Social - November 2002

Churches plan third annual Alternative Gift Market

From staff reports

November 1, 2002 - With Christmas tinsel and toys already beckoning holiday shoppers, two Lincolnton churches are offering a one-day gift market designed to focus more on the concept of giving than on the gifts.

“The kids are the ones who really love it,” says J. Nelson-Weaver, a volunteer with this year’s Alternative Gift Market. “It is a very simple way for them to learn what Christmas is all about.”

The Alternative Gift Market will be Sunday, Dec. 1, from 2 to 5 p.m. in the Citizens Center in downtown Lincolnton. This year’s market — which will feature booths, crafts and donation gift cards from charities such as Habitat for Humanity and global-oriented merchants — is an expansion of last year’s effort by First Presbyterian and Emmanuel Lutheran churches.

Stephanie Walrath, a 12-year-old whose family started giving donations as Christmas presents several years ago, thinks it is great to give and to receive donations at Christmas time. Last year her aunt and uncle gave her a donated flock of chickens that went to a struggling family in India, through the nationally known Heifer Project.

“When I got that donation, I felt like I was helping somebody else instead of getting more stuff,” Walrath said. She likes to give donations as presents, too. “It makes you feel like you’ve helped someone else instead of just giving presents because it’s your duty.”

For many families in today’s fast-paced world, celebrating the holidays can be more of a burden than a time of joy. Rushing to buy presents for everyone on your list can turn into a mad dash to find something for all your family and friends.

The Alternative Gift Market on Dec. 1 offers an opportunity to break through that holiday shopping frenzy. How about getting a finely-woven basket from the Philippines for your mother? What about a donation to a local charity as the perfect gift for that person who has everything?

Gifts offered at the Alternative Gift Market help people of many different faiths put their values into action. The purchase of a handmade stone sculpture from Kenya will put much-needed funds into the hands of a native artist, not some corporate middle-man. Buying a bag of coffee beans that come straight from Latin America will see a greater return to the local farmer. Donations to local, national, and international charities that serve people in need are very tangible ways to express lasting values of justice, fairness and care for those less fortunate than ourselves.

“Does Dad truly need another tie this Christmas?” Nelson-Weaver asked. “Why not give him a gift that really makes a difference instead?”

For more information on the Alternative Gift Market, contact Jane Limone-Rollins, at 704-736-0335.

© 2001 Lincoln Times-News  

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