A Charity Christmas?

[Rhubarb]

Sorry, but following on from my discovery of the Oxfam Christmas shopping site, I wondered if there were similar sites out there where you can buy unusual gifts that help good causes.

We're a bit strapped for cash this Christmas and can't carry a suitcase load of presents over to England, so a donation towards something useful would be really good. I just thought this thread could provide links to sites like this for those struggling to buy presents or just want to get something different, and make a difference at the same time!

Traidcraft Shop

I forgot this from a thread the other day! You can send a cow to Africa.

Bump

found another one! They do gifts for life.

Thank rubarb, have book marked them. Im going to do a charitable christmas gift for adults this year.

Am looking for a sponser a child scheme or something.

Will see what I can do, it's a good idea!

Or kids for kids

Or send a cow (who also do other things as well as cows!)

Or farmfriends , Great Gifts (World Vision) , Harvest Help , Tree Aid , or Goodgifts

Can i just say how brilliant Good Gifts are. Last year I was very pressed at work and also getting increasingly cynical about the whole material aspect of Christmas - the stress of buying presents no one wants, the sheer watefulness of it all. I came across the Good Gifts site and in about 30 minutes ordered up presents for my entire family. They are absolutely inspired - my DB, (who loves a bit of armchair football) sponsored afternoon teas and oranges for an under privileged team for half a season; my SILs both sponsored a hairdo for an elderly person. After my parents married years ago one of my grandfathers arranged for the other to have an allotment at the same place and I have very fond memories as a child of running from one allotment to another picking peas in the pod and strawberries: for my parents I arranged for them to sponsor the setting up of an allotment for a refugee family. In the summer DH and I had had a really lovely beach holiday with the children and for him I paid for an under-privileged child to go to the sea-side for a week. There was literally not a dry eye in the house when I handed out these presents. (I accompanied them with small gifts that sort of tied in - like to go with the granny hair cuts I gave my SILs some nice shampoo and conditioner). No one "minded" in the slightest about charity presents and I know that my famil;y have given Good Gifts stuff to other people since. they have a huge range of ideas and budgets and are very well organised.

www,practicalpresents.org

you send goats, beehives, fish cages, donkeys, etc to families or villages in the third world - gives them a long lasting solution to feed themselves and/or have some revenue.

I just ordered a gift from SendACow website. It's my mum's birthday soon and as I no longer have very much to do with her, I was stuck as to what to do for this. But here is the ideal solution! I have donated money to a good cause and she can hardly complain about the present can she? So good has come from an awkward situation! I recommend these sites, they are great!