health clinic for the poor, the APL, the USO, the local AIDs task force, Heifer International, and more. My kids did all the shopping there last year.
My two favorites are LDS Humanitarian aid and Heifer International. I love that there is no real overhead in LDS humanitarian aid so all of the donations go to bless others. I love that Heifer International provides livestock to give people a way to sustain themselves AND encourages them to bless the lives of others with the offspring.
PS- About thrifting... I love it. and I look forward to when I have time to do it again. My favorite: Goodwill in Frederick. I go there like once a year and come away with tons of treasure. Kids clothes, with original tags, etc.
If I have cash I will give it to any and every homeless person I see. Who am I to judge who really needs it and who doesn't? I have done this many times in front of my kiddos. I hope that eventually they will also show compassion to their fellow man.
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