Charitable Gift Giving Blog: Gifts That Help

Well, hopefully the recommendations on this site over the past few weeks have let you get something nice for Mom today.  If not, you can always try Giftback.com’s Same Day Delivery.

You’ll get delivery from a real florist of a beautiful flower arrangement like the one shown to the left, and as always, 10% of your cost will be donated to the charity of your choice.

 But hurry! What did Mom tell you about putting things off to the last second?

Until Mother’s Day on Sunday, May 11, I’ll be focusing on great gifts for Mom. Check back every two days for another fantastic gift.

Here’s a great gift to give to Mom to tell her you love her and want her to stay happy and healthy for a long, long time.

The Betty Crocker Cookbook, Heart Health Edition is like any other Betty Crocker cookbook, with over 1,400 recipes, photos, and illustrations.

In addition, it has a special heart health section, which will teach her all kinds of great advice on how to be good to her heart, including adopting a heart-healthy lifestyle, cooking new heart-healthy recipes, and giving guidance on making heart-healthy meals.

Just release a few months ago, it’s a great gift for anyone you know who may have a family history of heart disease. Prevention of heart problems is the best cure. By giving this very special cookbook, you may be helping do just that.

A portion of proceeds from the sales of this book will go to Women Heart, an organization devoted to helping women combat heart disease, which is the #1 cause of death among American women.

Until Mother’s Day on Sunday, May 11, I’ll be focusing on great gifts for Mom. Check back every two days for another fantastic gift.

Mother’s Day is almost here! Show mom she raised you right by sending her this Pink Ribbon Bouquet from 1-800-Flowers, where a portion of proceed will go to the Carol Baldwin Breast Cancer center.

Click on the picture of the roses to the left to visit their site and make a purchase!

Red roses are for romance, yellow roses are for friendship, and pink roses are for mom! But hurry, Mother’s Day is less than a week away!

 Until Mother’s Day on Sunday, May 11, I’ll be focusing on great gifts for Mom. Check back every two days for another fantastic gift.

All moms have beautiful smiles. But this gift will be one to literally brighten the lives of mom, dad, or anyone else in your life who might have a smile that’s gone a bit yellow.

The GO SMILE Go All Out Kit is a great gift. The Go Smile system was developed by a dentist in New York, and the same kit that used to be available only in dentists’ offices is now available to anyone from Drugstore.Com.

Studies have shown that the simple act of brightening a smile can bring self-confidence, happiness, and success. If you know someone who might not smile as much as they used to because they’re self-conscious of a less-than-white smile, this is a fantastic gift for them.

And a portion of proceeds go towards Operation Smile, a not-for-profit volunteer medical services organization that provides reconstructive facial surgery to disadvantaged children and young adults.

From today until Mother’s Day on Sunday, May 11, I’ll be focusing on great gifts for Mom. Check back every two days for another fantastic gift.

Here’s a deal that’s probably not going to last very long. 1-800-Flowers is selling a genuine Lenox bud vase, complete with a silk rose, for only $23.99  just reduced to $19.99!.

It makes a great Mother’s Day present. If your Mom has a rose garden, she can even cut a single rose from her garden and keep a fresh rose in the beautiful bud vase all spring and summer long.

And of course, a portion of the proceeds will help a great cause. In this case, you’ll be helping Breastcancer.org, a non-profit organization whose aim is to educate women around the country on early detection and treatment.

Until Mother’s Day on Sunday, May 11, I’ll be focusing on great gifts for Mom. Check back every two days for another fantastic gift.

Yesterday, Rachael Ray released her brand new cookbook called Yum-o! The Family Cookbook

As successful as Rachael Ray has been in her life, one of the great things is that she’s giving back. She founded an organization called Yum-o! to give kids and adults an appreciation for good cooking and eating. Cooking is not a chore anymore, it’s a way to live a healthy life and to have fun as a family.

This cookbook contains recipes that both kids and their parents will love cooking together, and of course, eating together! The recipes are delicious, but make use of more whole grains, fresh fruits and vegetables, and less fat.

