Give a Community Gift for the Holidays

As an adult I’ve always had a conflicted relationship with gifts. Interestingly I enjoy giving rather than receiving but not because I dislike getting attention…it’s really more of that I get a lot of presents that I have no idea what to do with. That may make me sound unappreciative but that’s not it – I am honored  that I have friends and family who want to show me their affection. But I also really dislike getting bric-brac or tchotchkes because I think that there has to be some better purpose for $10-20.

Here is my husband’s post on Give a Crap. Don’t Give Crap. Here’s How. I second the sentiment and I’ve got some additional ideas, some of which I’ve been trying to practice over the years:

• For a number of years, my mother has given an animal in our name to the Heifer Project and she gives us a small ornament or toy of the animal to put out at Christmas…we’ve got a menagerie at this point and it really makes me feel good. My husband and I took this a step further when we got married and registered at Heifer Project and Changing the Present for our wedding. We felt that changing the lives of people in real need was a much better way to celebrate our happiness than having another vase (we are older so that played a big part in our decision – we have most of the household items we need already). Somewhere there is a herd of llamas helping families in need along with Koester the Pig (named in honor of my grandmother) and some geese, rabbits, and other assorted animals.
• Another thing that I like to do if I feel the need to give a gift is to give something that is consumable. My step-mother’s brother, to honor the memory of her father who loved smoked turkey, always sent one for the holiday. It was a gift that was both very yummy but also had a powerful emotional tie. My father-in-law eats smoked salmon religiously every morning. For a man who is extremely hard to buy for, a smoked salmon of the month club was perfect. It gives him something he will definitely use and something special that he would not buy for himself. A good friend of mine and I have often exchanged tickets to events that we attend together and results in a great memory.

This year, although gas and oil prices have come down, I am considering giving the gift of warmth. Citizens Energy here in Massachusetts is a good option as is Salvation Army’s Coats for Kids program. Other things that I am considering are local Food Banks, Dress for Success, and Big Brothers Big Sisters.

I am by no means against gifts but often we seem to get gifts because we feel obligated but we don’t really know what would be appreciated. If you are fortunate, as I am, consider helping your community. It may result in fewer gifts under the tree but may make us appreciate each one a little more and focus on the things that matter more – spending time and taking care of each other. This year, we are asking our friends to make a donation to their favorite charities instead of giving us a gift…but we’ll always take baked goods!

What's your favorite way to take care of your community during the holidays?

Comments

[Francine McKenna]

Did you see my Retweet today on Planned Parenthood Indianapolis offering gift certificates for its services? Helps a lot of folks who don't have health insurance take care of critical health needs. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/11/28/planned-parenthood-offers_n_146968.html

[Rachel Happe]

Francine - I had not seen that - it's a great addition to the list!

[Rachel Happe]

If you needed a better reason to stop giving stuff that we don't need: watch http://www.storyofstuff.com

[Jo]

I agree that adults swapping trivial gifts is a little soul destroying.

Some suggestions: do something for someone and they do something for you - a task you love and they hate. Personally I am always happy to get a bottle of home made jam. Setting up Skype or Facebook for an older person so they can communicate more readily with their grandchildren?

Do a community project together. This may be a big one before 2009 is out. This year helping out in soup kitchen seems to be in. Next year having a block party so a soup kitchen is not/less needed or so people who can't travel home have somewhere to celebrate might be better.

Giving a mobile/cell phone to an older person and ringing their relatives to get all the numbers so they are up and going. Teach them to text.

Giving a 'job' to youngsters in the neighbourhood to give them some spare cash. Get the youngster to teach the older person?

Organizing a Xmas party for the relatives of people working at factories, firestations, etc. to say thankyou.

[Todd Van Hoosear]

I love the giving too. I don't mind the getting when it's family or very close friends, but sometimes you're faced with incredible generosity that you're not sure you'll be able to repay--that's a real challenge.

When I left my last job at Topaz, I gave everybody a few nicely wrapped gifts, and a card. The gifts turned out to be silly things that, for the most part, were either a) lying around my office; b) claimed specifically by that person; or c) cost me under $5.

I left them on people's chairs the evening I left for the last time--so nobody would feel any obligation to give back. While I did spend time figuring the right gift for each person, most of the time went into the wrapping and the cards.

I don't think you're alone this season in wondering if money could be better spent on more practical and meaningful things, though!

[Rachel Happe]

Jo & Todd - Great suggestions! Thanks for stopping by and sharing.

Over the weekend I also discovered a great additional resource to help find local charities called Network for Good - http://www.networkforgood.org - brought to us by the same find folks who run http://www.volunteermatch.org

Happy Giving!