Step Up: Gifts That Give Back

By Catherine Lincoln - November 19, 2008

A tight budget this year means I’m limiting my holiday gift giving to a very small circle of family of friends, and even then most of the presents will be going to the kids.

My fiscal restrictions also apply to year-end charitable giving. I just don’t have a spare $50 to contribute to causes beyond a few near and dear to my heart, like the Sierra Club and PBS.

This could have made my holiday season a little drab, but I found the perfect gift that actually maximizes my philanthropic intentions: the Ralph Lauren Paint Your Polo Kit.

The kit is a fun, creative gift for kids. It comes with six colors of paint, brushes, and stamps, plus a white Ralph Lauren polo shirt to use as the canvas. Cute, right?

At $50 it’s a little more than I might spend on a kid’s gift, but (and this is the best part) when you buy the kit from a Ralph Lauren Children’s Store, or on ralphlauren.com, 100% of the proceeds go to the Pink Pony Fund of the Polo Ralph Lauren Foundation benefiting Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center’s Pediatric Art Program.

So you get a cool present for a lucky kid, and you get to support a wonderful program for other kids who could use a little luck.

This got me to thinking about other gifts that would be welcomed by the grade school set, plus help out some of your favorite charities when they need it most.

World Wildlife Fund (WWF) Gift Center: “Adopt” a panda bear! For $50 your little friend will get a plush toy, a photo, and an adoption certificate, plus an introduction to the important idea of animal conservation.

Build a Bear: Proceeds from the Furry Friends collection support programs like the Build-A-Bear Workshop Bear Hugs Foundation, which makes grants to children’s wellness causes, local animal shelters and stray pet rescue organizations, and breast cancer.

Your local church/school/civic organization Holiday Fair: There are fun crafts galore at these festivals, and for some organizations they are the most important fundraising event of the year. Sure, some of the items might skew a little older (most kids don’t really want a handmade wreath) you do need something for your mom, right?

The more time I spend researching it, the more fun I’m having looking for gifts that give back. Plus, I already feel like I’m getting into the real spirit of the season, and it’s not even Thanksgiving yet.

Call it an unintended benefit of living on a budget. Everyone wins!

Cat Lincoln’s “Step Up” column appears in this space every Wednesday.  You can also find Cat blogging at Green Daily, Stylelist, and wishboneclover.