Rachael also talks about how to get the whole family involved, even very young kids.

All of Rachael Ray’s proceeds from sales of this book will be donated to her charity, Yum-o! For more information, please visit yum-o.org.

Until Mother’s Day on Sunday, May 11, I’ll be focusing on great gifts for Mom. Check back every two days for another fantastic gift.

Here’s another beautiful gift from NOVICA.

Wool shawl, ‘Sunshine’

This is a genuine, handloomed wool shawl that is a beautiful deep orchid color. The fringe is hand-tied and the shawl is hand-embroidered.

The purchase of this product will go directly to the rehabilitation of areas affected by the devastating earthquakes in India in 2001 and 2006. The organization that , working with NOVICA India, is the Self Employed Women Association, or SEWA. In addition to the immediate need of helping earthquake victims, the assocation since  1972 has been dedicated to helping underprivileged women become educated and empowered to sustain themselves and their families.

You can get it to Mom by Mother’s Day if you order by 4/30 and choose Priority Shipping.

See other SEWA gifts at NOVICA.

Until Mother’s Day on Sunday, May 11, I’ll be focusing on great gifts for Mom. Check back every two days for another fantastic gift.

Of  course, NOVICA supports human artists as well. Here’s a beautiful piece of artisinal jewelry created by an artist named “Caine” who lives in Bali, Indonesia.

 
Pearl and opal earrings, ‘Harmony’

Using precious and semi-precious gems from around the world, he crafts these beautiful pieces of jewelry. And a percentage of each purchase is donated to the Healthy Mother Earth Foundation in Indonesia.

This particular piece is set in sterling silver. The iridescent opal makes up the top of the earring, and the bottom is a cultured pearl in a beautiful setting. It’s also on sale for about 50% off. Find this and other amazing pieces of art at Novica.

Until Mother’s Day on Sunday, May 11, I’ll be focusing on great gifts for Mom. Check back every two days for another fantastic gift.

NOVICA is a great company that is affiliated with National Geographic Society. They identify artists all over the world, many in impoverished and developing countries, and give them a marketplace for their art, which in many cases rivals or surpasses fine art you’ll find in any museum or high-end jewelry or collectible shop.

The paintings you see here are called “Elephant Paintings”, from an artist named “Jojo”. I was perplexed at first. The paintings look nothing at all like an elephant.

After a while it dawned on me. These paintings are not paintings of elephants. They are paintings BY elephants! Jojo in particular is a 15 year-old elephant who not only paints, but also plays harmonica and xylophone.

The paintings picture here are one-of-a-kind paintings. Get them before they’re gone!

Breath of Orange Roses Elephant Painting

Early Lights Elephant Painting

The Thai Elephant Conservation Center in Northern Thailand is the brains behind this amazing concept of having elephants create art. Asian elephants are on the endangered species list because of years of deforestation, logging, poaching, and neglect. Men and women in southeast Asia are using these and other creative ways to bring awareness to their plight, and to raise funds (the proceeds of these paintings will go towards this important cause).

Some of Jojo’s work, in fact, have been auctioned for thousands of dollars. These particular paintings were originally over $600, but they are on sale now for less than half that, so get it before it’s gone!

If these two particular paintings are taken by the time you read this, check back on NOVICA for others.

Read All About It is a book that was released today, from first lady Laura Bush and daughter Jenna Bush. 

Most people know that Laura Bush is a former teacher in Dallas, Houston and Austin, and has always been passionate about reading. She was an Honorary Ambassador for the UN Literary Decade, and at the White House, she hosted the first Conference on Global Literacy in 2006, bringing many different countries together to promote literacy. She launched Washington DC’s first National Book Festival in Washington, D.C. in 2001. As much as a roller coaster ride her husband’s approval ratings have been, the First Lady’s ratings have consistently made her one of the most admired women in public service.

This picture book is a great book for kids from 4-8. It talks about a child who likes everything at school except for reading, but during story hour, amazing visitors start dropping in which causes him to change his tune.

A portion of proceeds to benefit Teach for America and The New Teacher Project.