Searches, Cards and Gifts that Give Back BIG

Me Mondays:

My “Me Monday” is all about checking off my holiday to-do list and perhaps thinking a little bigger – giving. Christmas is all about giving. So this Christmas consider not just giving a gift, but making a bigger impact with the gifts that you give. Here’s a great list of how you can make a difference by just buying a gift, creating your holiday cards or just searching for gifts online.

GIFTS

World Vision Gift Catalog | http://www.worldvisiongifts.org

The WorldVision Gift Catalog allows you to celebrate the true spirit of Christmas. With the tagline, “Give a gift. Change a Life,” 86% of ever gift goes to programs helping children and families overcome poverty in nearly 100 countries. As easy as thumbing through your Pottery Barn catalog, you can choose to make a specific donation for a specific cause like hunger, clean water, and medical attention for someone in need – like purchasing two goats and a cow to help a family be more self-sufficient to buying toys for children in a village.

Also, for those looking for something to give in honor of your donation, you can make a financial contribution, by selecting one of 36 Maximum Impact items that can be given to a loved one and at the same time help a person in need. And the items are as unique as the donations like an Artisan Beaded Necklace, a homemade, glass-bead necklace from Thailand. However, the work of WorldVision and their need doesn’t end at Christmas, so visit their Facebook to learn more about this prolific Christian humanitarian organization dedicated to working with children, families, and their communities worldwide to reach their full potential.

Impact Foods | http://www.impactfoods.com

Inspired by the growing movement of Conscious Capitalism (think Tom’s Shoes), Ben Hurt and Blaine Iler endeavored to create a business that could change the world. So Dallas-based Impact Foods was born with a simple, but prolific concept: for every bag they sell, a hungry child is fed.

While making it that easy to make an “impact” on someone else’s life is enough to eat another bowl of cereal, Impact Foods, an official partner of the World Food Program, they’ve upped the ante this December by feeding two children for every bag sold. With all-natural ingredients, whole grains, no fructose syrup and flavors like vanilla, maple oat and blueberry honey, when you pour it in a bowl, it’s just like it came out of the oven. So this year, if you’re a little short of time and creativity, consider a little Impact Foods in a pretty jar or bag with a spoon and a nice bowl for a neighbor, fitness friend or the gals at work. They’ll be happy and you’ll done your good deed that might score you a few more points on Santa’s list. Get your bags of Impact Foods at Amazon, Whole Foods as well as many places in DFW.

Fresh Cup of Hope | http://www.freshcupofhope.com

Coffee baskets are one of the most purchased (and enjoyed) holiday gifts. Consider this holiday not only to give your obligatory coffee basket, but also to “make a difference, one cup at a time.” Because The Fresh Cup of Hope Cofee Co. works directly with the farmers and the principles of Fair Trade, they are ensuring that the farm they work with is self-sustaining and the lives of the workers are being improved with housing, better nutrition and overall health, tutors for the children and pastors who work directly with them. It’s amazing that something as simple as your choice in coffee can make a large, measurable difference in the lives of others, so consider pairing a bag of Jamaican Me Crazy, Cinnamon Pecan Brownie or Snickerdoodle with a $1 coffee cup from the Dollar Tree for a small gift that does big things.

HOLIDAY CARDS

Cardraising Greeting Card Fundraising | http://www.cardraising.com

Every year my mantle is full of Christmas cards from family and friends. Consider that each one of those cards sent could have also gone to help other organizations like your local school, church or even your child’s sporting team. That’s exactly what Cardraising does. Last year best friends Derek Sparta and Emil Jorge decided to create a sustainable business that could afford to give back 30% of its revenues to help others, so they developed Cardraising to help other organizations prosper when you create your holiday cards, birth or graduation announcements. While it’s still a growing business and 2012 is out for your organization to apply for the opportunity to participate, you can still pick out a lovely holiday card design that can benefit your preferred organization like Dallas-based Communities Foundation of Texas, one of the nation’s largest community foundations, in terms of total assets, gifts received and grants awarded.

ONLINE SEARCH

Save1 | http://save1.com

Save1 makes it even easier to make a difference, just by searching online for deals and discounts. Each time you use one of our coupons or special deals to save money, they use a portion of their commission to provide a nutritious meal for a hungry child. With 90,713 already purchased, they save you money and then they buy food for others (by doing what you are doing online to buy your gifts, anyways!) So consider using http://www.save1.com for your holiday shopping this year and while you are at it, you can buy a meal for someone else.

See what good you can do by just doing what you are already going to do this holiday.

DISCLAIMER:

I received one or more of the mentioned products for the sole purpose of this review. No other compensating was given and all opinions expressed are 100 percent my own. (Accordance with FTC’s 16 CFR Part 255, “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”)