Alternative Gift Market

This year so much is so different! But some things are the same: people need people!

A few of you have reached out, knowing we usually have our Alternative Gift Market in November and it's NOVEMBER! This year, we can still give our thoughtful gifts, but let's do it safely, and virtually.

What is the Alternative Gift Market? For the last ten years or so we have gathered on a Sunday in November to give gifts of charity for those on our list that need fewer material gifts for Christmas. Members of our congregation sit at a table and share why they have a particular passion and they take your contribution. We have provided cards for you to give your loved ones announcing your gift of a donation in their honor. The church bundles all donations to Habitat for Humanity, for example, and sends one check from our church.

This year that process will be different as well. We have chosen a few of the more popular organizations for your consideration. A few sentences explain the mission of that charity. Then you can click on the link provided and give from this site. The only downside is that our church will have no record of your donation and it will not be reflected on your giving statement. However, the organization will provide the usual documentation.

So many people have so many needs this year. Please consider what you can give and share your joy this year. It's more needed than ever in our lifetimes.

Luta Garbat-Welch serves as the PC(USA) Africa Community Health Facilitator in Malawi, where she is based, and in four other countries: the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, South Sudan, and Zambia. She helps African partners develop sustainable community health programs and implement Community Health Evangelism. Jeremy, a clinically trained hospital chaplain, shares his expertise with Presbyterian clergy in Malawi. “We are called to serve God by living holistic lives of faith and health and sharing God’s message of wholeness with others,” they write. “We hope that through our lives and work that we will help others live lives of wholeness and healing for others and the world.”

Click on the “Give” button and designate your gift for this special couple, children of Ruth and Doug Welch, serving the world on our behalf.

A Place to Sleep is a charity begun in 2009 by our own Jessica Collins, while she was a 10-year old Shelby County student. She was touched after watching the movie The Blind Side, which started her quest to find out how many children in her/our community did not have a bed to sleep in or a resource to help them. As a result she started this charity, whose objective is to provide beds for children who don’t have one. Over 2000 beds have been placed in Shelby and surrounding counties at this time.

Since we will not be assembling Christmas baskets, consider making a donation on the Salvation Army website. You can put in our zip code of 40065 if you want your dollars to be spent in this area.

They have other options for participation:
*. Angel Tree: The Angel Tree is up in Kroger now. There are over 700 children in Shelby County needing help under the Christmas tree this year. Go together with a friend(s) and sponsor several if you can! If you do not feel comfortable going inside Kroger, you can call Kathy at 502-655-2036 and she will mail your angel to you, or she will meet you in person to deliver it if you prefer. She will match you with specific ages of children if you prefer.

* Red Kettles: They are up and running, so give generously when you see that familiar kettle!

* Toys: Toys for Tots will not be collecting toys this year so they need lots of help collecting $ for toys this year. Could you help here?

This local ministry was created when Open Door of Hope and the Serenity Center combined efforts to serve the needs of Shelby County. Among the services they provide are free food, counsel and general support when needed. Counseling is offered in the areas of addiction recovery, veteran support and Grief Share. When you donate to this charity, Carlen Pippin is on the board and part of your donation could go to support the Veteran’s Village.

Click lick on the link on the button below or visit this website:

Awakeky.networkforgood.com

You can type in which charity you wish to apply your donation. You can choose from The Backpack Project (which sees that Shelby County students have food to eat on weekends), Veteran’s Village/Crossroads Missions (Donations are needed now toward the Community Center in the Veteran’s Village so veterans can gather with their friends and families), their food pantry, or other branches of their organization. Since our church is not able to prepare Christmas baskets this year, Boyd and Susie suggest a donation to Awake Ministries or our local Salvation Army. Share your good hearts in a new direction this year!

A gift to Heifer International is a gift to a development organization working to end hunger and poverty around the world by providing livestock and training to struggling brothers and sisters in their communities. Their work is in 21 countries around the world to strengthen local economies and build secure livelihoods that guarantee a living to local farmers. A gift to this charity will put a smile on Joyce Dotson’s loving memory.