“The holiday season provides the perfect opportunity to honor a loved one and give a gift that has real-life implications on a family in need,” said Traci Coker, World Vision Gift Catalog national director. “As little as $16 can feed a family in the US for a day or put a smile on the face of a young child by replacing their makeshift banana leaf ball for a real soccer ball.”

The catalog offers more than 250 gifts online and in the print version ranging in price from $16 to $39,000. These gifts can be purchased in the name of a family member, teacher, co-worker or child, including many affordable items under $50. Gifts available include, but are not limited to:

• Goats ($75): One of the most popular gift items because its milk provides protein for children and the surplus can be sold. More than 20,000 goats were purchased last year.
• Feed a family in the US for a day ($16): Here in the United States, 1 in 5 children lives in poverty. Gift givers can help restore hope to families that have been struck by disaster, homelessness or job loss.
• A child’s education ($32): Supplying school fees, textbooks, paper and pencils will help a child reach their full potential.
• Beehive ($150): Beekeeping is a sustainable, year-round way to generate income and is a great source of nutritious, medicinal honey and beeswax.
• Traditional water well ($13,700): A well can provide more than 2,800 gallons of fresh water every day – enough for up to 300 people – for years to come.

The best part about these gifts is that they are self-sustainable. For example, goats given to communities in Africa are purchased inAfrica. This allows transformational community development within the most poverty-stricken villages. The gifts can also sometimes double or even triple, as shown in the box below on the right (The World Vision Difference).

World Vision has also designed a way for donors to see these self-sustainable gifts in action in real time through “The True Spirit of Christmas Tour.” For the third consecutive year, World Vision staff will be traveling across the world this December to see the impact that goats, sheep and other gifts have on families and children. Donors can follow “The True Spirit of Christmas” on Facebook at www.facebook.com/truespiritofchristmas.

Since the Gift Catalog was introduced in 1996, its popularity as a gift-giving medium has grown with more than $32 million in purchases made last year. World Vision hopes to reach $34 million this year. After purchasing a Gift Catalog item, the person whose name the gift was given in receives a special card describing the gift and its impact. Donors can also receive free handmade gifts such as ornaments from Nairobi and jewelry fromThailandwith a cash contribution to the Maximum Impact Fund.

To order from World Vision’s Gift Catalog, visit www.worldvisiongifts.org.  To order by phone or to request a print catalog, call toll-free at (888) 511-6511.

One of the gifts in the catalog is a beautiful Artisan Multi-colored Necklace: Fight human trafficking through this semi-precious stone and glass bead necklace. This unique, colorful strand can be worn long or short, as a bracelet or even a belt. You can win this necklace for your very own!!

Disclosure: I received a necklace as a thank-you for writing this post. All opinions are 100% mine.

The post Holiday Guide 2011-Gifts That Keep Giving-Beaded Necklace Giveaway appeared first on The Mom Maven.

As a first responder to the January 12 Haitian earthquake, World Vision has provided assistance to more than a million people. Since the quake, nineteen Child-Friendly Spaces have been opened and offer children a chance to be children – to play, learn and heal from emotional trauma. Thirteen health clinics in Port-au-Prince offer medical care and hope to families. Relief efforts are ongoing and support is still needed to help build a brighter future for the children of Haiti.

Gifts that will aid children and families in Haiti include:

• Ongoing support that helps rebuild lives and communities, providing safe places for children and clean water ($20 per month)
• Food and health care ($50 provides $150 worth of care)
• Long-term aid, including food, medical care, building and farming supplies ($75 provides $225 worth of aid)

“Mother’s Day is a time for celebrating life, and for giving back to others,” says World Vision Gift Catalog National Director Devin Hermanson. “There’s no better way to celebrate than to provide a gift of lifesaving supplies to a needy family, while teaching your own children about giving to others.”

The World Vision Gift Catalog, located at www.worldvisiongifts.org, offers more than 100 poverty-fighting gifts ranging in price from $16 to $39,000 that can be purchased in the name of a mother, child, friend, or loved one. In addition to specific products, World Vision has created a series of funds to support immediate and long-term needs of quake survivors in Haiti.

After purchasing a Gift Catalog item, the recipient in turn receives a special card describing the gift that was purchased and the impact it will have in the life of a person in need.

Since the World Vision Gift Catalog was first introduced in 1996, new gifts have been introduced and its popularity as a gift-giving alternative has grown substantially with more than 100,000 purchases made last year. Goats were the most popular item in 2009: over 50,000 goats were given to families in need thanks to the generous contributions of gift catalog donors.

The post Mothers Day Gifts That Keep Giving appeared first on The Mom Maven.