#4: Top Ten Gifts That Give

Al Fadel's mother can't sleep at night. Even though she's now safely in the U.S., she stays up, wondering if the Janjaweed will find her family...again. You can still see the burn marks on her son's head from the attack on his Darfur village. But perhaps his family's biggest scar left no physical trace at all -- the fear that the violence will return. But Al Fadel has hope. Because of thousands of courageous supporters of Save Darfur.

As the conflict in Darfur enters its sixth year, conditions continue to deteriorate for civilians. Hundreds of thousands of people have been killed, even by the most conservative estimates. The United Nations puts the death toll at roughly 300,000, while the former U.N. undersecretary-general puts the number at no less than 400,000.(1) Up to 2.5 million Darfuris have fled their homes and continue to live in camps throughout Darfur, or in nearby refugee camps. Click here for a longer brief of the desperate situation.

Show your support by picking up a shirt for a loved one in the Save Darfur store. They're as cheap as $10!

Don't need another shirt to give someone this Christmas? There are plenty of other ways to get involved. Like contacting your local government, advocating on your social spaces, sending postcards, lobbying Congress, etc, etc. And, stay informed. Sign up for their newsletter.

#5: Top Ten Gifts That Give

International Justice Mission

Say it out loud to yourself...go on...

International Justice Mission

It just sounds good doesn't it. Sounds right.

IJM is a human rights agency that secures justice for victims of slavery, sexual exploitation and other forms of violent oppression. If you aren't familiar with the statistics of this problem. They're sick. They're staggering. They're hell on earth.

• The total market value of illicit human trafficking is estimated to be in excess of $32 billion (U.N.)


• Each year, more than 2 million children are exploited in the global commercial sex trade (UNICEF)


• 27 million men, women and children are held as slaves. (Kevin Bales, Disposable People)


• 1 in 5 women is a victim of rape or attempted rape in her lifetime. (U. N. Development Fund for Women)


• More than 1 million children live in detention, the vast majority awaiting trial for minor offenses. (UNICEF)

Check out this clip from Dateline NBC in 2003...



IJM investigators, lawyers and social workers intervene in individual cases of abuse in partnership with state and local authorities.

By pushing individual cases of abuse through the justice system from the investigative stage to the prosecutorial stage, IJM determines the specific source of corruption, lack of resources, or lack of good will in the system denying victims the protection of their legal systems. In collaboration with local authorities, IJM addresses these specific points of brokenness to meet the urgent needs of victims of injustice.

So, what role can you play in IJM this Christmas season?

Let's visit their gift catalog, shall we...the gifts focus on investigation expenses, advocacy and aftercare. We would like to highlight a half day of investigative work. What will that run you? Only $25. And, the recipient of your gift will receive a “Gift of Freedom” card explaining their gift and the work of IJM.

Oh, and another beautiful thing...rest assured that 75% of your financial gifts to IJM go directly to the need while the rest are used to run the ship, so to speak. Here is their Charity Navigator write up.

#6: Top Ten Gifts That Give

Black Friday review time! (Don't they call it "Black" because it's when all companies finally go in the black in their accounting records?)

Number six on the list is likely going to be our favorite. Because it's one that is so close to our hearts. A new store over at Skreened called Fashionthropic has new Well Water Project T shirts. There are four designs to choose from. Our favorite is this long sleeve tee. Don't like the designs Fashionthropic has available? No problem! You can customize your own at Skreened.

Every single cent of proceeds from the sale of each shirt goes to fund the Well Water Project. A vision cast by folks from The Well in song with Horizon International to get clean water to AIDS orphans in Zimbabwe, Africa. Learn more about the project via this handy little digital brochure.

Another very cool plus with these shirts is that they're made sweatshop free on American Apparrel digs, inked with water-based inks AND Skreened as a company gives away 10% of it's monthly profits to local causes they believe in. Sweet! More on Skreened ethics here.

If ever there was a time for a gift like this, it's Black Friday. You don't even have to wait in any lines or fight traffic. Just click on over.

#7: Top Ten Gifts That Give

Now, this is so simple, it's genious. The GiveNow Card. A gift card to give the gift of giving. Brilliant!

JustGive is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to increase charitable giving by connecting people with the charities and causes they care most about.

JustGive's database contains nearly 1.5 million charities. How does one sift through all of that content? The charities are grouped into 19 categories to make your search easier and faster.

Their core values...

• Passion. We have an unwavering commitment to charitable giving. As a charitable organization ourselves, we understand the nonprofit world and how charity can improve life both for you and for the charities you support.
• Integrity. We have one of the highest-pass through rates in the charitable giving arena and are dedicated to keeping the cost of every transaction as low as possible. Ninety-seven cents of every dollar you contribute goes straight to the charities you designate.
• Relationships. A continually growing group of partners and sponsors believe in and use JustGive to support their charitable giving programs and to receive their charitable donations. Creative and responsive to both donors and partners, JustGive has been named as one of the Best of the Web for online donations.

You can even determine the financial increment of your gift card. The do cards for as low as $10. JustGive only skims $5 per card to cover admin fees. The rest goes straight to your recipient's chosen cause.

#8: Top Ten Gifts That Give

Since #9 was a bit on the expensive side, let's drop it down low for this one. Like $12 low. Even you college folk can ride that train.

Who likes mosquitos?

Exactly. Nobody. They aren't too much of an issue for us Americans in that we can lock them out of our homes. Well, what if you have no house? No windows. And, no bed for that matter.

In the poorest parts of the world, where effective window screens are lacking, insecticide-treated bed nets are arguably the most cost-effective way to prevent malaria transmission. One bed net can safely last a family for about four years, thanks to a long-lasting insecticide woven into the net fabric. Studies show that use of nets can reduce malaria transmission as much as 90% in areas with high coverage rates. (NothingButNets.net)

Might you remember the good folks over at Horizon International. We've talked about them before and they've been over in our Make A Difference dropdown for a while. Our brother/sis-in-law ("Uncle O" & "Aunt Eesha" as LA calls them) just did a trip with them in August.

Since 2002, the work of Horizon has impacted thousands of AIDS/HIV orphans. From clean water to children’s villages to educational opportunities, projects in Zimbabwe, Uganda and South Africa provide tangible, long-lasting help to people in need while showing them Love in practical ways.

That practical love continues through Horizon's Christmas catalog featuring our highlighted mosquito net and several other gift ideas. Check it out here.

#9: Top Ten Gifts That Give

Now, here is a gift with some heart and sole!

What if buying a pair of shoes could change a village? Provide health care? Educate a community? Protect against terrorism? Save a child’s life?

Introducing Preemptive Love's Buy Shoes. Save Lives. project. First they invest tens of thousands of dollars into Iraqi mountain villages in the purchase of these hand-dyed, hand-spun, and hand-knit Klash shoes by Kurdish families @ 40 hours/pair.



Watch this amazing video on how they're made...



Then they invest all the profits into heart surgeries for poor Arab and Kurdish kids that are dying from lack of government interest in their well-being. Outstanding!!

Their blog is moving. The joys and pains shared there are incredible. These aren't statistics. They're little boys and little girls. Like yours. Like ours. With names. Needs. Smiles. Fears. And, broken hearts that need mending.

from Monday, October 30th entry on Shanaw and Kale...
"...On Monday both girls had their final echocardiogram, revealing beautifully strong beating hearts. Shanaw and Kale have been fully released from the doctor’s care and are now on their way back to homes and families in Iraq with new hearts. Besides the presence of scars on their chests, you’d never know that these energetic, expressive girls were once dying from heart problems. How incredible that we get to be part of saving these kids lives!..."

At $100 a piece, the shoes aren't cheap. And, the style might not be for everyone. But, the energies behind the scenes are of the most admirable in the footwear business.

Here is a nice little interview from Relevant Magaizine with the founders of Buy Shoes. Save Lives.

#10: Top Ten Gifts That Give

The first of our Gifts that Give this year is one of our favorites. It's extremely practical. It's done via a fantastic organization in Oxfam. And, while very serious, it's just very funny to us.

A goat!

You can gift the gift of a goat for only $50 through Oxfam's Unwrapped gift-giving program!

Check out this video...



If the video player is too large for your screen, just click on this link to view it: http://blip.tv/file/1443221/

"No kid-ding here—this gift is an invaluable resource for rural communities. A hardy goat is the gift of sustainability, which means fertilizer and food for families—especially those living in areas that cannot support less durable critters."

(re) introducing the Top Ten Gifts That Give

We're gonna try this again. A valiant effort was put into it this time last year, but we didn't have time to pull it off. What's "this" you ask?

There are only two potential histories behind the reason for the season. One is the birth of Jesus Christ. One is the life and legacy of Saint Nicholas. Both of which relentlessly gave to those less fortunate. One of those guys even died for the cause.

Research tells us that if we make over $48k household income a year, that we're in the richest 1% of people in the world! Those things considered, doesn't Christmas come with a responsibility to give to those less fortunate? Which we have determined is not us. "Us" meaning that if you're reading this, you have a computer and therefore are rich...or at least employed by the rich.

We don't claim to be staking new ground with this topic. And, this is no War on Christmas, either. We're just feeling a bit more personally accountable to respond to the Christmas consumption mindset our culture is promoting. Thankfully, others have gone before us in the effort. In the days to come, we'll outline our Top Ten Gifts That Give. So, here's to saving one less gift receipt, wearing that sweater Aunt Pollie gave you (but, only when she's in town) one less time, and keeping one less paisley tie in the closet for the next white elephant gift exchange.

...stick with us as we work to gift the gift of giving this Christmas season.